I can still recall the amazement that I felt as a child when I first saw the colors that are created by sunlight shining through a prism. They were the same beautiful colors that I had seen in the sky many times after a period of rain when the sun would suddenly appear, creating a brilliant rainbow of color. As I became older, the beauty of those colors did not dim. Even today, I still can't seem to resist taking a moment to admire the natural beauty in the colors of a rainbow or to notice when the sun shines through the prism that is a part of the little hummingbird that hangs in our window and creates a bright splash of colors in our home at those times each day when the sun shines upon it.
From a more scientific point of view, most of you are probably already aware of the fact that when our eyes are operating properly, we see different colors in a very interesting way. When sunlight shines through a prism, the prism separates the various colors of which the sunlight is composed and we can see that the light is made up of different colors within the visible spectrum. Each of these colors has a particular frequency within that visible spectrum. By visible spectrum, I mean the range of frequency of the light within the electromagnetic spectrum that is visible to the human eye. Variations of color are variations of frequency within that spectrum. The lower frequencies are the reds, followed by orange, yellow, green, blue, indigo and violet. When light shines on an object (such as a chair) that we call a red chair, what really happens is that the chair absorbs all of the colors of the spectrum except red, which is reflected back to our eyes. The same is true of the other colors and their variations. What we see is the color of the light that is being reflected back to our eyes, while colors not seen have been absorbed and are not reflected back to us. That may be oversimplifying a bit, but that is what essentially happens.
Humans generally enjoy seeing color in their surroundings and we are all affected by color. For example, red seems to stimulate us. As a result, many restaurants use red in the color scheme of their interior design with the idea of stimulating our appetite. Other colors will have different effects on us to one degree or another. There are some who use color as a form of therapy to help bring about a positive healing influence on certain maladies that seem to respond positively to that kind of treatment.
People in our society will often go out of their way to place flowers in and around their home as a way of enjoying the beauty of so many variations of nature's beautiful colors. We sometimes plant flowers outside our homes as a way of beautifying our yard or garden. Beautiful arrangements of flowers of all colors are often used as a way of honoring and showing respect for those who have passed on and for their family. We often find that we each have our favorite colors and often choose our favorite flowers based on the size, shape and beautiful colors that are available in the many different varieties. Many prize the delicate beauty of roses of one color or another and there are many varieties and colors from which to choose. Others prefer the comparable delicate beauty of the orchid and its many varieties and colors. When we create our flower gardens, we often make it a point to choose many different varieties and colors for the flowers that we plant there. Many gardeners have found, through years of creative planting that the most beautiful flower gardens are often those with the greatest diversity in the size and color of flowers. For some rose enthusiasts and for some who prize orchids, both the black and the white roses and both the white and the black orchids seem to be among the most prized because of their great beauty and for the diversity that they bring to the garden as a whole. With only the white and black flowers, however, we tend to find a feeling of starkness until other shades and colors are added to complement the whole. When the gardener has a plan, all of the flowers and colors seem to come together to create a garden such that the result finds the whole greater than the sum of its parts.
Over a period of many years, I have come to see our planet as being somewhat like a great and beautiful garden, created by God. In His garden, there is quite a great diversity of human beings. You might think of us as the flowers in His garden. Every one of us is here for the contribution that we each make to the "garden" as a whole, while at the same time, we each have made the decision to incarnate here in order to have the opportunity to learn the lessons that this environment can provide. The lessons that each person needs are known by that person's Higher Self, and we are each guided by our Higher Self for the purpose of helping us to learn those needed lessons. The lessons are unlikely to be exactly the same for any two persons. During our time here however, there is no doubt in my mind, as indicated earlier, that in addition to coming here for our own purposes, we are also here as part of the "Master Gardener's" larger plan, and that we all have our part to play in the creation of the "garden" in accordance with that plan.
We come here with many variations in size, shape and color and as a result, we have divided ourselves into "categories". One of those categories, we call "race" and along with other considerations, it is based, quite often, on the color of one's skin. At first glance, such a distinction would seem to make those of us in each race very different from those in other races, but are we really? Within each major variation of color, or race, there are so many striking similarities, that it is very difficult to come to any conclusion other than the obvious one; despite our differences, we are all God's children. It would seem that we all enjoy having a loving relationship with someone whom we consider to be special when the other person reciprocates by returning that feeling to us. We all seem to value very highly the children that often result from such relationships. We all indicate that we want to have sufficient food to provide a healthy sustenance for ourselves and our loved ones and a decent home in which to dwell so that we and our loved ones are protected from the elements. For all those in such relationships with their chosen partner and their children (if any), we find, almost universally, that one or both adults seek some means of providing the necessities of life for themselves and their family. This is a way of saying they all want employment or self-employment, or some reasonable means to make it possible for them to provide these necessities in order to help make a decent life for themselves and their loved ones. In addition, we all place a high personal value on our close friends. All of these things seem to point to the fact that despite our differences in color or race, we are all very much the same since we are all human beings and we are all the children of God, living in His garden that we call the Earth.
