Openness Leads To Closeness

Written by Mathew Naismith

Before Islam became dominant in Malaysia, the people were more open to each other, so often would these people open up to groups of people, telling it all in how it is with them. Privacy was not encouraged but openness was.

These people opened up to each other, in doing so made the community a lot closer. Crime was rarely heard of because of this openness. In the West, are we too private, too secretive therefore too distant from each other? The criminal activity occurring around us would certainly point to this, we are way too distant from each other because we often find openness way too offensive sadly enough.

It would seem we are more offended by openness than secretiveness, this is  strange when you consider that openness relates to awareness where secretiveness relates to unawareness.

Openness = awareness + closeness + sociable + truth + oneness

Secretiveness = unawareness + privacy + lies + separatism/segregation

I think we have so much fear in opening up to each other, not that it's not warranted in most cases as we no longer live in a close society therefore no longer understand each other. When a society no longer comprehends other people's feelings and thoughts within that society, it is obvious such a society will no longer be open and truthful but private and secretive.

I often talk quite openly about myself and my family, some people are noticeably offended by this, how could I tell the world about my family private business.....The way I look at this, how could I not, how could I not be open and truthful, is there any other way? There obviously is but it's not a way I relate to but I do understand why some people are offended by my openness, it's incomprehensible therefore quite inconceivable for anyone to be this open.

This is a prime example of my openness, so many white Australians are quite unaware because they have taken the recent foreign influx as a personal thing. In making this a personal issue, they have negated what white Europeans did to the Australian aboriginals, it was far worse than what is happening to us at present.

As soon as our perceptions are primarily personally privately based, we automatically become unaware of other perspectives, in our case the perspective from the aboriginals point of perception.

My wife and I haven't watched TV over 8 years now or so, very few people can't understand what we would do then. We mostly sit out on our front porch talking or reading together, do you know how many people of today cannot comprehend any married couple doing this?

We are open therefore aware of each other, it's as if how could we even comprehend doing such a thing in a reality so segregated in the first place. I perceive this differently, how could you not, especially in a segregated reality.

For me, without a doubt openness leads to closeness, this openness doesn't just lead to closeness either, but an awareness way beyond the comprehension of anyone who isn't open. This openness is also often related to the heart centre, mainly because of the closeness that openness gives us, not just to other people but our whole environment.

If anyone asked me if openness is worth the flak I get from some people, I would put it in an Australian way, "bloody oath, wouldn't av it any other way"......