By Philip Suzara
Pondering… as I sit here at the edge of my mythical life pond.
One can see many things happening at the edge of life’s pond, as in any pond. Decisions are made there, life changing decisions, defining moments… to get in the pond, or not. The pond is encircled by its edges in different forms and kinds: straight, jagged, rough, rocks, pebbles, sand, soil, or mud. Very much like people. No matter the differences we have, we all belong there… around the life pond, inside, outside, at the edge, but there.
I come to ponder about one shining giant of a human being, Albert Einstein; he was widely acknowledged to be the greatest physicist of all time, he was definitely a giant in the field of science.
While there had been some insights that have surfaced on the other sides of Albert’s life, there were lots of quotations gathered by some researchers on this fertile side which was of human interest.
A few years back, I came to read some of the writings of one researcher, Doug Mc Lean, on his research about Albert Einstein and came up with very interesting quotations on life attributed to the man himself, Albert Einstein.
I take a particular interest in this quotation; "A human being experiences himself, his thoughts and feelings as something separated from the rest, a kind of optical delusion of consciousness. This delusion is a kind of prison for us, restricting us to our personal desires and to affection for a few persons nearest to us. Our task must be to free ourselves from this prison by widening our circle of compassion to embrace all living creatures and the whole of nature in its beauty." This statement is a succinctly deep observation of our being -- in the way of how we relate with those around us, and those which surround us. It is about the relativity of how we are given to our perceptions and how we react to them. This will help define the authenticity of our humanity.
This, to me, is when we become an authentic human being because of how we relate with others; when our consciousness is tempered and steeped with a conduct of choiceless awareness. We recognize and react with all stimuli and we become whole in the fullness of our being, even in just that particular moment alone.
Let me take you on another journey with this now classical and iconic song from the Beatles, written by songwriters John Winston Lennon and Paul James McCartney and released in 1965.
The meaning of this particular song captures how I feel about and interpret the preceding quote from Albert Einstein.
The song talks about love of life and love of relationships past and present, all inclusive of friendships, family and lovers.
In My Life
“There are places I'll remember All my life though some have changed Some forever, not for better Some have gone and some remain
All these places have their moments With lovers and friends I still can recall Some are dead and some are living In my life I've loved them all
But of all these friends and lovers There is no one compares with you And these memories lose their meaning When I think of love as something new
Though I know I'll never lose affection For people and things that went before I know I'll often stop and think about them In my life I love you more
Though I know I'll never lose affection For people and things that went before I know I'll often stop and think about them In my life I love you more
In my life I love you more”
Try wrapping your heart and soul in the song, and then think and romance those words from our dear Albert, John, and Paul.
Envelop yourself in their words and you’ll discover that their message, actually is, that time, as with love, shares the same continuum.
Pondering, as I sit here at the edge of life’s pond.
Philip Suzara
Creature of God. Child of the Universe. Global Citizen. Lover of Life. Freedom Fighter. Agent of Change. Lone Wolf. Occasional Consultant for Strategic Communications.
