The lumber shortage is a lie — 40+8 Day Nineteen

breathe in | breathe out

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Logion 26

You detect a speck
in your brother’s eye,
but you fail to perceive
the beam sticking out of your own.

Remove the timber from your eye,
and you will see clearly enough
to extract the speck lodged
in the eye of your brother.

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Reflection

It’s crazy, the price of lumber these days.
Supposedly, there’s a shortage going on right now.
Hard to believe when you read the words of Logion 26.

Damn it, I’ve got 10 yard-long 2x4’s coming out of my eyes.
I’m becoming more aware of them each day.
What are the beams inhibiting your seeing?

Is it the beam
of white-body supremacy
of a self-righteous progressive bubble
of a single news source echo-chamber
of an oppressive and disembodied “religious” rule

So much pain and ignorance.
So much untended trauma.
Sometimes, simply distance and cultural difference.
All of these things and more inform our prejudices.
They keep us from seeing the whole of another.
And often that not seeing
leads us to criticize, scapegoat and demonize.

Time to take a breath.
Time to learn to settle our bodies and minds,
and get curious about the bigger, often unseen, stories.

Time to harvest this lumber with care
and put to good use
building a now and a future
that is inhabitable and good.

What realities am I aware and unaware of
that shape my view of the world
and the lives and actions of others?

What realities am I not seeing
in the lives of others,
and how do I grow my capacity for empathy?

This curiosity and wonder
when pursued with gentle diligence
will lead us on a powerful journey
of healing and reconciliation.

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Question

What’s the bigger story I’m not seeing,
and how do I heal so that I can contribute
to the healing of others?

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