The Paradox

Our lives are cumulative.  Where we are at any given moment can be traced to the decisions we made 5 minutes, 5 years, or 5 decades earlier.  Ours is an existence characterized by Karmic consequence.

The interesting thing, however, is that the “we” of right now is not the same “we” of 5 minutes, 5 years, or 5 decades past, so “we,” in effect, are not “we” at all.  The paradox comes in that, on the one hand, while in the Time from our birth to the present moment up until the point of our death, the ecliptic of our Earthly journey can be conceived of symbolically as a great snowball, collecting snow (memories, attitudes, etc.) and increasing our substantive energetic girth inevitably for the duration of that journey.  On the other hand, not all that snow (those memories, attitudes, and the like) will remain constant for the entirety of the journey; we change, we (hopefully) mature, we transcend who we were and develop (again, hopefully) into the more Beautiful Who We Are.  We are, therefore, less like reservoirs and more like conduits.

Using another symbolic analogy, think of your “Self” like a baseball franchise that was founded on the very day you were born.  In the decades since you debuted there have been many coaches, even more players, changing uniforms, and a constantly rotating base of fans.  It’s still the “same” team, but different. The name has been a constant, there is a team memory, but the years have seen varying attitudes, aptitudes, concerns, and results.  The same but different; constant, yet ever-changing.

By the very act of living your Life you have seen to it that “you” are not who “you” once were.  Use your power of Choice and the discipline of action to move these changes with intent in the direction of your dreams.  While consequence is unlikely ever to be manipulated, future Karma CAN be.

©Billy Red Horse

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