Lately I’ve been exploring the concept of “oneness” and what it means. I considered that perhaps we are all different manifestations of the same Spirit having a complete human experience in different bodily forms (at the same time).

To expand on that…yesterday, I had an emotion breakdown//breakthrough when I was driving around (a bit lost, even with GPS) in San Jose and saw a ‘mentally ill’ person talking to themselves on the side of the highway. I started crying then (and now) because I saw myself in that person. I saw the person I become whenever I’m struggling with a decision or going back and forth about something in my mind. I saw the person I can be when I hold on to something too long and resist change.

And in all of that, I had another realization that the Spirit uses different bodily forms to also experience the range of the human emotional//cognitive spectrum. That is to say that if we look at the range of emotions from despair to elation that we can all experience on an individual level, there is a person representing each and every one of those emotions across the spectrum completely in any given moment.

From a cognitive perspective, we can consider the range of mentally undeveloped to genius level…this is a range that we may grow through during our lifetime as the brain develops. And as with the emotional spectrum, I also consider that there is an individual person representing each part of that range as well.

We are all different in that we are given unique gifts…and unique physical//emotional//cognitive ‘identities.’ As we live our individual selves, we are actually representing a piece of the range in this spectrum.

We don’t get to make a retro-active decision about what color we are born…or what gender…or what height we will be. Similarly, we don’t have a retro-active say in what our innate emotional and cognitive identity and potential will be.

However, through the process of individual growth and decision making there are some areas we may modify: we can impact our weight through exercise//dietary choices (generally speaking, as there are some with hormonal influences which may cause weight determination to be outside of their control). We can tattoo our body to effectively change the color of our skin. We can determine our emotional response to internal and external stimuli  (again, generally, as there may be some with mental ‘illness’ which may cause emotional regulation to be outside of their control). And we can enhance our cognitive abilities by learning more about the world around us (and within us)…and then experience real transformation when we question everything we ‘know’ (though there are some with cognitive ‘disabilities’ who may not be able to have this same experience).

Underneath all of that is the same Spirit. I think we tap into that Source when we have empathy for others and express compassion as we extend kindness. We understand that others are living another piece of our experience…including the good, bad, and shockingly ugly parts that we may have the potential to live, but our unique physical//emotional//cognitive (in sum, spiritual) construction keeps us outside of that range. In extending kindness in the ugliest of circumstances (though it may seem impossible in some extreme cases), I think we are recognizing our potential to be in that same place. That is the oneness that connects us all to the Creator responsible for us being here.

This all goes beyond right and wrong and simply considers the Source at the root of it all.

Photo source: crazy ball by Miriam Buttiglieri