Grace

David Brook’s “The Road to Character” contains biographies of well-known people from the past who’d undergone changes in their outlook through their life experiences. I wasn’t enamored of it.  Brooks believes that there is no other way to attain grace than to believe that it is God-given. To me, grace can be found in many different ways, through many different experiences. The most peaceful place for me — the place where I feel connected to something beyond myself -- is on a forest path, or in the mountains — somewhere surrounded by the beauty, intricacy, and diversity of nature. It is where I find serenity, and feel humbled and happy, although, to me, grace requires more - something like being in service to others.

An animal protection activist stated recently, “Millions of different creatures manage to maintain a perfect balance among themselves. Man alone has decided that his interests trump all others.”  I agree. Humans are not in balance with nature and haven’t been for a long time. I’m not sure grace is possible until we are in balance, until we think beyond our selfish needs. What will bring that about? Hard to say. There are just too darn many of us.  Finding grace is difficult when one struggles to find water and food, and the freedom to live in peace is beyond one’s grasp. I could also define grace as wisdom, and those who seem to have a better sense of what 'living on this planet truly means' are, I think, closer to a state of grace than those who take their lives and the world for granted.