Speaker 1: Life. There is in each of us a potential something
for expression. The something within the plant of life. No
use trying to repress it, For develop it must. Life
has a meaning growth, development, and unfoldment, the lesson of life.
There is in each of us a potential something pressing
forth for expression and growth in the direction of ultimate good,
casting off sheath after sheath, in its progressive development and unfoldment,
impelled by the impulse, imparted by the primal cause, attracted
upward by the absolute. Failing to understand this impulse of
the growing something seeking relief from its steady pressure, we
look upon it as an intruder, and instead of allowing
it to develop and grow naturally, we endeavor to kill
it or to train its growth. After our own petty notions,
we fail to see that this something is like unto
the plant, which grows on steadily and surely from seed
to blossom, until its potentialities are fully expressed. We do
not realize that this plant of life should be allowed
to grow as does the lily, freely and without restraint,
unfolding leaf after leaf, until the plant stands in its
complete beauty, crowned with its divine flower. We would train
the plant into some fantastic shape, dwarf it as the
Chinese do the oak, that it may become the pretty
ornament of the parlor instead of the noble monarch of
the forest. We would have it grow our way, not
according to the law of its being. We fancy that
we know what is best for it, losing sight of
the fact that, deep down in the subconscious depths of
its being reposes that which directs its every effort toward
the good. Forgetting that its attraction toward the absolute is
drawing it steadily and irresistibly in the right direction, we
forget that the plant will fulfill these impulses so long
as there remains in it one atom of life. The
seed in the ground will express itself in its little shoot,
often moving weights a thousand times heavier than itself, in
its efforts to reach the rays of the sun. The
sapling may be bent and confined to the ground, but
its branches, following the laws of its being, will instinctively
shoot upward. Restrict the growth of the plant if you can,
but nevertheless it will move along the lines of least
resistance and grow toward the sun. In spite of your
efforts and so it is with the plant of life,
the something within us. We are afraid to allow it
to grow according to the laws of its being, but
wish to model it and shape it in accordance with
the theories of ourselves or others. More frequently, the latter,
for most of our ideas on the subject are borrowed.
We seem to imagine that the intelligence that thought the
plant into existence did not understand its business, And we
are afraid that without the assistance of our mighty intellect,
the poor thing will grow into a misshapen and unsightly thing.
We would alter the shape designed by its maker, and
would twist it into the form approved of by the
passing fashion of the hour. We would substitute for the
beauty and symmetry of nature our own fantastic ideas of form.
But like the plant, this something of ours will not
submit to the confining bonds, will not conform to the
false standards which we would set up for it, submitting
as long as it must. It stores up reserve strength
day by day and keeps up a continuous, steady pressure
in the direction of its desire, and some day, by
a supreme effort, it throws off the interfering obstacles and
obeying the laws of its being, again grows towards the sun.
Life is growth. It moves along, pressing this way and
that way, along the lines of least resistance, drawing to
itself that which it needs for its complete expression and growth,
using this thing and that thing today and discarding them
tomorrow after they have served their purpose, after their helpful
qualities have been extracted. It assumes many forms in its growth,
discarding sheath after sheath as outgrown. Any attempt to compel
it to retain a sheath which has become outgrown will
cause its life nature to revolt, and in the end,
with a mighty effort, it will burst forth, tearing the
confining sheath into frag This something may be restrained temporarily,
but its growth is as sure as the rising of
tomorrow's sun, and its attempted restraint only results in the
end in a violent assertion of its right to unfold
and develop according to law. When we finally come to
realize that life has a meaning, that we are here
for a purpose, that the process of spiritual evolution is
being expressed in us and through us, that our growth
is in accordance with law that the absolute understands its business,
then will we cease to attempt to meddle with the
great plan. We will then cease our futile efforts to
mold to our absurd and arbitrary shapes that which is
intended to grow in the beautiful form of Nature's designing.
We will realize that the power which called into being
this life of ours knew just what it was about.
This power placed within that life, the energy which is
expressing itself in changing form and color, but which has
but one real object, growth toward the sun. And when
we realize this truth, we will begin to have faith
and will trust the law to do that which is
best to be done. Will realize the folly of imagining
that the weight of the universe rests upon our shoulders.
