This post was contributed by a community member. The views expressed here are the author's own.

Health & Fitness

Finding Freedom at 33,000 Feet

When does one become truly free of materiel concerns, transcending earthly constraints to focus on matters of the soul?

When does one become truly free of materiel concerns, transcending earthly constraints to focus on matters of the soul? We can, in our minds, travel to philosophical and spiritual realms free of physical boundaries. We can ponder what awaits beyond our earthly journey, frame our values, savor life’s lessons, build on hopes and dreams for the future, give thanks for blessings, and revel in love given, received, and shared.

Flying across our country on a clear day is a blessing if we care to indulge. A window seat affords amazing views at 33,000 feet. The serpentine course of great rivers, the checkered patterns of farm fields on a flat prairie, snow-capped mountains, red-rocked canyons, sparkling waters, dramatic cloud formations, sunrises and sunsets worthy of a painting, light shows from distant thunderstorms.

Early man, homo erectus, migrated out of Africa 1.8 million years ago. Modern man, homo sapiens, appeared in East Africa about 200,000 years ago. Whether we count 18,000 or 2,000 centuries, it was only in the last century that man “slipped the surly bounds of earth” and soared “where never lark, or even eagle, flew.” (“High Flight,” by John Gillespie Magee, Jr.).

Find out what's happening in Peachtree Cornerswith free, real-time updates from Patch.

 No one really knows how many people have not experienced an airplane flight. Surveys suggest that 25% of Americans have never flown. Of all the humans that have trod the earth, the number that have been to 33,000 feet or beyond is a infinitesimally small percentage. Sitting by a window in a high-flying jet is a unique experience in the annals of mankind.

In the world of 2,000 years ago, the cosmology was a flat world that covered Hades below with God living in the heavens above. We know that our world is not flat but round, and that in the vastness of space there is no up or down, or north, south, east, or west. Even as men walked on the moon, they were tethered to earth by the reality of  returning to survive. But our mind is free to journey to any place we can imagine. In that power, that gift, we differ from our animal friends.

Find out what's happening in Peachtree Cornerswith free, real-time updates from Patch.

On holidays like Mother’s Day and Father’s Day we acknowledge those that gave us life. On religious feast days and secular holidays we focus on the gift of life and family. In the context of family and friendship we think about our true purpose in life, our ultimate destination beyond life on earth, our beliefs and values. What lessons have we learned? What wisdom do we wish to pass on to those coming behind us? A recording of your thoughts is the stuff of an ethical will.

 An ethical will is not a legal document. It is a love letter to children, family,  spouse, dear friends. It gives voice to your heart and your spirit, articulating personal values and beliefs, spiritual values, life lessons, hopes for future generations, blessings and forgiveness. It may contain funeral and burial instructions and other matters designed to bring peace and closure at a time of loss.

In the Hebrew Bible, as Jacob faced the end of life, he commanded:  “Assemble and listen, sons of Jacob, listen to Israel, your father.” (Genesis 49). Scholars cite the passages in Genesis as an early example of an ethical will.  So, too, in the Gospel of John, Chapters 13-20, as his crucifixion and resurrection loomed, Jesus imparted life-altering wisdom to those to be left behind.

 Ethical wills often are written by those facing turning points and challenging life transitions. As we look over the horizon to what lies beyond this life, what do we want to impart to our sons and daughters, to the loved ones who accompanied us on our earthly journey?  Perhaps in the philosophical stillness as you gaze at God’s creation from 33,000 feet, or in the bird song murmurs of a leafy glade, you can pen your thoughts in a notebook. What do you want others to know? What truly is important?

 

 Lewis Walker is President of Walker Capital Management LLC. and Walker Capital Advisory Services, Inc., a Registered Investment Advisor (R.I.A.) Securities and certain advisory services offered through The Strategic Financial Alliance, Inc. (SFA).  Lewis Walker is a registered representative of SFA which is otherwise unaffiliated with the Walker Capital Companies. ▪ 3930 East Jones Bridge Road ▪ Suite 150 ▪ Peachtree Corners, GA 30092  ▪ 770-441-2603 ▪ lewisw@theinvestmentcoach.com

 

 

We’ve removed the ability to reply as we work to make improvements. Learn more here

The views expressed in this post are the author's own. Want to post on Patch?

More from Peachtree Corners