Theory #1 - My "Speck Theory"

I have a theory. Actually I have a few, but let me pace myself.

This theory is one I named several years ago; I call it my "Speck Theory." Not everyone will understand it, and certainly there will be those who disagree with it. Now where do I begin?

I was raised a Catholic. I attended Catholic school, went to mass at least once a week, and had, what I consider anyway, a very sheltered childhood. Don't misunderstand - I had a great childhood and received a first rate education. What I did not learn about, however, had to do with the ways of the world and all other religions. I went to public high school, as there was no Catholic high school here at the time. And it was then that I slowly (and I do mean slowly) began to see more of the true workings of society. I started to realize that there were aspects of Catholicism with which I did not/do not agree. Nothing drastic - I never felt the need to renounce the Church. I had no desire, really, to completely alienate myself from it. I just felt the need to explore other belief systems a little bit.

My belief in "God," or a Supreme Being, or a Higher Power, or whatever you wish to call it if you believe in "it," has not waned. I believe that there is at least some version of heaven or the hereafter. And I believe that when we pass, it is simply the end of our physical body. I do not believe that any one religion is "right," and all the others are "wrong," that any one person's "God" is the only god and no other should be followed. I believe that we are all here to learn and to experience, and that we should all strive to experience love - to give it, to receive it, to be it. I believe that we are all in this together and that we are, in fact, all together one. (One of my favorite sayings - a Vedic saying - "I am that, you are that, all this is that - that's all there is.")

So, here I am. One little person in a town of 90,000, in a country of 307,054,000 on a planet of (how many?) people, in a solar system of eight (nine?) planets, in an infinite universe, in . . . who knows? Imagine you're on one of those other planets or out in the universe somewhere and look at planet Earth. Where am I? I am not even a speck from this vantage point. But zoom in a little, then zoom in a little more, and maybe I'm a speck on a speck on a speck. Such a seemingly insignificant piece of it all, but not insignificant at all. Not insignificant to me, nor to my husband, or my children, or grandchildren, or friends. Not insignificant to the people that I work with and for, nor to the birds that I feed or the plants that I water. Not insignificant to my parents and other relatives that have passed before me, or to the grandchildren and great-grandchildren that are not yet here.

So what's the point of all this? There is no point except that I am a speck - but an essential speck. So many other specks are dependent on me. Think about it next time you are in your car driving to work, or in a plane flying across a continent, or even standing in line at a coffee shop. Imagine yourself in the cosmos somewhere, and look down on your earthly body. Are you a speck too?

In this together with you,