I’ve talked recently about our new perception of “radical” not as something to avoid or fear, but as something to embrace and cherish. This week we continue to navigate this space of radicalism and ask the question: Where is our commitment? If we start the word origin discussion again, we will find that the word commitment has Latin roots roughly translating into “to entrust” or “to give in trust” Commitment = Trust? So then, perhaps, the next question we should be asking is: Is my fear of commitment really a fear of commitment, or is it a fear of trusting, of letting go, of giving into faith? Our culture nowadays is consumed by instant gratification and finding “solutions” out of any problem. With information literally seconds away thanks to our vast array of technological devices, it is actually relatively easy to get out of the uncomfortable zone of not knowing and needing an answer into the arena of “all knowing whiz kid;” just ask any teacher or professor who has been questioned literally seconds after making a comment in class, OR any medical provider taking care of a patient with a smartphone, tablet, etc. It’s what I call “Real Time Feedback.” BUT, before we stray too far from the real intention of this post, I bring us back to my ultimate point: Uncertainty is not the enemy. Curiosity feeds on uncertainty and breeds with faith for as Anne Lamott most eloquently said, the opposite of faith is not doubt, it is certainty. And faith my friends, is the daily COMMITMENT of trusting, of letting go, of accepting that we may not and will not have all the answers. And that is entirely okay. You are probably wondering now, “Great, this is kinda helpful, but I still don’t really see the relevance of commitment and your original question.” Where is our commitment? This is precisely the question Anand Giridharadas asked as part of his podcast appearance with Krista Tippett in late November 2017. His thought? “I think what’s happened to us is that we’re not committed to each other as a people, so it’s almost like we are in this situation where any disappointment that we encounter in our fellow citizens is like a reason to break up. And part of commitment as a citizen is embracing other people’s dysfunction, and embracing other people’s incompleteness, because you know you have your own.” Not your commitment to a religion, diet, sports team or school club, but your commitment to people. Dysfunctional, challenged, but beautiful people. It has also been said by many wiser than I, that we must wake up and see the true human being around us, for “everyone is fighting a great fight we know nothing about” and while we may not know what they are fighting, we only need to know that they are. We run away from uncertainty with our I-phones and run away from each other’s troubles by living in social media bubbles, closing our eyes when it is most convenient. I admit it. I’ve been a “bolter” running from things I didn’t understand, running from tension, disappointment, conflict, relationships when things felt uncomfortable. But that lasts only as long as your lungs and shoes will carry you. And guess what? Lung and laces do not last forever. As I have continued to embrace my own mosaic, my fragmented, but integrated whole, I have found peace in declaring my beliefs, in bearing my heart and in standing up for the values most deep to my core. I have found comfort, not in seeking to relieve all the suffering and problems of my patients, but in KNOWING them, in SEEING THEIR DISAPPOINTMENTS AND THEIR HEARTS and LETTING THEM KNOW I DO. I cannot chose the problems of my patients. Some in the medical community would love to run away from the complicated, dysfunctional and disappointing. But to deflect the problems of others is to also deflect their joy, their love, their belonging. Armour blocks disappointment just the same as it blocks joy and a back running from hurt is the same back that cannot see joy. For in truth, as I see it YOUR problems are OUR problems. Not your problems. Not my problems. But OUR problems. If that is too much of a leap for you, I completely understand. It is a leap I take every day and sometimes I am able to jump farther than others, but jump I always do. If it helps you, start by simply seeing another’s hurt, another’s pain as YOUR own. And if you are like most people, it will be easy to get motivated about YOUR pain and YOUR problems. And from this place, of “inward” motivation, slowly but deliberately seek to go from MY to OUR. YOUR, MY, OUR YOUR MY OUR. YOUR MY OUR? Yes Your my our. And with that, perhaps, we have found the answer we were looking for from the beginning.
