Translating a World on the Edge

Aren’t you amazed at the brilliance of people around us–smart people who push advances along in science, technology, medicine, physics, and a multitude of so much more. But are these people necessarily wise?

Intelligence is not the same as wisdom. Think of someone you consider wise. A parent, or grandparent? A counselor or teacher? A spiritual leader? Do you think they became wise because of their brilliant minds? or is there something else that makes a person truly wise?

Isn’t it his or her conscious choice to “do the right thing?” A person may not want to choose such a thing–yet he does it. And he does it courageously, because he sees a higher purpose.

A person may be born with genes of high intelligence, but I don’t believe a person is born wise. We discover wisdom for ourselves, usually after a journey through something dire, a path which must be our own–no one can take it for us. We have the capability of becoming wise after a journey through adversity. And each of us sometime in our lives, take such a journey.

Is there a better teacher of compassion than one’s own experience of suffering? Is there a better way to learn humility than to make a mistake? And when we face a adverse situation, such as illness or the death of a loved one, we often think about what LIFE actually means.

Of course, not ALL people grow wise from adversity–some grow mean, bitter, and revengeful. So what is the difference?

I believe it is a spiritual grounding, a belief in God who showed us the ‘right’ way, and continues to grace us with the strength to make courageous choices in difficult circumstances.