Becoming
Fully Human
“No two
beings are exactly alike. And their individuality is no imperfection.
On the contrary, the perfection of each created thing is not merely
in its conformity to an abstract type but to its own individual
identity with itself.”
Thomas
Merton
Thomas Merton began this
quote by saying, “A tree gives glory to God by being a tree.”
A tree does not attempt to change itself into a pig, or a coral
reef—it begins life as a seed that can only become a tree. Of
course, we think that trees are not sentient beings and could not
change even if they wanted to, so comparing trees to people is apples
to oranges. But in many ways we aren't that different, except that we
have a choice about who we become.
I was given a small
bonsai tree for Christmas. It is a balsam tree that has been curved
into a question mark shape by tying wires to it as it grew.
Ordinarily it would be a medium-sized tree by now, but someone kept
pruning its roots and branches to keep it small and pot bound. I'm
tending to it as best I can, but I'm thinking about planting it in
the earth when spring comes—so it can become the tree it was born
to be. I want to set it free!
We humans are also shaped
by our circumstances, in fact there's a whole area of
psychology/biology that uses body shape to analyze a person's personality and biography. We know people, for instance, who hunch their shoulders,
or throw out their chest, or walk with their head down. Holding these
postures over time causes the tendons and ligaments to accommodate so
that the body becomes stuck in that shape—just like the bonsai. We
associate certain emotions and personalities with permanently bowed
head, rigid back and neck, or hunched shoulders—low self-esteem, sadness,
guardedness, defensiveness, even anger. But when a person becomes
aware of such armoring, usually because of pain, physical and emotional, they can change it.
We can set ourselves free with increased awareness and considerable
work. That work includes changing the personality as well as the
posture.
A human being gives glory
to God by being fully human. Both unique and ordinary, we are meant
to discover all of our brilliant light as well as our dark corners.
We are the only beings on this planet who can choose to change—not
into a fish or a swan, but into a happy, healthy human. What a gift!
In the Spirit,
Jane
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