Words by Which to Fly

The leaves are falling golden brown. Apples crunch with each bite. Morning mist gathers over the water in the inlet. The air is warm; the first snow on the mountains has yet to arrive. This is autumn in Vancouver at its sunny warm best.

This autumn morning thoughts from summer Cannon Beach came to mind. Surprisingly, it wasn't the beaches, seagulls or jagged mountains reaching to the sea that occupied my thoughts. It was a quote I didn't include in Cannon Beach Over and Out (see September 2010). Namely, 'I fail my own moral judgements'.

How do I call others and myself out to a better and fuller life by making sound choices and also allow others to make mistakes without judgement? And how do I keep the words, 'I told you so' in check? Or better yet, 'Don't look to me now to rescue you.'

In that vein, I hear the words, 'You made your bed; you must lie in it'. There is truth to these words. I've learnt that they are best used in the first person pronoun to acknowledge situations I have created myself, to accept responsibility for them and to find a way forward. They are hard and necessary words others need to hear, but are to be spoken with compassion to encourage the hearers to accept responsibility for their choices.

'By the grace of God, there go I' are sobering words by which to fly. As are ones my friend, forthright Lois, has taught me, 'Did anyone ask your opinion? Mind your own business'. How we long to have the world look as we see fit. How we long to change others so that their lives look as we believe they should.

But really, if I was in control, would it be that much better? The last words to echo in my head are, 'Your kingdom come, your will be done'. Now these are words by which to fly.