Good morning, everyone! It’s Friday, July 25th, and I’m out for my second walk of the day. Yesterday marked our first 100-degree day here in Oklahoma. After an unusually long and extended spring and early summer, it feels like the “real” Oklahoma summer has finally arrived – the kind with scorching hot days that many people associate with our state.
Dealing with Broken Systems, Inside and Out
Speaking of things that are heating up, my neighborhood, Fenwick Village, has been plagued by broken water mains. Just on my street alone, we’ve had seven or eight breaks in the past couple of years, and the wider neighborhood has seen at least 20 major ruptures in the last two years. Our streets are constantly being torn up for repairs. The official line is that new growth in the area is straining the pipes, requiring more water to be pumped through. Whatever the reason, it’s incredibly frustrating.
These constant breaks have felt like a metaphor for our times. So many systems around us seem to be breaking down, requiring endless repairs that don’t always offer a long-term solution. It leaves you wondering if the fixes will actually last.
On a personal note, I also saw my new doctor yesterday. Her name is Dr. Dearman, and she specializes in senior patients like me. My wife met her and absolutely adored her. My previous doctor has been dealing with a long-term illness, so I decided it was time to switch to ensure I have a consistent healthcare team that knows my history. Integris Health Group has been great, but at my age, having a dedicated team who understands your situation is crucial.
Challenging Individuality: A Journey into Non-Duality
One of the most significant shifts happening in my life, and it’s been a multi-year process, is a deep dive into the concept of non-duality. I first encountered this idea through Hindu teachings and the Theosophical Society, and now it’s gaining more traction among various independent thinkers.
So, what is non-duality? Simply put, it’s the notion that we are all one. There’s only “the One” – you could call it God, or as I prefer, “the synergistic sum of all things.” The core idea is that nothing can exist apart from God because God is everything. Logic suggests that if God created everything, it had to be from Himself, as there was nothing else.
This concept also challenges our notions of space and time, suggesting they are illusory, arising from the consciousness of God. In the end, it’s all just God.
This raises a profound question: Who are we? If everything is God, then we are part of that divine “complex.” I am not God, but there is nothing in me that isn’t God, and nothing about me that isn’t sacred. This can be unsettling for some, especially when we see so much pain and suffering in the world. How can suffering exist if we are all God?
The answer, in non-duality, is that God has an infinite number of individuations of itself. We are each a portion of the infinite, and therefore, in a way, infinite ourselves. While the logic of a “chip” from infinity still being infinite is something I’m pondering, the fundamental premise is that all things are unified in God.
Even though we experience a sense of individuality, deep down, we are all part of the same essence. The grass, a rock, asphalt, a desk – it’s all part of the synergistic sum of all that is. The theory suggests we experience these individuations so the infinite can better know itself. Another perspective posits that our physical form is an “avatar,” a projection of a larger, unseen self, having an earthly experience. When this physical life ends, the avatar ceases, but consciousness, being part of God, continues.
Non-Duality vs. Traditional Christianity
This differs quite a bit from traditional Christian teaching, which often states that we are a creation of God, given one life, judged eternally for our actions, and that’s that. I’ve found myself moving away from the idea of literal reincarnation to a more refined view: we are always alive, but not always projecting into this individuated form. We remain somewhat individuated even in other planes, still connected to the synergistic sum but not fully absorbed, because the divine desires continued exploration and experience. What a concept!
The Challenge of Seeing God in All
Learning to see the God in all people is a significant challenge. It’s easy to see it in Mother Teresa or other selfless individuals, but how do you see God in those who commit heinous acts? It requires a complete shift in mindset. Our upbringing often shapes our worldview through a specific lens, making paradigm shifts incredibly difficult, as they are intertwined with community, family, and inherited traditions.
However, as we learn and grow, we can strive to do better. My personal mission is to learn how to see that God-self in all things and all people. I admit I’ve spent more years not seeing it within myself than believing I had it, and even now, I sometimes struggle to truly believe in the “God Spark” within me. It’s often easier to focus on my individuated self, with all its failings and successes.
I believe it’s more precise and truthful to say that God is in all things, and therefore, all people are deserving of respect and honor. While our “avatars” are doing all sorts of things and having diverse experiences, ultimately, it’s an unfolding play of God knowing Himself.
“It Is What It Is” and Moving Forward with Love
This brings me to the powerful phrase, “It is what it is.” Instead of immediately labeling something as good, bad, right, or wrong, we can simply acknowledge the behavior for what it is. Why did someone lie? I may not know, and perhaps the best response is simply to observe, “That’s what happened.”
If I can learn to see the God in everyone and accept “what is” as the reality, then I can move forward in my life in the most loving way possible, learning lessons along the way. For friends who have told untruths, I can acknowledge “that’s what is” and then ask myself what the lesson is for me. Perhaps it’s a reminder that under extreme pressure, we can be tempted to be less than truthful, and that lies eventually catch up. If we are all one, then even in those moments, there’s a part of me that is also a part of that experience, offering a chance for personal growth in wisdom, love, and compassion.
We all, I believe, deep down desire to be truthful, kind, and loving, and yet we often fall short. We are all struggling, learning, and trying to do better each day with incomplete knowledge, limited resources, and varying emotional intelligence. Sometimes we know better and don’t act on it; other times, we simply don’t know what to do, and things turn into a mess.
So, the two things I’m striving to integrate more fully into my life are:
- Seeing the God Spark, the “Presence” as I call it, in all things – animal, vegetable, mineral, but especially in my fellow humans.
- Moving away from the need to judge or define something as good, bad, right, or wrong. It is what it is.
I’m reminded of something an attorney said during my divorce: “The debts are here. The debts remain.” We can fight against “what is,” but it doesn’t change the reality. We can only decide what to do next, even when the answers aren’t clear. We continue on this earthly journey, trying to learn and be better, despite our incompleteness.
And in dealing with “what is,” I’m always drawn back to Aristotle’s virtues and the middle way. Not to swing to extremes of anger or passivity, but to cultivate righteous anger when needed without being unreasonable, and to avoid being so passive that we do nothing.
I see a lot of finger-pointing and blaming on social media these days. That, too, “is what it is.” How do I respond? I try to remember the God spark behind it all, seeing it as a play or a simulation, and questioning how “David Lowry,” this small spark of the divine in an avatar body, will respond. Can I learn to deal with it all and become an even better part of the healing process for the synergistic sum of all that is?
Thank you for listening to my musings. It is what it is.
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