To Be or Not To Be

A little kingdom I possess,
Where thoughts and feelings dwell;
And very hard the task I find
Of governing it well.
~ Louisa May Alcott

...that more or less describes my situation!

~A Wise Man Said~

It is the mark of an educated mind to be able to entertain a thought without accepting it.
~ Aristotle
Sunday, July 19, 2020
 
Ever since I posted the parable of the talents (a few posts down) I have been thinking about picking up the thread where I left off. A lot of things bubble in my head but nothing concrete rises to the surface. On the face of it, even if we take "talents" to mean actual talent or gift, it seems a bit odd that God would be concerned about, let alone reward or punish, people based on whether they make the best use of it or whether they squander it. It is difficult to wrap one's head around this I guess because we usually think about God in the context of charity or mercy or love or... things that are one might say more heart than head.

If one thinks about it, the parable seems to suggest that God has put us on this earth with different capabilities or abilities or talents or gifts, and He has sort of made us responsible in a "free will" sense to fulfil the promise of these talents/gifts. He has perhaps not made it any easier for us to realise or manifest these talents but therein lies our challenge or our test. The more we try to meet this test the more likely we are to succeed but there are those who do not recognise their talent (whatever it may be) or their responsibility toward realising it. One can't say why that comes to be or why they do not hear their "calling" so to speak but then again that is what "free will" would mean. If God had himself planned everything out to the nth detail we would not be responsible at all and no question of test or reward or punishment would arise. This is perhaps best captured in the phrase, "God helps those who help themselves".

When I made the decision to quit career and country to pursue something that I felt my heart was in, I had many misgivings. And yet there was this conviction too that I was taking a path that felt destined to me, for me. That path has not been easy so far, and from my current vantage point I find it very difficult to tell how I will find my way forward. And yet, there is something in me that feels as if there is nothing better I can do with my life than to maximise the potential that God has invested in me. In an ideal world, God would reward me. But even if He doesn't, the failure seems worth taking.

The following poem by Milton (who is blind) speaks to the parable of the talents...I find it even more inspiring now...
 
On His Blindness   
WHEN I consider how my light is spent 
  Ere half my days in this dark world and wide, 
  And that one Talent which is death to hide 
  Lodged with me useless, though my soul more bent 
To serve therewith my Maker, and present          
  My true account, lest He returning chide, 
  “Doth God exact day-labour, light denied?” 
  I fondly ask. But Patience, to prevent 
That murmur, soon replies, “God doth not need 
  Either man’s work or his own gifts. Who best          
  Bear his mild yoke, they serve him best. His state 
Is kingly: thousands at his bidding speed, 
  And post o’er land and ocean without rest; 
  They also serve who only stand and wait.”

posted by Sylvia D'souza at 5:50 am 0 comments
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