I’ve been hearing a lot about polarities and dualities: Black - White, Good - Evil, Dark - Light, Good - Bad, God - Devil, Physical - Spiritual, Rich - Poor, and so on. You can read about them and hear about them any where from the grocery store to Wall Street to churches all around the globe. They are in every nitch and corner of our thought process and our global societies are steeped with them.
Dualities and Polarities are really antagonistic in principle. They present a ‘Them and Us’ scenario. And there is something about that mode of thinking, of living, that is disturbing to all of us - no matter which ‘side’ you are on. That mind set separates, and slices apart humanity. It causes disrespect, resentment, hate, rage, fear and breeds hopelessness. It nourishes greed, promotes segregation and increases the possibilities of war and destruction, both on a personal level and on a global level. It does not offer any semblance of healing. Rather, it presents a ‘no win’ situation. It allows us a way to judge, to exclude, and to negate. It separates, pushes apart, and invites us to become either victim or elite.
What if we looked at it differently? What if we gave up that linear thinking and mind set and saw it differently? What if we stopped judging for a minute and looked at it in truth with honesty and impeccability. What if we allowed ourselves to see a broader view? What if we viewed it as a circle instead of a polarity, what would happen? Would it not cut through a lot of conflict and chaos internally? Wouldn’t it remove the reasons for war and greed. Wouldn’t it promote respect and invite a knowledge and growth both mentally and spiritually to everyone? Wouldn’t it bring an evenness to every one? And why would we not want that? Would it be an excuse for us to feel insecure, to feel less than or more than?
It seems to me that Polarities and Dualities stem from judgments. We judge ourselves, we judge others. We judge everything from skin color, to religious beliefs, to the clothes people wear, to the way they live their lives, the way they look, the way they talk and how much money they have. We judge everything, everything. And we judge ourselves in the most merciless ways possible. We’re bad, we’re evil, we’re dumb, we’re ugly, we’re poor, we’re this, we’re that. Again, it is a ‘them and us’ dance. The question is: Why do we do that? To make ourselves worthy, to make ourselves feel better about ourselves or to prove to ourselves we aren't worthy?
What if we looked at it completely differently? What if we saw ‘God’ in everyone? What if we saw God in ourselves? What if we stopped making God in OUR image and allow ourselves to contemplate and investigate what it means to be made in God's image? What if we saw, not a linear way of thinking, but an all encompassing embracement of human kind? How would that feel and what would that look like?
Something to think about in this new paradigm that we are heading in to, don't you think?
Prissy Hamilton
Monday, March 16, 2009
Thursday, March 5, 2009
My Friend Pie
Story of a child with cancer as told by her teddy bear
My friend Pie was real sick. She had not felt very well for several months and she seemed not to be getting any better. I was worried about her because she slept a lot and didn’t seem very happy or excited about anything. I snuggled in bed and on the couch with her most of the time. So, I was excited the day I found out we were going to go for a long car ride to the big city. It was in the car that I learned we were going to a group of special doctors in a big hospital to ask them to help my friend Pie.
Pie and I curled up on the back seat on the way. I could tell that she was worried and scared. It’s scary to know that there is something wrong with the way your body works and it is also scary to go to big hospitals where strangers will ask you questions and poke and push at your body. Even though you know they are trying to help you.
My Pie was very brave and with her parents help she ask lots of questions. Her parents ask questions, too. I didn’t know what questions to ask so I listened with all my might. I just wanted my Pie to feel better so we could have fun again.
We found out that my friend Pie had cancer. We also found out that treatment for this disease would be long and that she would not feel very good during the treatment. There were actually two different types of treatment. The first one and the longest one would be something called Chemo Therapy. It’s where different chemicals are put into the body and these chemicals kill the cancer. The chemicals also make you sick to your stomach most of the time and very tired. They sometimes cause your hair to fall out, too. The second treatment, after the Chemo Therapy is finished, is called radiation. It’s done with a special x-ray type machine. It doesn’t hurt but makes you feel like you have a bad sun burn and very tired.
It was a big scary day. When our whole family got in the car to go back home, we were all very quiet. I could tell everyone was sad and worried, especially Pie, who hugged me ever so tightly for a long time.
When we got back home, we all talked and made some agreements. Pie’s mom said it was a time to be really honest with each other. Pie agreed to talk about her needs and wants. Her step father agreed to be there and help with whatever was needed. I agreed to be by her side all the time if she wanted me to. We all agreed that we could get through this together and we would look forward to the little fun things that happen on a daily basis.
Every three weeks we would make the two hour trip down to the big city to the big hospital where my Pie would have her treatments. I would sit by her and send her all my love. It was not fun and sometimes she would feel sicker, but we all kept our agreements about enjoying the little things. The nurses would joke with us and laugh. They often hugged us all and helped to make unpleasant feelings a little more bearable. The doctors were very nice, too. They told us when something would hurt and they would give Pie different medication for tummy aches when one didn’t work.
