I had a conversation recently with a friend who has one of the bigger hearts on the planet. Reflecting on the state of the world, she tells me, "There is no suffering." Out of kindness, I choose to let her temporary lapse of her grip on reality go unnoticed. Yet, like a seed planted in fertile ground, how such an odd concept could be true has been begging to make its way out of my imagination. And so I present it here:
Pain, loss, destruction are not in themselves suffering. They just are. We are the ones who see suffering in them when in fact they are pure experience. Raw material that we are at choice to work with as we like. We could choose to become sufferers of pain, loss, destruction. We could choose to become one who takes this raw material of experience and in embracing what is gained from it, becomes more than we were before. We could be blessed with a wealth of experience, a treasure trove to help and inspire.
I send out thanks to this friend who saw what I couldn't see and I share this with you so that you can know what the choice is, when it comes to suffering.
This is rather astounding. "Pain, loss, destruction (anxiety!) are not in themselves suffering. They just are. We are the ones who see suffering in them when in fact they are pure experience." I feel like a light bulb just turned on over my head...xoxo
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