Is Othering Bothering?

If you have understood—based on experience—that you are whatever is aware of these words,
If you are aware of your ever-present, never-changing beingness,
If it is understood that you cannot define this beingness, only recognise that it is,
If you have no evidence that this beingness is a product of the body, and your mind is open to the possibility it is not,
If in the pure openness of this not knowing the boundless, indefinable nature of beingness speaks for itself—
If it is felt that all that appearances of the world are appearances arises arising from this beingness itself, like waves on the ocean,
If it is felt that all body-minds are expressions of this same source,

Then—

There is no "other" to be bothered by.
All minds and bodies are appearances of what you are.
Instead of othering them—or yourself—there is only one.

Though sometimes it may be necessary to protect body-minds from others,
—as all living beings are wired to do for this reason—

Fundamentally:

No matter how quirky the behavior,
How distorted the opinions,
How painful the energy,
How abrupt the manner,
How unusual the form,
How different the culture,
How varied the intellect,
Or how strongly they claim you are wrong and they are right—

Still, like Francis of Assisi,
Still, like Bodhisattva Fukyo Never Disparaging,
All can be equally respected and cherished as beingness.

For instead of seeing minds as separate things,
You see that all is no-thing beingness appearing as everything.
And it is clear that difference was never the cause of the bother,
Only the feeling that they were other than you.

With love,

Freyja