Some of these days we will awaken to the fact
that ours is the conceit of the fly resting upon
the mighty revolving wheel, imagining that the fanning of his
wings causes the wheel to revolve. Some of these times,
the fly, tired with its exertions, will stop to rest
for a few moments, when it will find that the
wheel continues to revolve quite well. Thank you. Without its
active assistance. We have been taking our little selves quite serious. Indeed,
the something within is moving steadily and surely towards its goal,
and much of the pain of life comes to us
by reason of our efforts to restrict it, our efforts
to change its motion, direction speed. It is a mighty
aid to those who understand and move along with it,
but woe unto those who get in its way and
endeavor to obstruct its progress. If unobstructed, there is no friction.
If interfered with it manifests friction, which means pain. This
pain is the notice given to us by the law
to the effect that we are obstructing the growth of
the life plant. And if we are wise, we will
heed the warning. By conforming to the growth, we will
find that there is little or no friction, and life
begins to take on new pleasures. By cooperating with the
law and moving along with it, we will find that
things will come our way in a most unexpected manner.
The Law is a good friend and helper, and is
of the greatest assistance to us. If we but trust
it to do its work well in its own good way,
we can use its growing force to aid us in
our daily pursuits if we will trust it and move
along with it. But we must heed the first sign
of friction and understand that we are in some way
interfering with its natural growth. By living in accordance with
the law, instead of attempting to oppose it, we will
find that we are guided in the direction of places, people,
and occupations best suited to develop us and to impart
to us the experience needed to round out our lives.
A realization of this fact by those who have experienced
it has given rise to the saying, nothing ever happens.
We find the teachers and helpers that we require, they
find us. If we need certain information, we will find
it in some person or book, and will thus be
placed upon the track of that which we seek. The
law will sometimes accomplish its results in ways far different
from that which we would have supposed to be the best.
But after time has passed, we can look back and
we'll see that the way by which the results were
accomplished was the best possible under all the circumstances. We
may meet with some bitter disappointments, losses, sorrows, but in
the end these things will be seen as good will
be seen as having been necessary to give us the
experience needed to round out our characters, to enable us
to understand. There are none who would be willing to
part with the experience gained from even the most painful
events of their lives after say, ten years have elapsed.
No man would be willing to have that memory and
recollection of his greatest pain eradicated, if at the same
time he would have to part with the experience and
knowledge which have come to him by reason of that pain.
The pain and its resulting experience have become a part
of us, and we are not willing to be robbed
of our own. And we will realize in looking backward
that if we had been living in accordance with the
law in the past, if we had understood its workings,
these very sorrows, disappointments, losses would have been considered only
in view of their ultimate good, and the very sting
of the pain would thus have been removed. When we
learn to regard the pain of today as we do
the pain of ten years ago, we may feel that
we are beginning to understand something of the operation of
the law of good. And when we reach this stage,
we will find that the pain is no longer pain,
but only a form of good. When we cease to
cause friction, friction no longer exists for us. The lessons
of life must be learned sooner or later. It depends
upon us whether they shall be forced upon us in
spite of our resistance with much pain, or accepted by
us understandingly with knowledge. In one case, we will have
the pain which comes from opposing the law. In the other,
we will learn the lesson equally well, without the pain
of the birching. The lesson must be well learned in
either case. Choose your method now. I do not wish
to be understood as meaning that we should simply fold
our hands and wait for the law to bring all
things to us without any labor on our part. Try
this way, though, if you like, and see how quickly
the law will wrap you over the knuckles to remind
you that a task is set before you. The proper
way is to take up the task that lies nearest
your hand, and some task is always there, and do
it well, with the knowledge that the task has been
placed there in accordance with the law. If the task
is not to your liking, you will know that that
is the very reason that it has been placed before you.
You have a lesson to learn from it. When the
time comes for a change, you will find a strong
desire for something else full grown within you. Now is
your chance trust to the law to aid you in
working out your desire. The desire is there in accordance
with the law. Its very existence is a promise of
its fulfillment. With the aid of the law, you will
work out your desire. It is true that when you
attain the object of your desire, it may not be
just what you have thought. It may not be at
all what you want. Well, what of that? You have
learned the necessary lesson, have lived out the desire, and
will now outlive it. Something else will take his place,
and you will be surprised at the way that the
law has brought about the accomplishment of your desire. You
will learn another lesson in this when you have learned
to work on merrily doing your best, living out each
day's life with faith and trust, confidence and fearlessness, accepting
the development of each day as meaning ultimate good, seeing
and feeling that the law of good is in full operation,
being willing to accept whatever it may bring you then
and not until then, Good friend, will you begin to
know what is life