The theme today where I lay my head is freedom. Neighbors have pulled on red shirts and blue pants with stars to either walk in or clap for a parade of fellow citizens, some of whom are children on tricycles. It is a sweet testimony to those privileges we have inherited simply by being born. Liberty is that expansive capacity to experience autonomy, even the parts
where we fail.
The channel Off the Left Eye recently posted a question.
"Have you ever felt enslaved by a negative habit?"
A gutsy one, if you ask me. And yet, what an invitation to be honest. Honesty arrived, as readers wrote about their addictions, and tendencies to judge others. What spilled into the wake was compassion, and support.
"Yes, I was quick to judge and condemn
without understanding. I seldom gave grace or mercy. God has taken this stubborn woman through the fire and I'm getting better and better, giving grace and love even if I don't understand why they do the things they do."
It occurs to me, as I slide into the last leg of my journey, that I had an assumption. I thought I could evaluate another person's path. I was watching after all, and I knew the rules of the game. But I have dialed back that
belief.
It turns out that giving someone else freedom, which is a ridiculous misnomer even as I write it, is worth celebrating. I may wave a few sparklers at the joy of spiritual liberty.
