all things change. all things pass. it is a lesson the monks learn early. for some of us it takes a bit longer.
i had a conversation with the master sergeant today. actually, it started last night and ran into today. it dealt with many things, not the least of which had to do with my convictions, beliefs, and choices in living them.
he tells me he’s not sure our belief systems will compliment one another in a long term relationship and that, until he is certain, he has a hard time being engaged in a full and dedicated manner.
i pointed out that he has been engaged in full and dedicated manner until very recently, and asked what had changed that results in the difference.
his response was to reiterate the uncertainty in relation to our belief systems.
i asked if he thought i would be one to force my beliefs on him. he immediately said, ‘no, that was not his concern.’ i asked if he thought he would be tempted to try and force his beliefs on me, and he said no, he didn’t think that would be an issue, either.
so then i simply asked, ‘well… if you can’t feel it possible until you know, and you can’t know until you try, and you can’t try until you know… where does that leave things?’
at which point he was silent.
sometimes silence can be very loud. sometimes it is deafening.
the monks learn about impermanence at a very young age. they believe that not hoping or expecting things allows them to be happy no matter what happens.
they believe all things change and all things pass and the only way to ever truly be content and at peace is to utterly shed expectation.
i’ve been working on it… but i haven’t managed it just yet.
more’s the pity.