In Jamaica, I spent a lot of time staring up at the ceiling. I would float in and out of intricate thoughts about the world and maybe by the time I’d roll out of bed, have learned something new or realized something that seemed of ancient wisdom. I had a tendency to come back to the same overarching idea each time: judgement. How often I was exercising judgement in my daily life was not unbeknownst to me.
Every day presented a challenge or excitement, which brought an internal dialogue fueled by loaded questions. And it wasn’t until I made my way onto my back and released the days tensions by sprawling out into a starfish on my bed that the revelation of understanding could wash over me. But sands of preconceived notion wash away with ease when the gravitational force of something beyond our understanding creates a high enough tide. When we expose ourselves to experiences that bring us a little closer to the shoreline, what’s behind it all, the moon, seems a lot closer too.
What I mean is that if we as humans don’t seek & seize opportunities that move outside of our own ways of thinking, we’ll remain isolated from the very adventures that give us the true, personally developing growth that measure the depth of someone’s heart or the breadth of her mind.
Each day I set a tangible, realistic intention that I believe will bring me closer to my most emotionally intelligent self; it takes me places even when I’m just staring up at my own ceiling. I wouldn’t consider myself an “all you need is love” type—I think if we can strive for acceptance, understanding and validation of our fellow Earthlings, we’ll go much farther.
