I believe both the U.S. Constitution and each of our personal constitutions are reflections of one another; both are ‘designed’ to support our well-being, our welfare. When we recognize their parallels we can better ‘work with’ our constitutions as our constitutions work for us.
The Constitution of the United States opens, “We the People of the United States, in Order to form a more perfect Union, establish Justice, insure domestic Tranquility, provide for the common defence, promote the general Welfare, and secure the Blessings of Liberty to ourselves and our Posterity, do ordain and establish this Constitution for the United States of America.”
You might say this is a well-constructed, strong constitution, as it has supported democracy and carried us through over two and a quarter centuries.
In the past year and a half we Americans have been tuned in and focused on the presidential election. Here we are, post-election, and it is safe to say, more than half the country is in distress, feeling threatened by the President-Elect’s platforms, actions and character. Many are speaking up and out in protest, they want their voices heard; these are acts of self -preservation. The 1st Amendment of the United States Constitution assures us the freedom of speech and the right to ‘peaceably assemble’. That is but one of the ways it is designed to support us.
Our role in supporting the Constitution lies in the election of our president and our congressional and senatorial representatives. We reasonably expect elected officials to speak for us, honorably representing their constituents.
Your personal constitution refers to your physical and emotional make-up; how well equipped you are to live in wellness and good health; how well self-governed you are to weather life’s storms and live in tranquility and freedom.
We rely on our physical and emotional stamina to help define and ‘carry us through’ life’s challenges, turmoil and upsets; to preserve and keep us well. You may consider your constitution to be strong, weak or somewhere in between. Regardless, you know that your individual ‘make-up’ inherently strives to do the best it can to support you and preserve your integrity. Your body functions by providing checks and balances (i.e. muscular and immune systems) that ‘watchdog’ you and help you ‘to form a more perfect union’, so to speak.
As an example, if you play ‘weekend warrior’, you know that your body revolting in back spasm is its way of telling you that you ‘overdid it’ and you’d best be more mindful to your body’s needs going forward. Or, if you end up crippled by severe stomach cramping after you’ve overindulged in ‘fried food frenzy’, you have reached a tipping point, your system is overloaded and your constitution is challenged.
By regarding both the U.S. Constitution and your constitution as mirrors of each other and your welfare, you can claim your power by tuning in and choosing wisely what actions will best serve you. When you ‘hear’ protests, know it is time to make some change.
©2016 Katharine Gilpin
NOV