The Challenge of a Lifetime

I went to a good friend’s wedding a few weekends ago, and one moment stood out to me more than any other.

Just before saying their vows, the bride and groom asked the priest to read out some words describing why they love each other, and their feelings towards different members of their family. I felt so moved hearing my friend’s husband celebrate her in the presence of so many people, and then with slow emphasis, the priest declared “And — he says she is the most human person he has ever met.” The most human person! This resonated deeply with me. “Yes, she is!” I wanted to shout! So what did he mean? You’ll have to meet her to find out!, but the following is the best I can do in words. I hope she reads these few lines, and knows that in my my mind she is a great example of what it means to be successful.

This person celebrates every moment through creative expression of voice, body and soul. She extends herself into her environment to welcome whatever or whoever is before her. She laughs, and she cries, she breathes life in and out, not for her own building up, but to connect and reach out to what or who is around her. By being human, I think he meant that she is always present; relating with herself, with him, and with the people and the world around her, free and confident to include and extend, rather than to shut off and turn away.

Perhaps it sounds easy, and yet it seems that so much of what we produce as a society is designed to help us escape the present, escape our true selves, and escape having to really relate to one another. Becoming human, welcoming others in all their uncomfortable difference, and having the courage to live in the present is, I think, the challenge of a lifetime, and my friend is a step ahead of the rest.

First published May 2015