Day 68: Love holds no grievances.

Today's lesson reads as follows:

Love holds no grievances.

Holding a grudge or a grievance is the same as withholding forgiveness.  And that is in direct conflict with our purpose, our function, which God has given us - to love, forgive and be happy (which are all the same thing, really).

During the 10-15 minute meditation, the lesson advises us to picture anyone whom we are holding a grievance against, and to tell each of them the following:

I would see you as my friend, that I may remember you are part of me and come to know myself.

In doing the meditation this morning, I pictured gathering all of my supposed "enemies" together (many of them were actually close friends or family members I still hadn't forgiven entirely, and some were people I didn't even know but who had pissed me off with a dirty look or by cutting me off in traffic).  Then I pictured us all in a group hug.  It sounds bizarre, but it was actually a great feeling.  To see the faces of people I couldn't stand and people I loved all embracing me and one another just made me... well, happy!  I couldn't help but smile as forgiveness and love and joy poured through me.

When I returned from my meditation and began getting ready for work (I teach theater arts to kids as part of an after-school gang-prevention program), I had a bit of my own inner-dialogue:

"Why is it so easy to forgive children?" I asked myself.
"Well they don't know any better."  Of course.
"Well neither do adults!"

And there was my answer: Adults and kids alike are all Children of God.  We are all on this planet to learn, to grow, to expand our spiritual knowledge and return to the loving light of God.  If anything, little children are closer to spiritual awareness than most adults are, as their egos haven't had the chance to play enough tricks on them yet.

So if you ever find it particularly hard to forgive someone, "laying all [your] grievances aside," as the Course would say, just imagine that person as a child.  If that doesn't help, imagine them as a baby.  (Seriously.  You can't get any more innocent than that.)  For that little child, that harmless infant - they still exist within us.  The only difference between that person and the adult we've become is that we're larger, less cute and have a bigger vocabulary.

So whenever we feel tempted to judge, grudge, or otherwise hold a grievance, let us remember that the behavior we are perceiving is not real.  The person we are seeing is not really there.  It is their ego, acting out.  It is their inner-child having a temper tantrum, their inner-infant crying out of need.  Rescue them (and thus yourself) by laying all your grievances aside and pouring forgiveness, love and joy their way.

Until tomorrow,
Journeyman