March is a special month for me. On March 4th, I mark the passing of a great man, and one of my primary spiritual teachers, Jack Boland. Although he passed away in 1992, I feel the impact of his life, on my own, each and every day.

Rev. Jack Boland: 

We are all influenced by many people who pass through our lives. Some closely, some from a distance. Some people touch us with love and goodness like Jack touched me.

Others move through our lives causing pain and despair. (I won't include pictures of all those people from my life!) The truth is that all of them teach us whether they bring us joy or pain.

It's important to recognize and realize this. We don't get to choose all the teachers who will pass through our life.

Jack Boland taught that all our life experiences are opportunities for spiritual growth and development. Absolutely everything that happens to us, especially the tough stuff, is a chance to strengthen our spiritual muscles.

Part of that learning will come from other people. I've had many people pass through my life in blazes of chaos and pain. People I loved and trusted who abused my trust, and sometimes my generosity, only to turn their backs on me or betray me in some way. Those lessons are never easy. It hurts to have people treat you with disregard or disrespect. Yet each of these situations have taught me great lessons about myself and afforded me a chance to learn some powerful spiritual lessons. For example, I continue to learn about setting and maintaining appropriate boundaries. I have had to learn to really 'walk the talk' when it comes to not seeking revenge and treating other people badly, even when they have treated me that way.

It feels unfair when we've treated someone well and they basically spit in our face. It feels so 'right' to be angry and to want to lash back at them. That, however, doesn't hurt them. It only hurts us. When this happens, we have to look at what is ours to learn from these situations, and realize that 'hurt people... hurt people.'  We have a right to walk away. We have a right to not tolerate abuse. What we don't have a (spiritual) right to do, however, is to stoop to their level. Every spiritual tradition on the planet teaches us to rise above those very human impulses and act with more dignity and honor. We are the better for it when we are able to do this.

It's about developing spiritual maturity. Thankfully, I have had the benefit of magnificent teachers, like Jack Boland, to show me the way to cultivate and expand my consciousness! It sure helps in dealing with those... other types of teachers!

Recognize all the teachers in your life, even the ones who have come in a difficult and prickly package.