It’s Been 49 Years Now
My beloved brother left this realm of existence on June 14, 1974. He was 23 years old. He died suddenly from a cerebral hemorrhage.
Time is an illusion. My memory of him and our time together is still so fresh and clear that it seems impossible that almost eighteen thousand days have passed since his death. His body stopped working. His energy, his essence continues on in another realm. I will experience what pure joy is when he and I and our mother are reunited once more once my physical body stops working as it soon will.
At the time of his death, I felt that there had to be some colossal cosmic blunder. The grim reaper stupidly took the wrong person. It should have been me instead of my brother. He had so much good to offer this oft-times crappy world. In a heartbeat I would have offered myself instead if only I was given that opportunity.
About twenty years ago or so, I had a random conversation with a shop owner. The conversation veered briefly to what happens to us when we die. The shop owner looked at me with eyes that had seen suffering and said, “All I want when I get there is some answers.” Amen brother, amen.
Growing Up Together
My brother was three years older that I was. We were born within the same week of the same month, he in 1950, me in 1953. We grew up together through the fifties and sixties. We shared a ton of experiences together living in our two bedroom house. Up until the early sixties, we even shared a bed. I still remember “Move over, you’re on my side”. My sister was born in ’59. When she outgrew her crib, she moved into our bedroom. Separate bedrooms were cobbled together up in the attic for Bobby and me.
As the years progressed, we developed our own individual skills and personalities, strengths and weaknesses. We had occasional squabbles as do all brothers, but we always remained close and loyal to each other. When he got involved in high school and college activities, I saw less of him but our brotherly bonds of affection always remained solid.
Demonstrating The Presence of God
We are created in the image of the Most High. As such, we have the privilege to demonstrate the presence of Most High through the Kingdom of God within us. We do this by expressing different high frequency energy sequences emanating from the Divine. Things such as love, peace, light, intelligence, truth, power, compassion, imagination, creativity. Throughout his life, at one time or another, my brother demonstrated all of these aspects. That he was a person of true substance is merely a statement of fact based on my first hand experiences. He packed a lot of life into those twenty-three plus years. More in those twenty-three years than me in my sixty-nine years.
Job
The biblical book of Job is a fascinating study of human emotion. I have always believed that there was much more to the story than meets the eye. A deeper meaning below the surface story. There is scarcely any suffering that a human can experience that Job did not experience. Job pleads his case with raw honesty and bluntness about the gross injustice of his suffering. Nevertheless, he refuses to curse God.
Then the zinger comes in chapter 28 when Job states, “Whence then cometh wisdom? and where is the place of understanding?…….it is hid from the eyes of all living“. And there it is in a nutshell. Until my essence proceeds to the next realm, the why of the timing of my brother’s death will be hidden from me. That’s just the way it is. I will have to live with that.
A Person of Substance
What does it mean to be a person of substance. I assure you that it has nothing whatsoever to do with the wealth you possess, the possessions you own, or the level of control that you may exert over others. A person of substance is defined by an ongoing series of lifelong choices. Lifelong choices that are subsequently followed by actions to implement those choices. Choices that demonstrate and bring into physical experience the presence and glory of the Divine.
Deciding what must be done now versus what can wait. Whether to remain on the side of caution or take a risk and potentially experience failure. Choosing how to deal with both success and failure. Conforming to the norms of society or following your inner light if that light varies from societal norms. Understanding what is true and right and making that the only road you travel.
A person of substance actually participates in the positive enhancement of everything that exists. The growth of the universe. To actually interact with a person of true substance is a delight to the soul. That person creates growth in the universe regardless of their station in life in this world.
Carl Jung
Have you ever heard of Carl Jung? He is recognized as one of the most influential psychiatrists of all time. He founded the field of analytical psychiatry and was among the first in his field to explore the religious nature behind human psychology. He is an interesting guy.
Take a look at this statement from Jung:
“In this overpoweringly humdrum existence, alas, there is little out of the ordinary that is healthy, and thus, not much room for conspicuous heroism. Not that heroic demands are never put us – on the contrary – and this is so irritating and irksome – the banal everyday makes banal demands upon our patience, our devotion, our perseverance, our self-sacrifice. For us to fulfill these demands (as we must) humbly and without courting applause through heroic gestures, a heroism is needed that cannot be seen from the outside. It does not glitter. It is not belauded. It always seeks concealment in everyday attire.”
If you take a close look at those who outwardly appear to be people of substance, oftentimes what you find underneath the surface is a person who is merely self-serving. Take a second look at that statement from Jung. True men and women of substance are often much closer than you think.
Choices
With regard to my brother’s life, I believe he substantially made the right choices. He was a man of true substance. I was privileged to be his brother for those twenty-three plus years of his lifetime. When you come to the end of your lifetime, you will have to ask yourself some hard questions before you stop breathing. Did you enhance life or did you subtract from it? Did you fully use what you were given or did you waste much of what you had? Did you give more than you received?
Wherever you are on your life journey, beginning, middle or end, you have a choice. You can choose to aspire to be a person of true substance. Or you can settle for living a life of smoke and mirrors, masks and shadows, fears and doubts, illusions and facades. A hollow existence. An absence of substance. Whether you believe in an afterlife or not, making the conscious choice to be a person of substance will always enhance and enrich your life experience while you are here.
The choice is yours. It always has been. It will be until your final breath. Then, the book of your life will be closed. Game over.
Dominus Vobiscum.
Conceive. Believe. Receive.