5. me in an alternate universe
Many of us spend our entire lives trying to find the “sercret” to life. And I’m here to tell you what it is. It’s a bold statement to make but I believe it to be true. I also believe it can be talked about in a myriad of ways. The beauty and downfall of language is that even though there is a calculated way to say things, there is an infinte way of hearing things. No matter how precise we think our articulation of something is - we can never contol how the things we say are heard by others. Even though this is the clearest way I have been able to understand the secret of the universe (which is the secret to life), it does not mean this will be the clearest way you can understand it.
The secret of the universe,
and if put into practice,
can be the secret to life,
is -
to treat everyone like they are
You in an alternate universe.
Because they are.
Everyone you see is You.
In an alternate universe.
When you look at the homeless man on the corner asking you for money,
realize that in an alternate universe that is You.
You are a homeless man on the corner asking a pretty girl for money.
In an alternate universe.
Which is to say,
on an alternate timeline in the experience of your soul,
you are a homeless man on the corner asking a pretty girl for money.
How idiotic it is to think that this particular lifetime,
inclusive of the character we’ve been given to play,
the cast members that surround us,
the places we have woken up in,
the events we have woken up to,
is the only lifetime of our souls experience.
The person reading this right now,
is one embodiment of an infinite being.
And how fucking lucky are you
that in this particular lifetime you have access
to a computer,
to the speed of internet,
and to the freedom of exploring whatever content you like.
[Like this website, my venmo is @michelleliuzzo]
Not everyone has that in this lifetime.
A soul embodied in a young boy,
raised in the slums of Mumbai,
may not be as fortunate as you in this lifetime.
Despite living on the exact same timeline,
with the exact same potential
to access all that you have been offered,
yet he has not been granted it.
His world is completely different to yours,
yet it is the same one you live on.
Now, this is not to make you feel bad.
It’s not even intended to motivate you
to do better,
to give more,
to take less,
and make a difference for the boy in Mumbai.
That would be amazing,
and I hope you do that,
but it’s not the point I’m making.
We cannot change the world indvidually,
but individually we can change
how we show up in the world.
So that maybe one day because of the little ways
we’ve individually changed to show up in the wolrd
the whole world does change.
The point of this is to shift your perspective
on how you show up in the world.
Because what you have in this liftime -
the body you’ve been given,
the family and friends you’re surrounded by,
the home you woke up in,
and the things you can and will do
in this particular lifetime,
are not guaranteed in every lifetime.
Sometimes you show up in life as the pretty girl
and sometimes you show up as the homeless man.
What I’m asking - at the very least,
is for you to be kind to the homeless man.
Even if you can’t give him money, or simply don’t feel like it -
Be as kind to him as you would want someone to be kind to you,
if you were a homeless man asking a pretty girl for money
Because in that lifetime, when you were the homeless man -
you weren’t given access to the things that make life easy.
In that lifetime, you had to learn the hardest lessons,
make incredible mistakes,
and run into as much unforseeable bad fortune as you did,
so that your soul could learn kindness
through the eyes of a homeless man
asking a pretty girl for money.
And don’t just be kind with a homeless man,
he’s simply a man,
trapped in the metaphor,
of a very long anaolgy,
trying to get you to understand that
everyone you come across
in this lifetime
is You in another lifetime.
The waitress? Was once You.
The bartender? Was once You.
The train driver? Was once You.
Your friend who drinks too much? Was once You.
Your friend who keeps everything to themselves? Was once You.
Your parent who doesn’t know how to parent? Was once You.
Your teacher who knows how everything works? Was once You.
And they come in all different forms
with all different types of needs
so that you can practice kindness
in every possible way.
So that you can remember,
kindness is the act of loving.
And when we’re kind to strangers,
friends,
family,
acquaintances,
etc,
we are flexing our love muscles.
And the more we practice loving,
the easier it gets to love.
Sincerely,
You in an alternate universe.