“All that I Seek is Already Within Me”

Posted on May 17, 2020 by Becky Dingle

Dear Reader:

Stop and pause a moment…try to remember how many books and movies of every genre you read and saw growing up…science fiction, fantasy, and even classics-that contained  a powerful recurring theme…the answer to the quest for our identity in the world is in us.

Each has a similar beginning…A young man, boy, girl,  child…goes on an adventure to “find themselves”…to discover what life is all about and their place in it…only to meet a Darth Vader, a Wizard of Oz, or a lion named Aslan (in Narnia) or even “Daddy” Warbucks in Annie.

No matter the name of the character…there is always the “Counselor, the Wise One” who reveals the secret to each individual’s quest for courage and understanding…that these treasures we so seek have been with us, in us, the whole time we traveled our adventure…erroneously looking outside ourselves for the answer.

 

Didn’t Jesus tell us this a long, long time ago when he said “The kingdom of God does not come with observation; nor will they say, ‘See here!’ or ‘See there!’ For indeed, the kingdom of God is within you” (Luke 17:20-21).

Could there be anything more powerful than the Kingdom of God? And if God placed it within each of us…we know there was a purpose for it. Yet don’t we always go looking for answers to our problems from others whom we think are smarter or wiser than us…just to end up disappointed by the lack of results in our own lives?

Others can certainly help guide us….still no one but God can reveal the true image of ourselves within. The Kingdom of God knows what our destiny and purpose in life should be. And once we realize that we don’t have to travel around the world in search of knowledge or go on some kind of odyssey… we can save time and miles simply turning inward.

Yesterday was Boo Boo’s turn to visit Eva Cate and Jake…we watched Disney’s Maleficient- somehow I had missed that movie (watching with the grandchildren)…and once again…what you see on the outside isn’t necessarily what is found on the inside. The good queen, in white, turns out to be evil while Maleficent, in black,  turns out to be the great heroine of the story. 

Isn’t life filled with riddles and oxymorons? Even the coronavirus has two sides…one that fills us with fear of this potentially deadly virus and puts restrictions on our life styles that we have never encountered before. Yet…for the first time families really have time to be together and learn more about each other than ever deemed possible in the fast-paced society we lived in prior to the ‘stay-at-home’ policy .

 

Families are enjoying cooking and sitting down together for the first time for many. Home-schooling means a lot more than reading, writing, and arithmetic….Eva Cate is now folding all the family’s clothes and doing a terrific job!

The pandemic is full of oxymorons, paradoxes and ironies. Some are ridiculous, others outrageous and a few are sublime. Even the language is peppered with oxymorons, we are “social distancing” and “alone together.”

We stay at home because we might infect other people and we stay at home to avoid contracting the virus. We wear masks that don’t protect us to protect the people around us, which protects us. Confused…we all are! 🙂

Somehow, however, human beings who care for each other…find a way to connect and creativity soars where once it floundered. Love and understanding increases among all fellow man because we are all going through the same thing…no matter where one lives in the world. We are all connected in our survival tactics and also humor.

Jokes comes in daily from countries all around the world…it appears that man can always find a way to laugh at himself through any crisis…what an universal gift that is!

So until tomorrow…“Those who travel outward seek completeness in things; those who gaze inward find sufficiency in themselves.”

“Today is my favorite day”  Winnie the Pooh

Fun in the Sun…a hot day yesterday…still with a pretty blustery wind

 

 

About Becky Dingle

I was born a Tarheel but ended up a Sandlapper. My grandparents were cotton farmers in Laurens, South Carolina and it was in my grandmother’s house that my love of storytelling began beside an old Franklin stove. When I graduated from Laurens High School, I attended Erskine College (Due West of what?) and would later get my Masters Degree in Education/Social Studies from Charleston Southern. I am presently an adjunct professor/clinical supervisor at CSU and have also taught at the College of Charleston. For 28 years I taught Social Studies through storytelling. My philosophy matched Rudyard Kipling’s quote: “If history were taught in the form of stories, it would never be forgotten.” Today I still spread this message through workshops and presentations throughout the state. The secret of success in teaching social studies is always in the story. I want to keep learning and being surprised by life…it is the greatest teacher. Like Kermit said, “When you’re green you grow, when you’re ripe you rot.”
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2 Responses to “All that I Seek is Already Within Me”

  1. Rachel Edwards says:
    May 17, 2020 at 12:23 pm

    You are right about the home schooling…our grands have learned how to write letters and everyone has been so happy to get one…life ling skill even if they switch to emails. I love the pictures of Eva Cate and Jake…and the one of all 3 of you is so good…

    Reply

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