Litmus’ Lozenge

Movie night in my family consisted of an oldie but a goodie, “Because of Winn-Dixie.”  My children and I were specifically excited to see the star of one of our favorite stars, “Soul Surfer’s” Annasophia Robb, in her early years. 

If you haven’t seen it, it’s a sweet film, great family stuff, and toward the end, the main characters partake of a candy, Litmus’ Lozenge, which magically is made of both sweetness and sadness. This movie is one of those that makes you kind of happy to be sad. It even reminded me of Ecclesiates when it says, “It’s better to go to funerals than parties, which reminds us that life is short.”

My family is going through it’s own sweet and sorrowful time. Relocations, re-vocations, repositionings all have their ups and downs.  Truly sweet on one side, truly sad, almost at the same time. This is so true.

My reflection question this week is: What about universal truth? What do you believe about it? How do you think that has affected you?

My life changed dramatically when I switched from believing in personal truth to universal truth. If America has a religion today, it is personal truth. Those of us rebels who believe differently are not smiled upon, but I still like to talk about it. 

Funny enough, I came to believe it by reading a fairly secular book, Steven Covey’s “The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People.” My search for True North led me to a place of what I’ll call, being found.

And this is how I deal with the true sadness, and the true sweets which threaten to disappoint if they change. I line up every situation with universal truth and I believe what I’ve seen in the past, what I may not see with my eyes right now, that universal truth will prevail. Works every time, really, but takes patience to notice it.

In your life, how does personal truth function? What does universal truth do for you? Thanks in advance for each and every reply…I love talking about the unmentionables with the daring and the searching!