All of this having been said, why do we all too often feel distrust, or at times, even hatred of those whom we consider to be different from ourselves? This difference does not always concern itself with color or race, but for the purposes of this discussion, we will focus primarily on that aspect of our differences because of the very great pain that has been brought about (directly or indirectly) to so many of us over such a long period of time as a result of the feelings that many of us still have about those differences.
Let me state again, because of its importance, just as it is in our own gardens, where every flower has been carefully placed with loving hands to create the effect, according to our plan, that we desire, can there be any doubt in your mind that it must be equally true that every flower (each of us) in God's garden (this planet) is also there for a purpose that fits His plan? In our garden, each flower has a significant contribution that it makes to the garden as a whole and the diversity of size, shape and color all play an important part to make our garden, as a whole, greater than the sum of its parts. It makes perfect sense that in God's garden also, every flower (each of us) is here for a purpose and according to a plan that may be known only to the Gardener, but each one, regardless of size, shape or color makes a contribution to the garden as a whole, that only that particular flower (person) can make, and all of the flowers come together (as humankind) to create a garden (our planet) that, when complete, is far greater than the sum of its parts.
At the same time, having a place in that garden allows each flower, each plant, each of us, to grow and to develop as we seek to reach our full potential, our point of greatest contribution to the garden, the highest level of spirituality of which we are capable in this life, and thus to gain greater individual spiritual growth while still contributing significantly to the garden as a whole. There is a duality here that allows us to have the opportunity to use our time in the garden to learn the individual lessons that we came here to learn, but at the same time, play an important part in the overall plan of God, the Master Gardener, to learn the lessons we need to learn individually and collectively as His children while we play our part in His Master Plan for us and for our planet.
We hold ourselves back when we allow anger or hatred (especially when unjustified) to rule our lives. Trust me when I tell you that to have anger or hatred toward another person or persons because of the color of their skin or because one or both of your parents felt that way, or even because of some isolated incident in your own life, is unjustified to the extreme. The negativity in the anger and hatred that one puts out into the cosmos at such times, will always return, sooner or later, to its source; the person who sent it out. It is very likely that those who have and who nurture such feelings will spend one or more lifetimes living in a body with the skin color they hate, in order to help them learn that there is a better way to feel about, and to interact with our fellow humankind.
So many in our society love the look of the sleek automobile in almost any color imaginable and it is common to see people with clothing or goods of many kinds; material things created in many beautiful colors. When it comes to association with God's children, other humans whose skin is different in color from our own, however, all of a sudden mistrust, doubt, even anger and hatred, can all too often, enter the picture.
As an example of such feelings, I would like to relate a personal anecdote. A number of years ago, when I worked in a peripheral capacity for a sales organization, I recall that a new sales representative was needed and I suggested to the sales manager that he hire an African-American to fill the position. He laughed at what he considered to be my naiveté. I was aware, however, as was he, that a person of color would have a more difficult time with some of the buyers who would not want to buy from anyone of color. What I did not know, until then, was that he seemed to feel the same as some of those buyers. He would not have given even slight consideration to hiring a sales person who was an African-American or any other person of color or someone who might be considered "different" in some way. Like others in his position, he knew all the right things to say and treated all applicants courteously, but there was no chance that he would fill the position in the way that had been suggested. It saddened me as I realized that all too often, the same scenario was undoubtedly being acted out all over the United States and in many other countries of the world every hour of every working day in considering persons to fill open positions of every kind, from CEOs to janitors. Discrimination is not as obvious, but it is still a very significant factor in employment and in many other areas yet today. I am aware that many positive changes have come in the years since the incident I described, but if you don't believe that this is still a very serious problem, look at the demographics of the unemployment statistics along the lines of race. Don't try to tell me that people don't want to work. The number of applications being made, even for a single position, are mind-boggling. Work is part of our nature and our culture. The problem lies instead within ourselves as individuals and as a society that permits the continuing practice, no matter how subtle, of bigotry and racism.
We must begin somewhere, sometime, therefore why not here and now, to educate people to the fact that we are all, as I have said repeatedly, God's children, and He is as displeased as you would be if you were the parent of a large family and there were some who mistreated even one of your children. Take heed, for nations, as well as persons, reap what they sow!