Where I 'come from'

Back where I 'come from' the first thing you asked a stranger you'd just met is, exactly that, "where do you come from?"

Roots and geography and family tell us a lot more about a person than the question usually asked in New England upon meeting: "what do you do?"

The distinction is between 'doing' and 'being', between 'function' and 'ontology'.

I come down hard on the 'being' and 'ontology' side of the distinction.

Life, for most people, involves a desire to 'get to' something--the best job, the perfect portfolio, an ideal family...stuff like that.

I think the more productive, powerful and transforming thing is to 'Come From' somewhere.

"Getting to" what you long for is exhausting, never-ending and finally, a bit futile. So you get there, then what?

Entering life 'coming from' a commitment, a declaration, a way of being you involves almost no effort, creates 'what comes next' and is life-giving and affirming. 'Coming from' 'who you ARE' puts you in control instead of the circumstances of life.

I could say a lot more about all that, but I'd rather just invite you to ponder and consider the difference in a life that 'comes from' something and a life that is always seeking to 'get to' something.

Ponder that, please.

See where that leads you.