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It’s Time to Get “Hoptimistic” Some people differentiate hope and optimism by describing hope as the unwavering belief to face any uncertainty and optimism as the practical means of approaching life to make hope possible. I like to think of the two, however, as a single, united concept, together creating one way of being “Hoptimistic” Pronounced “hop” like a rabbit (a favorite of mine!) and optimistic just as one would normally say it, a “hoptimist” is someone who desires and hopes for the world to be a better place, but thinks, speaks and acts as if the moment, right now, in joy or in loss, is entirely enough. Choosing to see the positive as well as the negative, hoptimists realize the existence of “negative” circumstances, but, they do not allow such circumstances to lead to negative feelings and emotions or allow the challenges to influence them into damaging or hurtful actions. As I see it
Hope requires faith while optimism requires awareness. Hope is knowing that something better is possible, optimism is knowing it already is. Simultaneously seeing the moment for the positive opportunity that it provides, AND aspiring further towards an experience, a calling, a dream that seems so far off is exactly what being “hoptimistic” is all about. Seem confusing or contradictory? Perhaps, but maybe that is exactly what it takes to be a “hoptimist” seeing the glass half-full even after it is spilt and BELIEVING that the next time you go reaching for that glass of milk that it will end up in your mouth instead of on the kitchen floor. Hoptimists spill milk. Hoptimists feel each and every drop of milk cascading from the counter. Hoptmists may even cry for the fallen liquid. But hoptimists, however, never stay around long enough to get wet. Faith won’t let them. Often asking more questions than it answers, poetry is not actually meant to solve problems or provide immediate answers. It is really meant to elucidate problems and unearth perspectives previously locked within the confines of suppressed curiosity and languages incapable of full and authentic expression. Sounds like the opposite of solving problems, to me. Yes, it most certainly does, but to me, solving problems or discovering helpful solutions is not a linear process. Much of life is experiencing the present moment and collecting knowledge that will only later grow into wisdom and help solve a future issue. In practical terms, we must learn to open to the present experience and accept new ideas without immediately seeing their relevance or impact. I call it, “Receiving present solutions to future questions” Or “Receiving disguised solutions to questions you cannot yet ask.” Ever read a textbook, studying for a test, only to discover that nearly everything you “studied” did not appear on the subsequent test, yet two years later, as part of a very different class, an aspect of what you studied came back into relevance and actually became the foundation for a project or paper? This is a quite literal example of acquiring present knowledge or “answers to a question not yet asked,” but how about something more abstract, yet practically more relevant. Relationships Yes, relationships. We are relational beings. We do not really exist without others. We are interactions, we are the interface. One of our most accepted beliefs is that when it comes to relationships, we tend to view them through a progressive lens, building and growing through partnerships and letting certain relationships pass away to make room for more nourishing connections and flourishing friendships.
Ever say, “I don’t regret dating them, because it allowed me to open more fully and receive my future partner.” Or “Even though it didn’t work out, it prepared me for my next relationship.” In the immediate moments following a break-up, divorce or relationship transition, did we really have a concrete answer to how we would be better prepared for a future relationship, or know exactly what we had learned in the transitioning relationship that would later allow us to flourish in a future partnership? Most likely the answer is no. When I ask myself this question and reflect upon such moments of transition, my answer is a most definite no. I had no idea I was acquiring precise answers and concrete insight that would later allow me to unconditionally love and accept a future partner. If you really think about it, who would ever say, “Yes, I am remaining open right now in our relationship so that I can learn and grow with you because I need to acquire some helpful answers and insightful wisdom so that when we break up I can be a more supportive person to a future partner or eventual spouse.” We definitely don’t say that. But this is precisely what we must do: remain open in all experiences knowing that even if the answers and knowledge we uncover in the present moment appear completely irrelevant or remain entirely hidden from our conscious awareness, it is possible and quite likely that thirty years from now, when you finally unearth those curious questions you couldn’t yet ask, you will birth a previously “discovered” and “miraculously” retrieved answer. Miraculous and mysterious, yes, impossible no. All that is required to find these unique and undeniably precise answers is openness, awareness, reflection, and right action, all practiced without attachment, without judgment, without fully knowing. Genuine Openness, Present Awareness, Mindful Reflection and Purposeful Action. A recipe, a poem, or collection of thoughts, whatever you call it, just know there are lots. I will be honest, I love Pastor Rick Warren. He is persuasive, he is provocative, he stimulates my thinking and above all he has allowed me to see and embrace the idea that I am radical. Profoundly and beautifully radical. Now, you are probably thinking “ ‘Radical’ why in the world would I want to be considered radical, doesn’t that mean being fringy, leftist, rightist, extremist?” The short and truthful answer is no. For the English word “radical”, you see, actually comes from the Latin word “radicalis” which means “to be rooted in” “to have deep roots.” Rooted in? Deep roots? Sounds like something worthy of being to me. What scares people more than someone who is intelligent, beautiful, powerful or wealthy, is someone deeply rooted in the nourishing virtues of gratitude, faith and love. I will be honest again, people have made fun of me for my medical approach, for my eating habits, people have questioned my faith as a Christian because I meditate, people have called me fringy because I encourage dietary changes and supplements instead of drugs, people have laughed at me for my recommendations and my thought process. But through it all, I remind myself of one thing: I don’t have to be everyone’s best friend or anyone’s for that matter, I just have to be God’s. And God only wants faithful, loving and radical friends. Sharing all of this, I acknowledge each and every one of you has been challenged, has been misunderstood, has been judged, has been targeted for any number of reasons. I am sorry, but we do not need pity, or to even feel sorry for ourselves, because God doesn’t feel sorry. On the contrary, He, She, Our Divine actually finds joy in the faithful human being holding firm to virtues that heal, nourish and support flourishing. For the biggest threat, you see, to our future flourishing, is not the presence of other’s doubts or questions of our purpose, but our own. To combat this, we need roots, deep, impenetrable, unshakable roots. What is my purpose? What foods do I need to nourish my body? What will I do when faced with an antagonizing person? How will I protect myself from the dark side of social media and popular culture? How will I continue to appreciate, love and support others through all things? We need answers to these questions, we need roots, and we need to rely on faith when we face uncertainty and don’t have the answers.
