Save Me

While settling into my seat and fastening the belt, I hear the familiar instructions spoken by the flight attendant. In case of emergency, an oxygen mask will drop from the ceiling. Place your mask over your mouth first, before helping anyone else with theirs. The message is clear. I can't help another person if I am sucking wind and about to die. I can not help you if I am flopping about on the airplane floor like a soon to be dead fish out of water, or oxygen in this case. Flipping this around, you cannot help me either, if you don't take care of your immediate needs first. Luke 6:42 How can you say to your brother, "Brother let me take the speck out of your eye," when you yourself fail to see the plank in your own eye? You hypocrite, first take the plank out of your eye, and then you will see clearly to remove the speck from your brother's eye." I am laughing a little sarcastically at the thought of what you see is what you get. The humbling moments that come when criticism exposes the very nature of character flaws in the speaker. Projection is defined as: the presentation of an image on a surface, especially a cinema screen; a mental image viewed a certain way. Emotion and sentiments unexpressed will not only surface, they will search and find similarities, ways for outlet. When I don't allow my feelings, they have no other choice than to find a host, somewhere to point and say, there, over yonder, THAT is what I am NOT talking about. Ok, you want a for instance? Here is a physical for instance. An overweight person watches what others put on their plates at a party and whispers to the person next to them, "no wonder Sally struggles with her weight, look at the size of that piece of cake. I'm pretty sure I saw her eat a brownie too!". Want another? Oh my, must I go there? To the deep dark spaces that we all travel when you, when I, would rather look outside of ourselves for flaws than work on what is ever present in ourselves? I will refrain from another example-I am confident you can think of one all on your own.

If projection is your operating system, your safety first defence mechanism, how is this working for you? Do you feel better after the finger pointing, accusations and blame distribution? You, Dear Reader, must comes first. You must do the work of the at first dark deep soulful swimming. The allowing of all the emotions that bubble and surge beneath. It is in this self discovery and permission to feel, even if it gets ugly and messy, that you can be free to breath clean untainted oxygen. Fix your eyes on you. Fix you first. Love you to the point of being so wholesome and free that when you look at others, you want this for them too. Remove the log from your own eye and allow others to remove the specks from theirs.