Common Sense*

We avoid a lot of things because of common sense.  This is not always a good thing.  Common sense never scales mountains.  It never runs a marathon.  And it will never become a lover.  On the one hand it seems to offer protection, but than on the other it can offer mediocrity.  I think that a spiritual path of some meditation, silence, solitude and checking in with a second opinion can be a great help in ascertaining when we are avoiding something out of fear, or help us to know our passion that makes us all we are meant to be.  Some people would say they are on a spiritual path, such as a church membership but for second rate motives.  They want to escape hell.  But they are not really in love with their God.  There are people in recovery programs to avoid pain, but they have no passion for service to others.  The road to perfection is about having a passion for it, becoming a lover of the interior relationship, whatever that might be.  Then again, the ecstacy of the lover repels many people.  If you are following your healthy passion, people will call you strange.  Ask anyone who has tried to scale Everest.