I keep thinking of my table\u2026 clean, wooden, comfortable for all. Twelve seats or so gathered round \u2014 a great place for conversation. Oh, what a joy deep, diverse conversation can be! We learn from and sharpen one another.
Or at least we have the potential to…<\/p>\n\n\n\n
There\u2019s a centerpiece in the middle of my table today. It\u2019s fairly simple, nothing too fancy, as flower arrangements have never been my forte. Here we host an unadorned vase, with only a couple long stemmed flowers included. One maybe shorter than the other \u2014 each with varied blooms. There\u2019s a little water, too.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
And so the twelve of us sit, all at the same table, eyes attentive to the center. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Join me, will you? <\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n Come to the table.<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n I love a full table!<\/p>\n\n\n\n We then begin to discuss and describe the centerpiece\u2026<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cIt looks so real\u2026 so authentic\u2026\u201d \u201cI love it!\u201d \u201cSorry, guys, but I don\u2019t find it very pretty. I can\u2019t see much of a bloom.\u201d \u201cLook at that shorter flower. Something must be wrong with it.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cWhat shorter flower?\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n <\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cCan you not see it? It\u2019s right there!\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cWhere?\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cWhat color is it?\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cPink.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cPink? I think it\u2019s white.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cWhite? Pink? Really? I only see a dark spot in the middle.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cFriends, there is no dark spot.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cLook at the stem. Looks pretty broken.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cIt\u2019s not broken. It simply leans a little left.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cLeft? It clearly leans right.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cRight? It\u2019s not leaning at all.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cWhat about the water? Is there something floating inside?\u201d \u201cThere\u2019s nothing floating. Just a stem.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cOne stem? I see two stems.\u201d \u201cThe vase actually seems a little blurry.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cWait. Is that a vase?\u201d And so the conversation continues\u2026<\/p>\n\n\n\n But notice\u2026<\/p>\n\n\n\n Each of us is looking at the exact same thing. We are each focused on the same, singular object \u2014 an object with all sorts of facets and features, the prominence of which, depends on the seat. <\/p>\n\n\n\n What we see depends on where we sit. Our seat is real. Our experience is real. Our perspective is completely authentic\u2026 the perspective, however, changes when we sit in another seat.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Here\u2019s the thing\u2026 sometimes precisely because we know our experience is real \u2014 I can see the flower, dang it!! It\u2019s right here in front of me! <\/em>\u2014 we get so stuck in our own seat that we forget the eleven other seats at the table. We convince ourselves that only we (and maybe those, too, in adjacent seats \u2014 maybe) <\/em>see the object or issue rightly. And just like that, we forget that each of those eleven other seats also<\/em> has a valid perspective.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Hence, when we advocate for a \u201ccome-to-the-table\u201d mentality, there is a recognition that all are welcome. Each brings a perspective we can learn from\u2026 especially when different than our own.<\/p>\n\n\n\n We remember humbly, too, that each seat has a valid view.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Respectfully\u2026<\/p>\n\n\n\n AR<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" I keep thinking of my table\u2026 clean, wooden, comfortable for all. Twelve seats or so gathered round \u2014 a great place for conversation. Oh, what a joy deep, diverse conversation can be! We learn from and sharpen one another. Or at least we have the potential to… There\u2019s a centerpiece in the middle of my … <\/p>\n
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