Sparkling Life

Life provides a number of tools that help us get on with relationships.  Some of those tools are gentle, perhaps better cast in analogy as decorations in our lives.  Decorations are important in that they inform us that we are not only subject to the necessities of substance for maintaining and advancing life, but they lift us to more than an animal level that is occupied only with necessities.  Even the animals appear to sense the beauty and specialness that the decorations of life offer, even if they are not conscious of what it is that is influencing their perceptions and ensuing conduct.  As I write this a story has appeared in the news of an animal seeing a statue of its own species, and exposed to contact with that animal has appeared to fall in love with it.  It will be interesting to learn what animal psychologists think of the strange affair.  In fact, the event may not be strange in that human beings often are possessed by this or that attraction in life that defies careful analysis for sensibility and meaning.  There is warning about the decorations of our lives – that they do not become too large and demanding so we are guided about the actions related to our bodies, the jewelry we use, the ways we fix our hair.  There is meaning in all this that relates to the spiritual substance related to us.  However, I am more interested for the purpose of this Page to address the psychological decorations of our lives.  They are not related to material substance or to what is perceived to be artistic beauty or lack of it, but do provide decoration to individuals that may be far more important than the measureable decorations of self or environment.  Our space limits us here to one – personality.

A brother-in-law of mine once said to me that he wanted me to help him escape some of his personality so that persons would like what he did on the basis of his worth and achievement, rather than his impression on people.  We went to work on the matter that included advanced education, and he achieved in a way that he never thought possible at the beginning.  Later his achievement became something of a barrier to other factors in personal development.  He did well in the course of natural life projection.  The natural appeals of a person can be folded into the substantive so to make the person extraordinary.  But the swishing tail must not be identified as the horse.  Not only is our motivation prompted by God’s directive to us to serve others, but the performance of that directive, which God takes unto himself as service to him, becomes the blessing of earth.  In this is our legacy.  In this we find our meaning for natural life, and by which the awards of heaven share.  The objectivity of the self is to recognize the meaning of self in ourselves by serving life needs in others.  Our institutions ought to be built on the same principle.  Often those institutions are judged, not by what they do, but by the popularity they are able to gain from the public they hope to influence.  At the time of this writing, after decades of vast assistance to many countries of the world, the United States is faced with much larger dislike from significant segments of countries assisted by the largess of the American society.  (Go figure.)

At the beginning of his career Samson was an attractive fellow – well met.  He was fun to be with, made a physically impressive appearance, and was gifted above that of his surrounding fellows.  Saul was admired by the public that saw him.  He was dutiful to his parental family, and seemed to be the person who would possess the best gifts for a people who had never had a king.  He did not have the substance of Samuel, and Samuel’s age was making him less effective in the demands of Israel’s tribal life.  The people chose a leader for the wrong reasons – he was the son of caring and naïve but devout parent father.  Samson looked the part.  He too failed, becoming mesmerized by power and psychologically suspicious of others even those who would faithfully serve him and the people.  Persons of personality possessing wisdom can become gifts to their families, their professions, and their context in anything they do.  The attractiveness becomes a tool that can gain large benefit.  Charismatic, dynamic, lightness, all related to acceptance of others, and tied to achievement sometimes seem like near miracles in service to others.  Persons with attractive personalities need to possess life substance not found in impressions.  I have no doubt about the dynamic personality of Jesus.  Great to be with, we remember him for hope.  Jesus affirmed life meaning.