Who Owns You?

As a child, I often heard the question, "Who do you belong to?" It was asked by my grandmother and always launched me into a warm feeling of love and permanence. She would hold me close to her warm body and gently hug me when asking the question. I would always hug her back and say, "I'm your little girl," then squeeze her as tight as my little arms would let me.

But I am no longer a child, and chances are, neither are you. Nonetheless, the question is as valid as ever. Posed to an adult, the implications of the question are much broader; it encompasses who or what you allow to control your spiritual identity, who influences your thinking as a citizen of the world, and whether you think of yourself as a world citizen at all.

If we don't examine the "who owns us question," how can we understand the good and the evil tendencies in ourselves; and if we cannot understand ourselves, how can we control ourselves? And without self-control, we have no discipline over our appetites, fears, hopes, thoughts, and behavior. An undisciplined person is easily manipulated.

Human beings are not made to be puppets, we are made to think and feel and love and create. But what you think and how you feel and whom you love and what you create depends on your answer to this question, "Who owns you?"

I hope you will give this question honest thought. You are invited to share your insights here.