In the face of so much disease and injustice, of so much tragedy and so much grief, I am grateful for the examples of our horse Gulliver and our dog Lilac, little Buddhas who weather these storms with a steady keel, moored to the essentials of food, shelter, comfort and love; to their penetrating and sustaining connection to the Earth, and to their unwavering love for me.
But still sometimes I ask myself, where is God in all of this suffering?
The answer came right away; God is in every creature and object on this planet. But it requires the consciousness of God to recognize this. It requires the consciousness of God to bring it out of each individual. Dogs (pick your favorite animal) recognize this when they give a high-speed tail wag and butt wiggle to an unkempt, suspicious looking stranger.
They have not cultivated the strong opinions, the resentment and hate that I have cultivated over my life. They know that God is in each of us. God is in the political opponent, in the narcissist, in the psychopath. God is in the oppressor and in the oppressed.
Could it be that our job here is to be as wise as a dog, to recognize and cultivate God in each other?
It is said that we are all truly One. But we are expressed in so many different packages that it is easy to forget. It is easy to divide, to fear, to hate. Dogs remember our oneness.
Is the Universe big enough to hold more than one Truth as we understand it? Can our hearts expand enough to accept the truth of another? Could love be more contagious and more powerful than the most insidious virus? What would it look like if we treated each other as precious, sacred beings? What if your consciousness was enough to bring peace and healing wherever you showed up?
We may expect to see God when we die, but what if we are seeing God every minute of every day?
“Oh hello there, God. I didn’t expect You to look like someone who infuriated, frightened, saddened, or disgusted me. How clever of You to hide in so subtle a disguise as to make me reach really deep inside myself to find You.”
