Tolerance, Acceptance, or Love?

Hi again,

In all of the 'March Madness' that has been surrounding me lately, I've had some very interesting thoughts and experiences that I'd like to share.

You see, I seem to have an a brain that is like the Energizer Bunny- it keeps going, and going, and going.... You get the picture. This can be a tough little chatter box at times, but also allows me that chance to harness it's Olympic caliber talents to do my own bidding on occasion.

One such occasion happened as I was spending time at my favorite park over Easter. I had gone out to see all of the ducks, geese, pelicans, etc. that live and play at the lake within this park. I've found that watching 'animal reality TV' at the park can reveal a lot about humans...

So I was watching the animals (and people- who are equally perplexing) at the park and began to meditate. As I was doing this, I began to feel a strong warm sensation of - what I interpreted as- Love.

As this was happening, I begin looking around again at all of the people and animals circulating around me. And I began asking myself- Do I tolerate, accept, or Love these other 'Beings' that are here with me? This got me looking at myself, but also had me looking at history and the evolution of society.

If you look at society in America, we had the Civil Rights Movement in the 60's and now we are seeing it (in a different way) with Homosexuality. These movements began in a state where one group (the group in 'power') didn't even tolerate the other group or respect their rights as human beings. Obviously, this creates a very negative environment for everyone involved either as 'being disrepected' or 'disrespecting' others who are different.

Now, as time progressed (and people progressed) this 'Disrespect' became lessened and was now thought of as tolerance. But is this good? Think about it...

What does 'tolerance' mean? I'd define it as: Something that you 'put up with'. This implies that it is something that bugs you, but maybe isn't worth the time to fix or complain about, right?

Fortunately, this isn't were the evolution of Societal Consciousness has stopped (for the most part). The next step has been Acceptance. This means actually accepting the differences between people without any resevations. Seeing people as 'Perfect, just as they are', and being at complete peace with this.

Clearly this is a much more powerful and peaceful way to live, and it allows for the freedom of self expression. This is critical, because each person is then able to access their unique gifts and share them with the world. Imagine if Michael Jackson, Joe Montana, Winston Churchill, or Martin Luther King had been discouraged and never fully embraced their gifts!

Now, I know that Acceptance is a very powerful state of Being, but what about operating from a position of 'Love'? This would mean NOT ONLY Accepting someone for who they were (and being at peace with it) but actually LOVING them for who they are 100%!

This means no "I wish he was a little more ____" or "I want her to be _____". It means completely loving that fact that someone is exactly who they are- flaws and faults included. It means realizing the absolute perfection of creation, and seeing that "The perfection is in the imperfection".

I like to think of it this way... If we were all 'perfect' we wouldn't need anyone else, right? And if we didn't need anyone else, then we would be isolated & alone. It also means that you would NEVER have the opportunity to be 'needed', and NEVER have the chance to give to anyone else- because they are already 'perfect' and need nothing from you.

I don't know about you, but that doesn't sound like 'perfection' to me AT ALL.

So this is where I bring out the dreaded mirror, and let you look yourself square in the eye. Don't be shy, you're cuter than you think... *wink*

Ask yourself: "Am I living a life of Tolerance, Acceptance, or Love?" and if you're not happy with the answer, what can you do to begin changing it?

Do you use the realization of your own flaws and faults to allow you to Love and Accept others for theirs? Are you aware of how you feel when another 'Loves' you? And are you returning the favor to as many people as possible?

Have you come to understand that sharing your 'Love' isn't something reserved for a select few, but rather for everyone you encounter? After all, being Loved when you feel that you don't 'Deserve it', is when it means the most.

And most importantly, how are you being with yourself? Are you 'Tolerating' your flaws? Have you learned to Accept where your perfection lies? Or are you Loving and Forgiving of yourself in every moment, while embracing and relishing both your strengths and your weaknesses?

So which world are you living in? Tolerance, Acceptance, or Love?

The greatest of these is Love.

~ Derick Van Ness