pondering the gaps

Today I’m pondering the gaps: between “what is”, what “could be”, and what we expect as “should be”.

The concept of “what is” as I am using the phrase is Zen-like awareness, perceptual judgments of how things are connected and working together as a whole. An assessment of the distance between what we see as is and what we see as what could be, this is the gap of possibility. The apprehension of what is and the assessment of the distance between here and what we see as what should be, is the gap of dissonance.

What is arises in our awareness. What could be informs our vision. What we expect should be plagues us with discontent, disgruntlement, maybe even despair.

First we need to sharpen our awareness and assessment of what is, this is constantly up for review and revision moment to moment. Then we envision what could be, maybe triggered by a glimpse or extrapolation of what is, providing vision that motivates us toward a direction. We begin to become disgruntled and uneasy when we begin to grasp our vision as an expectation of what should be. We might resent those who seem to be in the way of closing the gap between what is and what should be. When we start thinking in terms of should, a perceptual shift occurs that blurs our original direction finder, which is the vision of what could be. If we are active in the process of reviewing and revising what we perceive as what is we can then return to the position of possibility and forestall slipping into the mentality of despair.

Sounds like a lot of gibberish right now, but I think it will gel out in time.