Antoine de Saint-Exupery writes that: “Love does not consist in gazing at one another, but in looking outward together in the same direction.” But it might just be that love could consist of standing together and looking outward in different directions.
Who do you love for their view of the world that is very different than yours?
Some view society as a manicured lawn. They treat unconventional people as weeds to be mowed down or poisoned. A more eco-friendly design is to see everyone as wildflowers and let them bloom. Then our society could resemble a beautiful butterfly garden.
How do you help cultivate the unconventional?
A shadow casts a distorted image, taller or shorter depending on the angle of the sun. Details are lost, and as anyone who has played with making shadow images on a wall knows, you can end up with shadows that look like things that really aren’t even there. And yet, when we’re walking around, our shadows are the only way we can see ourselves.
How might your image of yourself be distorted from what other people see?
“Spring teaches me to look more carefully for the green stems of possibility, for the intuitive hunch that may turn into a larger insight, for the glance or touch that may thaw a frozen relationship, for the stranger’s act of kindness that makes the world seem hospitable again.—Parker Palmer
Where in your life do you see the green stems of possibility?
Trees sustain life through the crucial task of turning carbon dioxide into oxygen. They feed humans and other beings with fruits and nuts. And even after they die, if left in place they provide homes and food storage for a wide variety of animals. It would be an honorable goal to be as helpful as a tree.
What are some ways that you are helpful—with or without intending to be?
