Traffic flow mirrors spirituality

Throughout this great land of ours there is a vast network of highways: big highways, little highways, even tiny back roads. They connect cities of all sizes, from the giant metropolis to little, almost insignificant, collection of houses.

I travel these roads; I see the traffic; I see how people react with each other in their vehicles. These automobiles, trucks, buses, etc. allow the people within to be anonymous. You don't see the person; all you see is the vehicle, as though it were a living entity. You tend to treat it as such.

Much traffic is gentle, flows well, and is pleasant. Some traffic is otherwise. The otherwise is generally a type of aggressive selfishness. People think they are anonymous; therefore, they do things that they don't think others could identify them with. They are anonymous – or so they think.

Aggressive selfishness: getting all you can, as quickly as you can, while creating disruption in traffic. Of course, this not considered a problem by the disrupter, it's just a necessary inconvenience.

At another time, I was watching the marvel of traffic flowing smoothly. I was at a merge: traffic coming from the left, traffic coming from the right. It moved gently, freely. Each vehicle spacing itself just behind the vehicle merging from the side. They merged, left, right, left, right; the flow of traffic was very smooth. It flowed well; there was not any disruption. It was a peaceful merge, a gentle moving of cars.

And so it is with life: people living their lives peacefully, traveling gently and in harmony -- or they can be disruptive, which creates a tear in the fabric of harmony.

Disruption: it is not a spiritual concept.