Life Has Its Contrasts

SAT., NOV. 15, 1997, 6:40 AM
FARM, STUDY

At the beginning of this week you were in a busy city, commuting in to a crowded conference. There were some friends, colleagues, and acquaintances there, but it was mostly a mob of unknowns. In contrast you are settling back into a more quiet life, here on this Farm that you love. Life has its contrasts…

While at the Association meeting you had a few opportunities to relate personally, but also many opportunities that simply conflicted with others. You couldn’t talk to Stephen because you were talking with Dave… In contrast yesterday you had a good, long interaction with Adrian, an ideal student-mentor relationship, with all of the time necessary. Later you had time to read a whole story to two young granddaughters. You have experienced some of life’s diversity.

A.P.H.A. is a force for good in your culture, a good of which I approve even more than of medicine and medical care, the stronger force. The field you are now leaving… or that is leaving you behind… is a good part of prevention and positive health, but it is far from the dominant force in this Association. The school emphasis is minor. So… you have enjoyed your career, and made some contributions, but it has never had the glamour, in relation to health, that the practice of medicine has.

You have been proud of your Ed.D degree and the institution where you earned it, but it has less status than the Ph.D. degree from this institution, that you have helped so many receive. You were part of a “movement”… the Ed.D… that didn’t “catch on”, as anticipated. As you think about it, your S.H.E.S. group were mostly Ed.D.’s, and your “product”… though it had some influence… is now just a part of history. Consider, as an example, your body surfing at Kailua last summer… you caught a few, but many just passed you by.

The “spiritual movement” in A.P.H.A. is moving along, but, again, this “gift” of yours still seems to have no place. You enjoy it, and you have a small following, but it seems to be of no consequence in “the big picture” of public health. Then I tell you… and you know… that I am the most relevant factor in human life, even as My political influence is minor to negative. Life has its contrasts…

You are Emeritus from a middle-level university (at best), from a field that has little status, even as it is important to human life. In contrast to the busy, bustling city where you were earlier in the week you live here in a run-down Farmhouse… a quiet place. Yet it is the right place for you, and it is a proper, fitting place to close out this earth life. You still have some tasks, unimportant by your cultural standards, but vital for you and for those with whom you relate.

As you think about your life you are generally pleased. You achieved according to your abilities, and that is satisfying. You can think of decisions and choices that could have been different, but you also realize now, and increasingly, that I, Holy Spirit, have guided you through a life that has been “just right” for you… “this trip”.

I generally approve of the description of your “next life”, as Emeritus. A semi-monk is what you should be, in these years, in this place. Continue to relate helpfully to your family and some students, and continue to be active in your church’s life. This will continue to be an important room for you, but change it… as planned… to symbolize a different style of living. Do take time to contemplate, with My Teachings to you as your primary Source.