Over the past few months, as I have grown as a new, young doctor, I have often felt inadequate, unknowledgeable and overwhelmed with the complexities of medicine, with the needs and limitations of hospital based care. But through it all, I have been unwavering in my faith, deeply rooted by my calling, knowing I am a here to be a vessel to bring healing, to grow closer to God and help others grow close too. I continue to nourish my body with whole foods. I spend time outdoors. I cherish the infrequent but irreplaceable hours with my girlfriend and our animals, I play and grow with the children at my church as part of our youth ministry. I have the challenging conversations with my patients about lifestyle change before medications. I explore and seek answers to things I don’t fully understand, remaining feverishly curious, and I never for a second forget to stop, breathe, meditate and pray. I am grounded in my faith and my exploration of root cause resolution medicine. To some this may appear odd, non-conformist or irrational. To me it is just being radical. Rooted, righteous and radical. Isn’t it about time we all got a little radical? For many of us, learning has become an after-thought. Perhaps, because of the current construct of our academic institutions and the “there is always something more” paradigm, we have actually started “fleeing” or “escaping” learning in order to find a more “comfortable” place devoid of curiosity and challenge. In this flight we can also start convincing ourselves that learning implies resolution and that when we get a multiple choice question correct on a test we have succeeded in actually learning something. Like any process, however, learning is a dynamic JOURNEY that is not restricted to lecture halls or libraries and encompasses something much greater than right or wrong. In order to truly embrace a life where learning is a pursuit, a process of integration, we must open our eyes to the many ways in which we observe, appreciate and understand the world. Buddhist psychology offers us an interesting framework in which to expand our concepts of learning and understanding. Within this framework, the first level of learning involves the acquisition of knowledge through mere observation, hearing others speak, and reading the written word. In short, this level is basically accepting what you hear and read to be true and incorporating that into your understanding of the world. This level, however, is rife with bias and assumption and it isn’t until we enter the next level involving conscious reflection, action and reflection once more that we begin to truly deepen our understanding. Encouraged by curiosity and the conscious choice to dig deeper, ask questions, and test what you have heard and seen, this level allows for a broadening of your lived experience, but it too, has its downfall in being quite energetically demanding, requiring regular, conscious choice in one’s action and purposeful reflection. It isn’t until we reach the final level of understanding where, through the lived meditative experience, we seemlessly integrate and internalize our world of ideas, descriptions and practices into something that is simply “just us.” For those of you wondering, what in the world does this mean?- this is just too out there for me, you are not alone, and so I offer real life example of these three levels of understanding in order to bring all of these conceptual ideas into a grounded, practical perspective.
Ever remember your mom telling you it was nice to say please and thank you? You might have thought this was important or on the contrary, rather silly, but in its early stages you accepted and understood this to be something you should do because your mom or dad said so. Level one understanding. Moving forward you started to choose to say please and thank you, greeting others with a friendly smile, giving a gracious hug or returning the favor of another with a thoughtful card. Consciously choosing and reflecting upon the acceptance or outcome of your actions, you actually started to understand that showing gratitude and giving thanks was something you did, not because your mom and dad said you should, but because it felt good to appreciate others, to connect, to rest in the joy that was that perfect hug. Level two understanding. Now many of us have likely stopped here, which isn’t a good or bad thing, it just simply is. To reach the third level, however, takes another experience all together, one of deeper contemplation and integration. Anyone know that person at work who always volunteers first to bring in food for the potluck and not just chips or soda, the person who goes out of his or her way on a Saturday night to pick up that one thing from the grocery store you really didn’t need right at that moment, but would certainly be better off having, the person that offers you a ride home despite living on the other side of town, the person who is always there ready to listen as if you were the only person on Earth with problems? These people, it seems, are no longer "consciously" choosing to be gracious, to put others first, to embody compassion, it is just simply who they are and what they do. This my friends, is our attempt at describing the third level of understanding- an internalization that (in this example) gratitude and compassion are exactly what each moment requires, what every human deserves, and what the world truly needs, all of which, for the described “person” above, does not depend on the “conscious” mind, but on an innate understanding of human existence. Pure, manifested love, embodied joy, and selfless giving realized at all three levels. So what is your level of understanding? Perhaps it's time we all stopped to see what it is we truly understand, for as I see it, only then will we be able to discover what it we can actually seek to learn. |
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November 2018
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