Monday, December 14, 2009


The "begets" in the bible are those pages we skip somewhere in the old Testament that lists verse after verse, chapter after chapter and page after page who was the father of whom on and on and on and on as if it were a 9000 verse version of "The Circle of Life."

We often talk about events happening in a circular way, and usually it isn't particularly good news. "What goes around, comes around" is tossed around a lot, as are several sayings referring to Karma not playing nice with others. The idea of "just desserts" or something "coming back to haunt you" can be a pretty satisfying thought, as long as you aren't on the receiving end. Who knows? Maybe it hearkens back to childhood with the old idea that "he knows when you've been bad or good, so be good, for goodness' sake!" It keeps us in line, keeps the balance in check, rewards the good and punishes the bad, in a very tidy scales of justice Even-Steven sort of way.

But increasingly I've learned that rewarding the good and punishing the bad doesn't always happen as neatly as we fool ourselves into thinking it does. Shit happens, sometimes the bad get away with being bad, the good are left holding the bag, and our friend Karma is doing the bump and grind on our sense of balance and fairness.

The good news -- and believe me, this is very good news -- is that "going around and coming around" doesn't always refer to good versus bad. In fact, whether we recognize it or not, "what goes around, comes around" is as true for goodness that begets goodness, kindness that follows kindness, and love that grows into even more love. True enough, punishment may follow misdeed, and revenge may indeed be a delicious dish when served cold. But as satisfying as that can be (and let's be honest here, sometimes it is VERY SATISFYING, Thank You) how much better would it be if we focused on forgiveness, reconciliation and our own healing instead of settling the score and getting revenge. There's more than enough bad in the world right now.  We don't need to add to its score.

If we start responding to all our victories and battles with goodness, kindness and love, we may start a chain reaction and beget even more of the same.  We may not see justice the way we'd like to, and fairness might be out of the question.  But through the actions we choose to take, we will be stronger. And who knows? Maybe someday "just desserts" will be something with chocolate sauce, whipped cream and a cherry. Enough for everybody to share.

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