Daily prayer, this website, running, my online mental health support group, reading, practicing environmental sustainability, channeling my personal desires to the good of others, mindful eating, wu-wei, singing, studying scriptures from different religions, following the Golden Rule, studying science, researching UFO encounters/alien abductions, performing in plays and musicals, watching funny shows like South Park, creative visualization, vision quests, cleaning up my workspace, philosophy, experimenting with the Law of Attraction, and meditating on the process of flow in creation are all practices that help me come home to myself.

Oh wow. Seems a bit too early, since I feel like I was born yesterday! In any case, I think I would write and publish a book on extraterrestrial experiences, how alien lore was shaped by the Cold War, and what these experiences can teach us in living our everyday lives; give the money left in my bank account to organizations dedicated to fighting global poverty; give my extra clothes to charities that provide clothes to the needy; research and write a book on the psychology and phenomenology of forgiveness of others, self, and God’s forgiveness; apologize to people I have hurt in the past; pray for more wisdom on what to do at the end of my life; become a spiritual teacher and help people receive insights on their own journeys; and set a personal record in a road race one last time. It would be triage, but I would try to get all these done and prioritize the things that are most important first.

First, it humbles me by reminding me that I (along with everyone) am capable of doing the same wrongs that are done to me and others. I realize that I am a sinner who needs forgiveness and who needs not think that I am better than other people. At the same time, it also allows me to see that, often times, those who wrong me or hurt others, are doing it from a place of pain, ignorance, or fear. While that does not excuse the behavior, it does allow us to humanize the people who have hurt other people. With practice, I hope I can become as forgiving as Thich Nhat Hanh, the Dalai Llama, or the people in El Salvador who forgave the people who treated them horribly when their government went to war against their people.

Something I’m learning about this right now is that sometimes I just need to shut up, take a step back, and not judge other people. Will I ever fully understand why some people do the things they do? No. Can I still empathize with them and learn to avoid judging by recognizing that there may be valid reasons why they believe they need to behave in a way that may be unkind? Yes. For example, for the life of me, I cannot understand why some members of my family support the current regime in the United States. Nevertheless, I can continue to love and support them, knowing that there are reasons for their behavior that I may never fully understand, and that’s okay. I need to focus more on how I can be a voice for change and for justice, not on how other people aren’t trying to do that.

In the Spring of 2010, I came across a Bible verse that frightened me and began a spiritual struggle that put me on a spiritual journey that has lasted until this day and has given me a unique perspective on life. It was just an accidental skimming of the Bible that led to a difficult, almost traumatic, struggle. Because of this, though, I now am familiar with a variety of spiritual perspectives from all cultures and religions. Plus, I have learned a lot about the power of forgiveness through it all.

1. Trees take in carbon dioxide and send out oxygen. Because of trees, we can breathe.
2. Trees, by taking in greenhouse gases, keep the earth from overheating.
3. Trees provide useful medicines for injury and illness.
4. Trees are aesthetically pleasing and a reflection of God’s glory.
5. Trees are a safe haven for many forms of wildlife.
6. Trees help us build shelters by providing us with wood.
7. Trees feed off soil from dead plants, animal waste, dead animals, and mineral nutrients. Then, we eat of its fruit so that we can live. Then, we give off waste. Trees make us a part of the cycles of interdependence in nature.
8. Trees keep the whole ecosystem thriving.
9. Trees send W-wave signals to other trees when threatened. It’s almost as if the trees are aware.
10. Trees allow us to make fire with firewood.

In college, whenever I would study world religions/spiritualities, I would have a deeper awareness of certain truths these religions reveal. I would go out in nature and experience a deeper awareness of the spiritual beauty that exists everywhere. For example, when I would study Hinduism, I would be aware that the natural beauty on campus was Brahman. When I would study Taoism, I would be aware of yin and yang in various natural elements, especially day and night and sun and moon. The peace I felt in seeing such spiritual beauty was amazing!

Sometimes, when I was a teenager, I would fight with my mom (you know how teenagers can be sometimes). She would get mad, but as soon as I apologized, she would always forgive me and continue to love me without holding grudges. I appreciated this because, without this assurance that she will always forgive me if I mess up, I would have not felt like her love was unconditional. From this, I learned how important it is to forgive those you love when they apologize and change so that they will not have to worry about whether your love is unconditional or not.