And it got me, pardon the pun, "wondering" about the red queen. For the first time, I noticed that this person, who represents the heart, was, well, not very nice. It was an unexpected take, but as I thought about it I realized that it was true to the book.
It hit me, then, that there are a myriad of ways the ways of the heart can manifest themselves; from understanding, love, and compassion to jealousy, sorrow, and obsession.
We may know what we mean when we say "love", and think that we are communicating clearly when we refer to it, but that ain't necessarily so. Communication is so much more than words.
Today I passed the kindergarten yard. Three little boys were taking a "time out" because of their inappropriate actions on the playground. I wondered what they had done, and didn't have to wait too long to find out. They were set free from their bench in purgatory and went directly back to the scene of their crime.
"Finn!" the teacher shouted, "I told you to stay out of the mud".
"Oh", replied Finn "Is this mud? I thought it was dirt."
Communication is hard. Even simples words have different meanings to different people. How do we know if we're truly understanding someone, or making ourselves understood? In order to communicate most effectively, we have to dive into our instincts and free up our animal nature.
With animals, you can tell that communication is happening, even if it has nothing to do with a verbal language (as far as I know). It seems to be about body language and energy. Sometimes a strange dog will come up to another dog and any observer can tell right away if the dogs will get along. Something about the two dogs' energy tells that story well before the initial "getting to know" you exchange of sniffs.
I think people have the same kind of instinctual response to others. We've been trained to disregard our first impressions, but they are very telling.
You know when you like someone, when you don't, when you feel comfortable in their presense, when you don't, and when you can trust them and when you can't. You may not know how you know these things, but you do.
When you "understand where someone is coming from", it implies more than just knowing the meanings of the words they use. You see them energetically, and feel who they are. Your understanding is multi-dimensional when you allow yourself the full range of your instinctual nature, because then you have the sensitivity for your understanding to be energetic, deeply empathic,and non-verbal
Since understanding is so important to creating a more peaceful world, it's time for us all to see beyond a person's words and straight into their hearts. Despite our disagreements, common ground does exist. It's our job to find it, stand on it, and redirect our lives from there. Let's take the position that we're all in the same boat and find a way to harmoniously pass the time on this voyage around the sun.
Love, Kristine
