'We are all extremists. We are ere extremists for love, or extremists for hate,' to paraphrase Dr. King. To paraphrase Jesus, 'I came to bring a fire and oh how I wish it were blazing already.'
This, is what it is to die to head and flesh, and Live in Heart. This, by different words and name, is what Jesus died to give us – Life, Burning with LIFE, the Light on the Hill, Blue Hot Flame, LIFE ITSELF, or Death. Those are the only two options. INSHE Warrior, Truly, not in our imaginations, our delusion, but Honestly, Truly measuring up to those that have been most like our Creator – on all 105 characteristics.
Possibly the hardest to defend academically of all these essays, quite possibly the most important of all these essays, among the most difficult and important of the metaphors, and mixed metaphors. After my second major hunger strike to avert environmental Armageddon ended, just about a year ago, June 2011, 50 days in front of the White House, oh, I realized that I was doing the best I knew how to avert environmental Armageddon, and that I was not doing well enough. I don't remember what hit me first - the realization that I finally knew enough to design a tool, a personal trainer to increase the odds I would become what the world needed of me; I don't remember if that came first, or if the notion of burning at blue hot flame came first. Maybe sometime I'll have a chance to retrace that, and I would be able to do so because of the various postings of such ideas on the Start Loving blog.
But quickly they became hand-in-hand, and the notion that I needed to burn hotter, I think it came on the second to last major hunger strike, the one in the November-December timeframe, 50 days again. I think the notion of burning at blue hot flame came then, and I wasn't, I was smoldering I was anywhere between minus numbers and 3,3.5. And the notion that unless I learned to burn hotter, whatever that meant, but it meant a lot to my nervous system, and I was correct, that I was no hope in igniting others. Profoundly correct.
There is a delightful, important expression - the fish are the last to discover water.
So after seeing a hundred and four characteristics of history's high impact unviolent warriors, 105 presents itself to me, the last, and the one that most makes sense of them all. Unless I'm burning hot enough, unless you are burning hot enough, you can't bring the fire that Jesus spoke of. You can't be the extremist for Love, you can't bring about extremists like Dr. King spoke of. Water boils at, is it 120°, so the flame underneath can be in 119° forever, or for a few seconds it can get to 120 and then drop below, and the water will never boil.
It is so immensely tempting, the most promising of us - well I'm doing better than anyone else today. I did well yesterday. I did well last week, it's okay that I'm down now. Well, in some sense it's okay. We can't do better than we can do. But if what matters is giving a decent life to the next 200 billion people - I'm blue hot flame long enough, intense enough, for others to catch fire, or I might as well move on, because all depends on enough people burning at blue hot flame, which is the heart in charge; the heart fully engaged and accountable to the global neediest.
Back in September if you look at this jpg, far right, Loving was smoldering, never conceived of getting to blue hot flame, was sure he could not. And in inventing much of this tool along the way, and in capturing many of the ideas from history's great unviolent warriors, he finally arrived at blue hot flame. It took about 8 months.
When I think of the very most promising people I know, they are about where Loving was in September, far right. In each case I see the opportunity to progress as far and as fast as I, or maybe faster.
EXCEPT, the desire is missing, in all but maybe one case. Oh, how I pray I'm wrong, about the others. Jesus, King, Gandhi, Alice Paul, Loving… came for those literally dying for a world better than the status quo. That is why, that is why the 'gate is narrow, and few shall enter in.' They can live with the status quo. They can take, they will kill Truth, God, Hope… every time, to stay within the status quo – 'no change,' the status quo of the right; 'no fundamental personal risk,' the status quo of the left. And no one dying to be the middle way – a world better than the status quo, regardless of personal risk.
You don't have that much time. The personal trainer has given you an opportunity to get there more quickly.
You can't say you didn't know.
Will you be the 'seed' on the path, on the rock, among the thorns, or on good ground?
The odds, the world, is totally stacked against you.
And you, are their only hope.
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