“ALL ONE” sounds good in theory, but do we really believe that? More importantly, do we really ACT that way?
Several years ago, I was in a packed plane, full throttle up, front wheels off the Fort Lauderdale sand when suddenly the pilot slammed on the brakes. You could’ve heard a pin drop as we taxied back to the gate. Once there, the captain came on and said that we had lost an engine. What a miracle not to have been in the sky! We were all ushered back to the gate where a ticket agent would rebook all of our flights. I didn’t care, I was just thrilled to be alive in that moment.
But, as they say, there’s one in every crowd. This big boisterous red faced man in first class was the first to reach the podium. “I’m late. This is BS. Do you know who I am? I need a flight NOW”, he demanded. He went on and on and the louder he got, the more annoyed the ticket agent became. After several warnings she said, “that’s it, back of the line”. With almost two hundred people in line going down the hall, the whole plane cheered her decision as he made his slow walk to the end of the line.
I think of that experience that morning in Fort Lauderdale as a great example that we truly are All One. At the end of the day, we are all hurling in a metal tube together. One goes, we all go, pretty much. And that goes for the green and blue ball we are all spinning on together.
We have to turn the plane around and work together. We are not separate from the homeless, we are not separate from other countries, we are not separate from LOVE. We are all part of the problem, but we are all part of the solution.
ALL ONE, to me, means being at peace with what is. When you are in the moment you can feel peace. Joy. That is true freedom. It is a spiritual practice of the highest form. It is to let go of the state of inner resistance, such as expectation that the plane should fly. To be in the moment is to say “this is happening”.
That’s why making art is the most spiritual practice for me. Whether it’s crafts, making music, speaking, writing or just living your life in a precious way, it brings you right to the moment, where there is no time and space, only that moment. That is why when you are in the act of doing something you love, time stands still. That’s why I preach the gospel of art. That’s why I have become a servant of intention.
Wheels Up,
Nancy + Team Sweet Bird