Fog or Unfog...

Recently, while reading 'Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban' (I sense some raised eyebrows 😊), I came across this incident. Professor Trelawney was teaching Harry and his friends about divination—how to "unfog the future" by looking into a teacup with tea leaf sediments at the bottom. When they couldn't see beyond the "soggy brown stuff," the professor told them, "Broaden your minds, dears, and allow your eyes to see past the mundane." When Harry still couldn't see anything, his friend Ron came up with this brilliant remark: "You need your Inner Eye tested, if you ask me."  

 

I am not advocating divination (I sense some have stopped reading this blog after the first paragraph 😞), but in a way, isn't this what we want too? To 'unfog' the future by sorting out our 'Inner Eye'? Especially with W.E.I.R.D. people creating havoc across the world! (W.E.I.R.D. is an acronym for Western, Educated, Industrialized, Rich, and Democratic nations.)  And S.E.I.R.D, too (Some Southern continent leaders too!)

 

Harry's story was that Professor Trelawney saw what no one else did—danger to Harry's life. Over the next few months, while Harry was ready to face whatever lay ahead, his friends were constantly looking over his shoulder, trying to overprotect him. They saw danger at every turn!  

 

This is a challenge we could face, too. If we truly knew what might happen in the future, would we become 'hyper-vigilant' and 'overthink' everything? I do this without even trying to unfog the future!  

 

That's exactly what happened to Harry and his friends. Emotional instability, intrusive thoughts, hyperarousal, vigilance, and negative thinking - their bodies were in a constant state of alert, with their adrenal glands working overtime to keep them prepared for any unforeseen events. 

 

But then, in most of life, the future is fogged! Inner eyes see only the past and present. The future is usually seen through the eyes of faith! The alternative is to embrace uncertainty, which I find tough since I want to be in control and sure!

Oswald Chambers once wrote, "Our natural inclination is to be so precise—trying always to forecast accurately what will happen next—that we look upon uncertainty as a bad thing. We think that we must reach some predetermined goal, but that is not the nature of the spiritual life. The nature of the spiritual life is that we are certain in our uncertainty. Consequently, we do not put down roots. Our common sense says, 'Well, what if I were in that circumstance?' We cannot presume to see ourselves in any circumstance in which we have never been."  

 

To live this way, we must remain present in the moment rather than trying to unfog the future through divination or other means. (Let me clarify once more - I am not advocating divination :) 

As J. P. de Caussade says, "That which is sent to us at the present moment is the most useful because it is intended especially for us. But such a life—"a life of faith—is a continual struggle against the senses."  

 

It may be good for me to live with fogged glasses these days and dull senses a bit!