Summer is nearly over, at least for the children. In two days, school begins again and we will be on the ‘downhill’ to the end of this year. It seems each year flies by more quickly than the last, and this year has been no different.
Trin will begin high school this year, Rane will begin middle school, and Zack and Eva will begin the last two years our family will have children at Lakeview Elementary. I thought I would feel an immense sadness when this particular school year began, but I have found myself excited for the children as they grow, take on new challenges, and become more and more themselves.
I have had many discussions recently with Trin, about growth and change, and how even as we grow and change, and the world does, too, there is an underlying stability and order to everything. Most of these discussions have come on the heels of Trin’s encounters with Sunday School and the misunderstanding her teacher there holds of Hinduism.
Our discussion yesterday was about God. I told Trinidad that there is one God, the same God, for Christians, Muslims, Jews, and Hindus, and that what differs is our perception of God; our perception of God determines our relationship with God, our interpretation of the world, and the ways we think and behave. God does not change, no matter what we think or believe.
Underneath our perception, underneath our interpretation, God remains the same – and this is true of everything we experience. Whatever is going on in the world or in our lives, our expectation or perception does not change the underlying reality.
My Latter Half 