If you’ve followed me long, you realize I’m an eclectic reader. I’m like a sponge plus a filter when it comes to absorbing information and wisdom wherever I can. Steven Pressfield writes fiction, nonfiction, and screenplays. His The War of Art (a cute play on words from the classic Sun Tzu, The Art of War) talks about The Resistance that interferes with your creative process.
He writes a weekly newsletter. This morning he wrote about the memorial service for his old friend and mentor Norm Stahl. Norm’s son told the story of Norm and his cousin. The cousin called once and asked for $25,000 for an emergency (most likely a gambling debt). This was many years ago when that was really a lot of money. Norm had it, and he loaned it. The cousin never paid it back.
The entire family knew the situation. It was a constant source of tension at family gatherings. At one family holiday gathering the tension visited again. Norm got up and walked toward his cousin. He hugged him. It broke the tension. Everyone was released.
Pressfield writes, The change in Norm was he shifted from the ego to the soul. This is monumental. It’s the equivalent, if you ask me, of what the Buddha would call Enlightenment.
The ego holds grudges. The ego sees only its own self-interest. The ego hoards slights and grievances. The ego hates.
But the higher self sees soul-to-soul. It pierces the Little Picture and perceives what’s really important. It loves. It forgives.
Pressfield is spot on. That is why Jesus and the early Christian Desert Fathers (see John Climacus, for example) spent so much time on ego, pride, humility.
I sense that we (all of us) need to meditate and pray deeply about our own journey from ego to soul. Someone need a hug today?
Faith Venture 