Black Elk, a holy man of the Oglala Lakota, once said; “It is in the darkness of their own eyes that men get lost.” This darkness of the eyes reflects a condition of the heart. If my heart is at war, I will only see acts of war from others. I will only see others to blame, to excuse myself by, or to not notice at all. In such a condition I am truly lost because my world is determined (in my own mind) by circumstances outside myself. Others, whom I see darkly, are my map of the world. My internal map no longer works, and I am lost… I am not alone in this. I am part of we…and we all get lost sometimes…
A change of heart denotes a change from blame. A change from excuse. A change into noticing others with my true eyes. A change to rediscovering and listening to my own inner voice. As others become clear to me, my own map becomes clear to me. My heart is at peace, and I see again. A sense of freedom comes with the sense of clarity as I become able to see my way again. Seeing others truly, is true recovery of who I am. This is true Heart Change.
Indicators:
- I have experienced an extreme change of heart.
- I seem to have a dramatically different disposition than before.
- I see myself as a different person.
- I see others in a dramatically different way.
- I have new opinions about life generally, in positive ways.
- I have clearly gained a new hope for life generally.
- I see life as distinctly joyful.
