Monday Meditations

Sarah, one of my students, ran away from home last week. She left with a boy, and has completely dropped off the map. I found out last Tuesday when I logged into Facebook (a lot of people posted about it) and I’ve been sending out feelers since to see if she’s surfaced. I just recently checked with some of her friends at school. No one has heard anything.

I’m saddened by this and, like many others, concerned for her safety, but on one level I respect this as Sarah’s choice. I believe in the concept of free will and the idea that people have an effect over the universe through their choices. It follows from this that, while we bear a responsibility to consider how our actions resonate, we are all accountable first to ourselves for our choices. I’m learning that it does little good for anyone else to impose a judgment of right and wrong on someone else’s choice. Especially in this situation, to give an opinion (positive or negative) of Sarah’s choice to run away doesn’t accomplish anything. All it does is alienate me from her and get in the way of my ability to help and understand.

In my quiet time today, I spent some time thinking of Sarah. I focused on the fact that she is special to me and I tried to concentrate on the thought that, if we should connect, I need only offer to help and to understand her situation and her decision. I’m hoping that some of that made it out into the world to where Sarah is.