IN AND OUT

It's interesting to realize that for every winner of a political race, there also has to be a loser. In fact the winner can't be a winner without the loser. We think about the in-crowd; for there to be an in-crowd, somebody has to be out. Without the outs, there could be no ins. Our life is full of in and out. In some circles, we feel comfortable, respected and accepted— we're in. In other situations, we feel awkward and estranged—we're out. There are times and seasons in our life when we feel out. As the Sufis say, "The roses are gone from the garden, and what shall we do with the thorns?" During these out times, no matter what we do, we don't feel comfortable or at peace with ourselves or our world. Then suddenly, one day, after we had almost given up, our out turns to in; we feel connected once again to ourselves and our world. In and out is the dance of life; no matter how far out we are feeling, there also comes the moment when we feel totally in— then we relax and say, "Oh, I am OK, after all."