As we enter this amazing Memorial Day weekend, many good thoughts and intense, positive feelings can be felt by many. It is always good to remember those who have fallen. We find it highly touching when people fall for a good cause or for a cause involving their own community. That's what this weekend symbolizes for us, the celebration of the greater good and the greater community.
We find that on this first big weekend of "summer", the elation and euphoria zone of others can be dangerous to deadly. When we're in the midst of pain and suffering, we always think of others. It is very easy after years of practice to generate those thoughts of what other people are enduring, what relief other people require. Getting off the me plan.
It is extremely more difficult for us to think of others when we're flying high on the wave of the present moment. We're heading somewhere; we're feeling great; we're heading toward greatness: that's at least how it feels. That wave can be beautiful and beneficial, or it can be dangerous and destructive.
Getting out of this almost drug-induced state of being can be excrutiating for most. Why must we get off the wave? Why must we care about others when things are going so amazingly for ourselves?
It's when that wave hits against the rocky shore of reality; when that wave dies off and you find yourself in the middle of the ocean, seemingly by yourself; or when you fall into the wave and nearly drown. If we look outward during these times, we can see where we're heading and what's in our way. Then, we can use that position of high energy for the benefit and well-being of others.
We call this joyous exuberance. Joyous exuberance is joy directed outward from us, for others. We're not trying to hold onto the moment, because the moment is going to escape our grasp. Have you ever tried to hold onto a wave? It's not possible.
Why is it that when we're feeling great, we only want that greatness to continue? It comes from our ignorant view that the greatness comes from what we're doing and not who we are. We have greatness within us since our life began. That greatness is this life; it is a capacity within us all.
Oftentimes through our lives, we would feel so good with someone in our life. That goodness we feel isn't from that other person, it is actually ourselves that we can feel, maybe for the first time.
It's like walking through a nature park, seeing the trees, the sky, hearing the trickle of water coming down the creek. Those sensations make us feel good because they are wholesome and natural, just like us. It reminds us of the special opportunity we've been given with this life; that special opportunity is our life.
In the midst of elation and euphoria, we'll do our best to think of others, because that greatness is infinite. It can be used to unearth the greatness in everyone we meet. And it is forever a replenishable source.
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