It seemed like a very long time. One night when we returned home, Pie noticed that her beautiful hair was falling out. She began to cry. I felt very badly for her. Then her mom explained to us that her hair falling out was a sign that the treatment was working and that even though it was scary, that it would grow back and be all right.
Pie cried and cried and held me tight all night long. The next few weeks brought lots of hats and scarfs to our house from many friends. Pie’s step father even shaved his head - we all laughed and talked and after a while we realized that hair was just stuff that grows off the top of your head and being without it for a while was not that big of a deal after all.
We continued going down to the big city to the big special hospital for months. Finally we started the count down of how many treatments were left to go. Three, then two and then one. I will never forget the last one.
We all stood out in the parking lot and looked around. Pie’s step father said, “remember how scary it was the first time we came here and how it all seemed too much to handle? It certainly feels different now, doesn’t it?” We all agreed and Pie held me just as tight as she did that very first day.
My friend Pie is doing fine now. Her hair is very short, but it is growing back. Each day she feels a little better and each day we enjoy the little things that are fun. Things like the way her dog Tippy cocks his head when we talk to him, the smiles our friends flash at us when they see us, the hugs that say they are proud of us.
Pie once told me that her many friends, her parents and I had made a big difference in going through all the treatments. She said she loved them all and that they had made a real scary part of her life manageable. She said she was glad they were there. I am real happy I was there with her, too. And I am very proud of my friend Pie.
© Prissy Hamilton 1996
My friend Pie was real sick. She had not felt very well for several months and she seemed not to be getting any better. I was worried about her because she slept a lot and didn’t seem very happy or excited about anything. I snuggled in bed and on the couch with her most of the time. So, I was excited the day I found out we were going to go for a long car ride to the big city. It was in the car that I learned we were going to a group of special doctors in a big hospital to ask them to help my friend Pie.
Pie and I curled up on the back seat on the way. I could tell that she was worried and scared. It’s scary to know that there is something wrong with the way your body works and it is also scary to go to big hospitals where strangers will ask you questions and poke and push at your body. Even though you know they are trying to help you.
My Pie was very brave and with her parents help she ask lots of questions. Her parents ask questions, too. I didn’t know what questions to ask so I listened with all my might. I just wanted my Pie to feel better so we could have fun again.
We found out that my friend Pie had cancer. We also found out that treatment for this disease would be long and that she would not feel very good during the treatment. There were actually two different types of treatment. The first one and the longest one would be something called Chemo Therapy. It’s where different chemicals are put into the body and these chemicals kill the cancer. The chemicals also make you sick to your stomach most of the time and very tired. They sometimes cause your hair to fall out, too. The second treatment, after the Chemo Therapy is finished, is called radiation. It’s done with a special x-ray type machine. It doesn’t hurt but makes you feel like you have a bad sun burn and very tired.
It was a big scary day. When our whole family got in the car to go back home, we were all very quiet. I could tell everyone was sad and worried, especially Pie, who hugged me ever so tightly for a long time.
When we got back home, we all talked and made some agreements. Pie’s mom said it was a time to be really honest with each other. Pie agreed to talk about her needs and wants. Her step father agreed to be there and help with whatever was needed. I agreed to be by her side all the time if she wanted me to. We all agreed that we could get through this together and we would look forward to the little fun things that happen on a daily basis.
Every three weeks we would make the two hour trip down to the big city to the big hospital where my Pie would have her treatments. I would sit by her and send her all my love. It was not fun and sometimes she would feel sicker, but we all kept our agreements about enjoying the little things. The nurses would joke with us and laugh. They often hugged us all and helped to make unpleasant feelings a little more bearable. The doctors were very nice, too. They told us when something would hurt and they would give Pie different medication for tummy aches when one didn’t work.
It seemed like a very long time. One night when we returned home, Pie noticed that her beautiful hair was falling out. She began to cry. I felt very badly for her. Then her mom explained to us that her hair falling out was a sign that the treatment was working and that even though it was scary, that it would grow back and be all right.
Pie cried and cried and held me tight all night long. The next few weeks brought lots of hats and scarfs to our house from many friends. Pie’s step father even shaved his head - we all laughed and talked and after a while we realized that hair was just stuff that grows off the top of your head and being without it for a while was not that big of a deal after all.
We continued going down to the big city to the big special hospital for months. Finally we started the count down of how many treatments were left to go. Three, then two and then one. I will never forget the last one.
We all stood out in the parking lot and looked around. Pie’s step father said, “remember how scary it was the first time we came here and how it all seemed too much to handle? It certainly feels different now, doesn’t it?” We all agreed and Pie held me just as tight as she did that very first day.
My friend Pie is doing fine now. Her hair is very short, but it is growing back. Each day she feels a little better and each day we enjoy the little things that are fun. Things like the way her dog Tippy cocks his head when we talk to him, the smiles our friends flash at us when they see us, the hugs that say they are proud of us.
Pie once told me that her many friends, her parents and I had made a big difference in going through all the treatments. She said she loved them all and that they had made a real scary part of her life manageable. She said she was glad they were there. I am real happy I was there with her, too. And I am very proud of my friend Pie.
© Prissy Hamilton 1996
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