mulberryshoots

A few years ago while I was writing a non-fiction book about change, I woke up one morning and saw handwriting on the wall. Seriously.

It was in cursive, about 3 inches high in dark blue ink. The message travelled around the off-white wall at about shoulder height. It reminded me of the calligraphy that was stencilled on the walls of Thomas Jefferson’s home in Monticello. It was beautiful. It was there. And this is what it said:

“The more we are at one. . . the more we are All One.”

I remember the initial caps used in “All One.” I reflected about this and even wrote down some notes about what it might mean at the time. The “at one” seemed to suggest that if we were “at one” that we would be more at ease and comfortable with who we are in our own skin. At peace with our lives and who we are in it. That’s what I thought ‘at one’ might mean.

The “All One” I thought was more complex. If we’re together and at ease with ourselves, that reduces conflict that we might have with others, right? Or, if we are all doing our own thing and happy about it, and let others do their thing as long as it doesn’t conflict with our doing, then each of us would be feeling a similar peace of mind and with those around us, right? More brotherhood, sisterhood, peoplehood.

I don’t know. Maybe it isn’t a formula for world peace.

What do you think it means?