Meditation
My comical moments are many. I often find myself going through the day tripping, stumbling, catching my balance, as if my shoes are perennially untied. Especially these days, Havel’s counsel is both a gift of self-criticism and self-forgiveness. “I think it’s important for one to take a certain distance from oneself.” Can we see the absurdity of our own dealings, our own acts? Are we too anxious to see ourselves at the center of things, as though we were the leading actor of the play? And even when we are the playwright, director, and lead, do we give others time and space on the stage? Are we willing to give them the authorship to expand the narrative and drama beyond our initial conception? We may best appreciate ourselves and others when we learn to take a distance from ourselves.
Todd Breyfogle, Denver, Colorado
