Freedom

(This is article 3 out of 5 about freedom.)

Free.

The English word "free" comes from the German frei—meaning dear or beloved. (Interestingly, the word "liberty" comes from the Latin liberi—meaning both free and children.) The idea is that if you are "dear" to those in charge (like the children of a medieval ruler), you get to have certain privileges.

This makes sense. We cut slack for people closest to us more than we do for those people – the ones we think of as far away and who we pretend we are nothing like.

Can you imagine that the universe or God (whatever you want to call it) finds you to be dear?

If your personal theology gets all mixed up in the above God language, you aren’t alone. Most adults get confused when we introduce the three letters gee-oh-dee. For the purposes of this short article, let’s think of it this way: your host for the weekend has told you to make yourself comfy—eat what you like, sleep as late as you like—relax. Oughtn’t you?

Spiritual-religious advice: contemplate your freedom.