Pogue,

My letters to Jonathon continue. But first, a familiar text:

Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It does not dishonor others, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres.

1 Corinthians 13. 4-7

And with that in mind let me move to Jonathon Livingston Seagull.

Jon,

We’ve thought about your life and your pursuit of excellence which actually led to another consciousness, a higher consciousness, and a realisation that you were actually a product, a part of something far larger than yourself. That you, over time, reflected the perfection that holds together the universe. But in this short letter I want to ask you about the highest lesson you learnt, some would say your highest calling. Your teacher described it as the final lesson. The most exciting lesson, and that was ‘love’.

Think about it, there must be higher love
Down in the heart or hidden in the stars above
Without it, life is wasted time
Look inside your heart, I’ll look inside mine

Higher Love, Steve Winwood

This sounds sort of strange at first consideration as love is so often talked about or referred to. People fall in and out of love, a kind of emotional experience which is great whilst it lasts. Mothers love their children. People flippantly declare they would love to do this, love to own that, love to be something they are not. The term ‘love’ is lightly substituted into conversations whenever a feeling of desire is being expressed. Admittedly, ‘I want that’ does not sound nearly as convincing as ‘I’d love that’. ‘I’d love that’ seems full of so much more passion. So much more convincing.

But the ‘love’ you were to eventually learn was none of these. It was devoid of the indulgence and self seeking that we so often witness. No, it was to be strangely different. Selfless in character. Not about possessing but about giving, which, think about it, is at odds with so much society calls love. Indeed the love you would find possessed a purity that left you unaffected by the often self seeking of those you sought to teach. And like last week I find myself wondering if such an experience is found by the very few.

Thinking about it you, yourself, grew into it. You started with your pursuit of excellence here in the world of the physical, not in competition with others but rather while aspiring to become the very best you could be because, for you, that was the purpose of life. To find and fill your potential. Then having exhausted the physical possibilities you moved on, or perhaps more correctly, you moved up. Once again you strived to master every possibility your new existence offered, unaware you were climbing ever higher until you came to the final lesson, ‘love’.

And then you will be ready for the most difficult, most powerful, most fun of all. You will be ready to begin to fly up and know the meaning of kindness and love

Chang

And that manifest itself in selfless giving to those who wanted to learn. Not that they understood anything beyond the simplest lesson on flying. Well at least not for a very long time. You, the master, became the teacher filled with patience and long suffering. Your desire was directed to others, that they may know their potential, that they may know the truth. Hence you gave of yourself.

If that is ‘love’, the highest learning, then it is far removed from most people’s experience or expectations. It is turned around on the quality people talk about today. It seems unhindered by emotions and possessed of a clarity and sense of purpose which prevents it being derailed by the baser qualities that so often confront us. I do not read that you ever thought, ‘She’s such hard work’ or ‘He’ll never make it, why am I wasting my time’. Rather you rose with encouragement to inspire fortitude amongst even the least able of your students.

So there is a lesson called ‘love’ that exists. Do I have to perfect many other qualities before I can learn this? Surely this is the pinnacle of my potential? ‘God is love’ it is taught. Is this then the quality of divinity? And in seeking after it am I going to find something else or will my seeking bring me into the shadow of the Divine?

LOVE is the highest frequency you can vibrate in and the highest state of consciousness. In the pure frequency of love there is gratitude, creation, happiness and oneness. Love is all, all is you.

Cherokee Billie

Jon you remain an inspiration in your search and your simplicity. You have taught me that the journey need not be complicated, indeed should not be complicated. If it is, then I am on the wrong path.

I have much to learn.

Yours, over complicating things as usual,

Wic