Personality is the frosting on the cake of being.
Please discuss. How does this play out in life?
I’ll start us out. COVID-19 has had us home much more than usual. Those of us sheltering in place with one or more loved ones have had a chance to get to know them very well. Unrelenting togetherness has called attention to others’ personalities, warts and all. Sometimes we like what we see in our extended close contact, and sometimes we don’t. We’ve both been reminded why we chose our loved ones and why they drive us nuts.
All of these interpersonal dynamics are usually occurring at the level of the personality—the outer wrapper of the person. I may find the other to be amusing, annoying, vocal, taciturn, stimulating, boring. This is my perception of how the other presents themselves, nothing more. If I only interact at this layer, I miss out on connection at a deeper level of being, the the space where I and the other are individuated expressions of divinity. When I look past another’s quirks to relate to them as a perfect unit of creation, the nature of our interaction is transformed into the transcendent. This is the gift of the corona virus—the opportunity to deepen my relationships and imbue them with divine understanding.
How about you? How has COVID-19 change the way you view and interact with others?