My cousin and I talked about a mystery a few years ago. He said that we can’t really know a valley without there being a mountain. It is like the person living on the equator who has seen snow in pictures but it makes no sense until they experience snow.

Life is full of living contrasts. They add to the complexity of life, making it interesting, full of ideas and items to explore. Even our personalities and talents show this assortment of “versus’.” Of course they overlap and are just man-made categories and I don’t mean much by them, but we do think and itemize (compare) this way. There isn’t a right or wrong in this. Hey, right vs. wrong . . . I am going to list a few that come to mind:
We have the. . .

• introvert vs. extrovert
• practical vs. impulsive
• right brain vs. left brain
• athlete vs. nerd
• feminine vs. tomboy
• quiet vs. loud
• flat affect vs. expressive
  
• emotional vs. phlegmatic
• monotone vs. melodic
• critical vs. affirming
• positive vs. negative
• mean vs. kind
• motivated vs. lazy
• miserly vs. giving
• humble vs. proud
• insignificant vs. magnificent
• other-centered vs. self-centered
• ugly vs. beautiful,
• spiritual vs. profane
• sedentary vs. active

It is hard to stop adding on more of these, the list could be expanded triple-fold. The point is, there are many types of people in this world. A person could say that we are the sum of our parts: heritage + personality + abilities + experiences + education + religion = individual, but that would be incomplete. Free will and life’s experiences determine a destiny. In God, we all have a destiny. The confounding challenge is to find out what our destiny is. I once was struggling with a concept in my life. It was an area of insecurity for me. My friend said a statement that resounded loud and clear. “Norma, that is not your destiny.” And it wasn’t my destiny. I came to see it more clearly once I was separated from the situation.

This is what is true regarding a person’s destiny: You have a gift that only you can give. You have a song that only you can sing. You have a message that only you can impart.

Before we were even formed in our mother’s womb, God had a plan for each one of us. He put eternity in our hearts. God has a plan and a future for you and one for me. It is our destiny and our purpose for living.

You are a good Father God, so very good. I stand amazed in your presence. Holy is your name. Blessed is your Being.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~

N. L. Brumbaugh, with a monastic interlude from “The Sacred Place”
THE MEETING PLACE by N. L. BRUMBAUGH

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