Leopards don't change their spots...

and so it is with people as well...
Although we'd like to believe that the human spirit itself...
can be ALTERED, CHANGED, REJIGGERED...
the reality is that BEHAVIOR can change,
but the essence of a person remains solidly in place,
regardless of whether it's a good or a bad thing....

For instance, a woman recently said to me that she NOW  had FOUND HER ESSENCE...
through religion actually...
My response was that a person's ESSENCE is ALWAYS THERE....
that we don't FIND OUR ESSENCE...
but rather...
that we ARE our essence.....
She went on to say that
"She used to have a LIFE, but now she'd found HIGHER PURPOSE",,,

Sorry, guys...
But, SERIOUSLY ???
Do we actually believe that GOD doesn't WANT US to have a LIFE ???

What she MEANT was that she had embraced religion SO TIGHTLY...
SO NON NEGOTIABLY...
and CLEARLY without ENOUGH KNOWLEDGE or INFORMATION...
that she'd COMPLETELY lost the POINT of the whole thing...
Am I making sense ?

I walked away, shaking my head....
Frustrated...EXASPERATED...
these ROBOTs.....
What's up with them ?
I wanted to tell her that OUR GOD is a merciful one....
The HE understands us....
But the words would've been wasted.....

Ehhhh...
Onward, Troops !