Taking a quick stroll within the backyard my ears caught the murmur of the dancing bees toiling among the fragile blossoms above. The buzzing verses wove a hymn encouraging one another to work together, show others the way, and how to gather their golden treasure. I paused, closed my eyes, and let the hymn lift me to the tops of the trees. My spirit joined the spring ballet with wings wide open. I flitted from bloom to bloom filling my soul with the nectar of goodness. My voice joined the buzzing melody and for a gentle moment in time I was one amongst a community of beings. It was joyous.
Opening my eyes, I looked around and heard another song, this one playing in my head by Three Dog Night, “One is the loneliest number that you'll ever do…” And I pondered our current situation, that we are missing the physicality of being with one another for the good of one another. How confusing it all can be and can leave us in a vulnerable position, called isolation. Isolation does not have to be state ordered. It can be self-inflicted, a personal choice. It can be a result of fear from past hurts. It may even be a choice to punish others. I am sure the reasons are endless, however, there is one truth that I believe most would agree upon, and that is, we are creatures who need one another. We thirst for one another. We need to be in the presence of other beings and feel their energy and excitement, see their joy and share their pain, to comfort the other, share a smile, laugh, cry, mourn and sometimes to just sit and just be. It seems to me that even before this time of mandated quarantine, many human beings were alone, uninvited, shunned, not wanted, even though we were around human beings everywhere. We were surrounded with neighbors, schoolmates, colleagues, and the list goes on, yet many did not even notice. Now, we have lost that freedom to just be with others and what a freedom to have lost.
What have we learned or are continuing to learn from this experience?
Looking ahead and beyond this time, let us remember that when we have no societal restraints, let us vow to be very intentional with one another and spread love, kindness, patience, joy, gentleness, goodness, faithfulness, self-control, and peace all the while treasuring and respecting this gift, we have called life.
Wow! How far we have come. Or have we. I wrote the following almost two years to the day and I found it so fitting that these words seem fitting for such a time as this. Present day, April 2022….
I begin to share my metamorphosis…