She grew up with the children of the stars

Lullaby
Soul’s Core
Shawn Mullins

Children show the best and worst of their parents. Watching what they learn and parroting everything, good and bad. Some of the things Andrea did when she was younger struck me cold because I heard my own voice in her mouth. Sometimes it was “Oh my god, do I really sound like that?” Other times it was because I realized she was just parroting me and not making her own decisions or thinking about how she really felt about things.

On the flip side, they can be a reflection of our best selves, or show us a part of us we weren’t aware of. I never saw myself as beautiful, partly because of my excessive weight issue. Another (much larger) part of me didn’t feel beautiful because my mother told me I wasn’t, and I swore I’d never say that to my own child. But what happened was really extraordinary. I think my daughter is beautiful. And not in a “all moms think that way about their kid” way, because clearly that is not the case. I genuinely continue to be amazed at how pretty she is. And we hear comments from other people, who have no vested interest or any reason to lie, who says that she is a beautiful child. That comment is generally followed by the comment “she looks so much like you.” Having my daughter has made me recognize my own beauty. There are still times when I am uncomfortable with it, and I still struggle with the weight issue (recognizing I would be more attractive with about 100 fewer pounds) but I have come to accept and own my own beauty because my daughter has become a mirror for me.

What does this have to do with spirituality? In the religion of my childhood, there was a lot of talk about being children of the Creator. Too often that terminology is used to exploit the punitive nature of the deity, who parcels out punishment like a cosmic angry father. Or it is used to see God as some kind of parental figure, for all the baggage that entails depending on your relationship with your family of origin. I pose a different approach. Just as our own children can reflect the better parts of ourselves, we are a mirror for the spiritual force of the Universe. The good in us is a reflection of the best parts of something so much bigger and better than ourselves.

And even if we go to a more literal interpretation of the idea of children of God, there’s still something to that. Carl Sagan said that we are made of “star stuff.” We have elements of the Big Bang in our DNA. The atoms that comprise our bodies began from the source of everything. I think those who view the Big Bang theory as in direct conflict with religious texts are missing out on a powerful way to look at our Creator and our relationship with it. We share parts of our physical being with the Source of Everything! When we search for a connection to a higher power, we need to recognize that it is always a part of us. And we can use that to draw from to become our best selves. We are made from the stuff of stars; we share our source with the One who Created it. And with all of the creation that came out of it. I feel sorry for those who disregard the Big Bang because they are missing out on a major piece of our spiritual ancestry. I often wonder if it’s because of the implications that acknowledging it may have on their view of the world and the universe. What kind of responsibility would we have to take if we recognized that we have the spark of the Creator in every cell of our being? What would happen to our view of having dominion over everything if we had to recognize that everything else does as well?

When I wrap my head around that idea, it makes me realize that too often we don’t tap into the amazing source of strength and goodness. It won’t make things easier, necessarily, but just the recognition that we are a reflection of something greater should give us some hope that we can achieve great things. We are a part of infinity. We have infinite possibilities. In some ways it can be scary to admit that we have the power to do anything. What could we do if we knew we could not fail? Or if we knew that we had the source of power of The Universe to help us achieve greatness? Sometimes as human children we don’t appreciate all the great things that are our inheritance through our parental history. Or we recognize it, but we take it for granted in our ever busy daily round. I think as spiritual children, we do the same. We need to recognize what is our birth right and use that to make the world a better place.

How can you draw on your Big Bang DNA to improve your world? How does realizing you have a spiritual parentage with the Creator of everything change your view of yourself?

About these ads