Bigger Than You

Unless you are under a rock (which I was for a couple of days), there’s no doubt you’ve heard of the earthquake in Canada leading to the tsunami warnings in Hawaii and the Frankenstorm in New England/Mid Atlantic in the next couple of days (I wish all you Easterners the best!!!).

With Mother Nature roaring out loud lately, it makes me realize a couple of things:

1) We really are tiny in the big picture of the world

2) We can’t ignore what surrounds us.

We Be Tine Tines!

Tsunamis, storms, forest fires, volcanoes etc. don’t care if you have a Phantom Rolls or a bicycle, it’s going to come after you and your home if you are in its path. Even without using devastation as an example, try standing at the beach near the ocean, or go to the Grand Canyon. I promise however powerful and large you felt before, will be reduced. You are teensy tiny.

Now, that doesn’t mean that you are worthless and can’t make an impact- you can, but there are forces greater than us out there. Bigger than you.

Can’t Ignore It

Because these events are on such a massive scale, they cannot be ignored. Events like this can shake things up- and in many ways, result in a negative outcome. Depending on how you look at things, these shake-ups (usually, in the bigger-picture) produce positive results. It takes patience, healing, time and a loving eye to see the good that comes out of destruction. But it’s there- whether through regrowth, rebuilding, change in attitude, appreciation for life and it’s fragility- that’s what these big events do… they reset the gauge of appreciation in our individual lives.

Bigger than You

I also had the chance to become a Godmother for the third time this weekend. A portion of my family is Catholic, and by that regard, follow the ritual pretty closely. As most of you know, I am (personally) more spiritual in nature- not subscribing to any particular religion, but do have admiration and respect for those that do. I’ve compared religions before, and I think in this experience, as in most religious ceremonies… the main focus is that of the largest overseeing entity- and in this case, God and Jesus- is so much bigger than you are. I don’t think it matters if you are referring to Allah, God, Jesus, deities, the Universe- that entity is bigger than you. Your mind can’t possibly ever see the entirety of it all.

What can you do if you are this small? There’s so much you can do. Everyone has an impact whether they realize it or not. Small actions that trickle and affect others, who in turn, affect others. These small differences can also combine to create something large. The difference is that we, as humans, have a choice in the matter. Science and weather follows laws of physics and geography. As human souls we too can follow laws and rules, but we also have choice on which route to take, unlike the storm.

The best scenario is knowing how you can make an impact, and be humble enough to know you are a part of something greater, outside of your being. That is when you know you’re a citizen of earth, and a well-balanced human. Do your best to make good choices, and please, stay safe out there!