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Every living thing in this universe is connected; what happens to one, happens to all—what we do to another, we do to ourselves—and it is our own silent surrender to the inner-wisdom we all have that will help us to remember this divine connection.
It is our human responsibility to be the bridge that connects; and it is God's supreme joy to shine through us and be the Light that illuminates the bridge. Being human, being in this world, is an opportunity to re-connect with our true Selves by way of connecting with each other—and that is why, at this particular moment in time, we are all here together.
We need each other to know ourselves. We need each other to remember how to love, how to share, how to give. We need each other to see and experience who we really are. We are here to help each other, to walk together, to bless one another, and to create a better world by reaching out from within. We are the bridge-makers, the unstoppable-shapers of that which brings us together and never divides.
We are the divine expression of "oneness." We are that which inspires love to connect to love; greatness to greatness, wholeness to wholeness, and brother to brother. We are the ultimate reflection of Divine Mind in ever-flowing harmony with the perfect "connection plan." And, we best connect with others by way of sturdy bridges built on, and with, spiritual integrity and human kindness.
How do we begin to build such bridges? ...Through forgiveness, through friendship, through love and understanding, through compassion, through giving, through sharing, through accepting others as they are and seeing the goodness in everyone.
It is not for any of us to decide what good is, but it is for all of us to choose to be an "example" of what good does. Who others are is their goodness. What they believe about themselves is their religion. What they are made of is their divinity. How they choose to live is their path and, because of the perfection of the plan, who they are is, without exception, who we are.
Since the beginning of time, we have been asked to "know" ourselves through our relationship with our own divinity and the divinity of others. Every human being immediately rises to a much higher level of consciousness as soon as he begins to recognize and value his similarity to those who appear to be different.
Whether we define ourselves religiously as Christians, Hindus or Buddhists; whether we describe ourselves racially as black or white; and regardless of which side of the equator we live on—every great spiritual teacher implores us to be who we are because we are all expressions of Infinite Love; and then to take another step… to look through this Love and see ourselves in all of those with whom we share this world.
As the Dalai Lama suggests in Ethics for the New Millennium, "In order to overcome our tendency to ignore others' needs and rights, we must continually remind ourselves of what is obvious: that basically we are all the same."
And, further—in my quest to discover the original teachings of Jesus, I found that he, too, instructed his apostles to never condemn another man for his core beliefs or religion; but instead, to find the likeness in every man's character to his own; and to connect with that similarity. And this is what we must all do in the building of the bridges of light: find the likeness and the similarity in others and extend our own goodness to theirs by connecting to the light in them, even if that light appears to be no bigger than a grain of sand.
No one appreciates or honors someone who tears them down—by nature, we are drawn to those who accept us as we are. We are all doing our best; those who recognize our qualities are those who recognize their own qualities―and, if allowed, they will use those qualities to inspire and empower us to be greater, and to live from a spiritual perspective of wholeness and unity.
Appreciate and honor those who build beside you, as well as those who only dream of building. Show compassion for those who try, yet falter, as well as for those who do no more than gather wood. Remember, at some point in time you, too, tried and failed; and you, too, gathered―but did not build.
Do not demolish the accomplishment of trial and error, nor lessen the victory of gathering. Perhaps the one who has tried and failed possesses the secret of what does not work. And, perhaps the one who merely gathers, carries the plank that completes the strongest bridge. Know that it is only by working together that our noble creations will withstand the storms that bring Earth's occupants closer to the Divinity of Man.
Take care to notice the good of the bridges that already exist, even if they are not as you would have created them; even if they are crooked, cracked or falling down―offer only your friendship and the use of your tools for repair―not your advice and not your opinion of the perceived value or worth of a particular bridge. Let others design as they see fit, and let the builder of the bridge make the ultimate decision as to the scope and the strength of his own creation.
Work diligently on your own bridge; your own pathways and connections―as others perceive your light, so will they perceive their own.
Shining brightly with compassion and kindness, every bridge will become a connection to truth and understanding; and every man, woman and child will celebrate the sound of the footsteps of Higher Love, as it travels far and wide, passing from one bridge to another.
—Heather K. O'Hara, © 2014 and beyond. All rights reserved.
Bridges of Light
BY HEATHER K. O'HARA
