It's not the deer...

“It’s not the deer crossing the road, it’s the road crossing the forest.”

It’s up for debate who this quote is attributed to. I’ve read alternately the Dalai Lama, someone named Chiki, and also Muhammad Ali. It may be someone else altogether. It could just be Universal Mind. Regardless, I found it profound. The simple theory would be, what was there first? The road or the forest?

This has been helpful to me in this turbulent time. This virus, these fires, these hurricanes, these demonstrations, these politics are all roads crossing the forest. At the risk of sounding esoteric, it seems simple. The earth has an incredible proficiency for healing. People, too. The earth has native intelligence. People, too. The earth will survive in some form. People, too.

I have faith in the beauty, goodness and resiliency of the earth. People’s, too. I lost a good friend this week. We had to attend his service virtually through live streaming. A song was sung beautifully, a cappella. Love is here to stay.  I wept. The world turns, I go on living, as does his family. His road ended. Just this time. But his integrity, kindness and intelligence nurtured the paths he crossed and the people in it. That doesn’t disappear regardless of the tumult around us. Not all roads are bad. Keep perspective. Be patient.