Dancing the Dance

Dropping the Veils

“When two people relate to each other authentically and humanly, God is the electricity that surges between them.”

                                  Martin Buber

         Remember the account in Matthew’s Gospel (Ch. 14) of the dance of Salome? Herod was so bewitched, he gave her John the Baptist’s head on a platter. No where does it say there were seven veils, but somehow it became known as the ‘dance of the seven veils’. I think that happened because we humans know the dance. We dance the same dance whenever we meet someone new. Our veils are the various personas we portray to the world. They begin with the veil of ever-youthful beauty (a one-billion dollar industry in 2010), and progress through the veils of status, position, wealth, intelligence, abilities, and wit before arriving at the naked, human reality. The seven veils, though flimsy, are the armor we wear to shelter us from our own fear of being just one ordinary human among many. Sounds like psychobabble, doesn’t it? Check it out next time you go to a cocktail party. We’re all doing the dance.

         What if we were to drop the veils? What if we were simply to meet people as we are, warts and all, and let the response be whatever it will be? Relationships built on veils are not real; they are simply the co-mingling of insecurities. If we were to be authentically ourselves, without the smoke and mirrors, some people would undoubtedly walk away. But the ones who stayed would be true friends, authentic relationships, built on genuine trust. There is nothing like living with your guard down. It is terrifyingly, exhilaratingly real.

         When relationships are built on authenticity, they have juice. They are electric. Each time you meet, you feel energized and excited. Each time you part, you can’t wait until the next encounter. Buber called that juice God, and maybe he’s right. I hope you feel the surge today.

                                  In the spirit,

                                  Jane