Loving Across the Holes

My grandmother was devoted to a TV soap opera called AS THE WORLD TURNS which ran from 1956 to 2010.  At the time, episode writers and their loyal followers concentrated on the drama (some might call it melodrama) of everyday life in the fictional town of Oakdale, Illinois. Today the title might better recall the far more universal theme of world society in transition.

Some are convinced the current transition changes reliance on traditional institutions and authorities—especially religious/political/mercenary ones—to a more diverse, interconnected humanity. Without attempting to identify precisely what the transition looks like in progress, all peoples are finding themselves compelled to decide where their real-life loyalties lie. What replaces lost family grouping or redefines present groupings? What do ethics look like when they’re divorced from religions? What do humans need to survive physically, emotionally, and spiritually? A key question today is who do you trust? Tribal markings such as race, culture, or nationality are no longer reliable tests of compatibility.

Individuality brings with it hardened individual responsibilities. For some, the burden of this shift and its inherent choices is intolerable. They cling to authorities and depend on the opinions of familiar masses. But the changing world society creates new challenges that have never been more consequential for the planet. Beliefs aside, family-style units are often fractured, torn by too much distance in thought or physical reality. Yet we’re told community reinforces good health. The traditional means of tying people together such as permanent jobs with the same co-workers, stable neighborhoods, or milestone ceremonies are less common. Connections are often limited to texts or other cyber ties that inadvertently penalize those who can’t keep up with the frantic pace of reinvention.

Recently, I celebrated my birthday and realized I belong to a birth family that already transitions with time. Most members are separated from me by distance, age, demanding belief systems, and time-consuming interests. I probably succumbed to the same sorts of issues when I was their age. Remember “never trust anyone over thirty”?

My most inspiring contacts are those sustained by self-aware love—the love of people who would suffer no serious repercussions if they never contacted me again. Few have DNA links with me. Herein lie people whose sincere caring may well travel with me into the next life. Many are already there. They love me, the whole of me, just because I exist. And I love them the same way. Some will focus their attentions elsewhere one day, which doesn’t cancel the love we share, just stretches it. I accept that all humans live in an interdimensional web of being, meant to make us stronger. I’ve decided to command my soul to seek out resonant souls I’ve yet to meet. With their help, I’ll expand my environment that threatens to shrink with old age and coincidentally provide more strength to the best parts of this existence for anyone close by. Friends near and far made this birthday especially joyful with heart-felt notes and gestures. So did my husband who (to quote Poe) is “…rare and radiant…”—giving of himself.  Honest caring sparkles! I hope I can sparkle for others—avoiding obligations and cardboard affection, simply providing love to make us all shine into a kinder existence.