So, I have been lost in my normal mulling and pondering the meaning of life over the last 6 weeks or so. "What's it all about Alfie?" A question that has haunted me over the years, much like "The Hound of Heaven." Usually, I come up with a few more insights during my mulling periods, and find little comfort in them. This is especially true the older my search for meaning becomes. However, comfort is not the issue anymore, understanding, acceptance, and peace have become the watershed of my "quiet times"
What I never abandon in the end, is that fact that life is such a gift. And a lesson I am presented with, whenever I take the time to ponder, is mindfulness and the practice of being in the present moment is the ultimate goal to be sought. My illusion of control, is just that, an illusion. Powerlessness cannot be denied, or avoided no matter how hard I try.
May I remember each day that life is fragile, time is short, and this journey is so, so sweet. Furthermore may I accept that powerlessness is not weakness, in embracing it one finds a bottomless source of strength.
It is time to leave the desert once again, taking what it offered with gratitude.
Wednesday, June 22, 2011
Friday, June 10, 2011
NEVER, EVER, GIVE UP......
Somedays, I feel like this pup.
But, sooner or later we all get on our feet!
All it takes is time and effort............
Tuesday, June 7, 2011
THESE ARE THE TIMES......
These are the times that try one's soul. The longing to pick up the phone and call the newly departed. The sense of loss, moments of desolation, it never gets any easier. The family circle shrinks, one moves on, one step closer to the front line.
That being said, each day I awaken is a gift, each day in the garden is more joyous, family more dear (warts and all!) Grief causes one to pause, and consider the absolute reality that life really is fleeting. Kindness and gratitude have become even more important in my daily life, and that in itself is something to be grateful for.
Contemplating the fragility of existence is not for the feint hearted. Death is a thief of the worst ilk. Yet face it we must, and over time trust that the pain will diminish. The emptiness of loss will never heal completely, but the scar left behind will become another battle wound of life's journey.
Eventually, the joyful memories will feel less bitter, the tears will lessen, and I will embrace the blessings of my journey today. Onward.......
Amen.
That being said, each day I awaken is a gift, each day in the garden is more joyous, family more dear (warts and all!) Grief causes one to pause, and consider the absolute reality that life really is fleeting. Kindness and gratitude have become even more important in my daily life, and that in itself is something to be grateful for.
Contemplating the fragility of existence is not for the feint hearted. Death is a thief of the worst ilk. Yet face it we must, and over time trust that the pain will diminish. The emptiness of loss will never heal completely, but the scar left behind will become another battle wound of life's journey.
Eventually, the joyful memories will feel less bitter, the tears will lessen, and I will embrace the blessings of my journey today. Onward.......
Amen.
Tuesday, May 24, 2011
WALKING THROUGH THE VALLEY
I find myself in a familiar place once again, a place of sorrow, grieving and emptiness. I have been in this valley too many times in the past 14 years, and now here I am again.
My sister-in-law and dear friend passed away on May 8th after what was supposed to be a "new lease on life" surgical procedure. I lost her husband , my oldest brother three years ago June 15, and SIL and I had become closer as I held the torch for her through the early days, months and years of widowhood.
We held each other up on a daily basis, spent weekends together, laughed cried, and offered each other hope that there was a future for both of us. And now I stand alone yet again. That sad, dark sense of loss enveloping me coldly.
This too shall pass, I trust in that promise. But, in the meantime I walk with sorrow and listen to her whisperings, yet again. Too soon for me, but she is here, none the less.
My sister-in-law and dear friend passed away on May 8th after what was supposed to be a "new lease on life" surgical procedure. I lost her husband , my oldest brother three years ago June 15, and SIL and I had become closer as I held the torch for her through the early days, months and years of widowhood.
We held each other up on a daily basis, spent weekends together, laughed cried, and offered each other hope that there was a future for both of us. And now I stand alone yet again. That sad, dark sense of loss enveloping me coldly.
This too shall pass, I trust in that promise. But, in the meantime I walk with sorrow and listen to her whisperings, yet again. Too soon for me, but she is here, none the less.
Friday, April 29, 2011
A WEDDING HOMILY
I was very struck by the homily at the Royal Wedding this morning.... Nostalgia for the homeland, perhaps.
But, much more than that. Sage advice, for all who share a life, and love with another. It touched me deeply.
I wish the young couple a life that contains more of the joys they are sharing today, than the trials they shall surely encounter, as time goes by.
Here it is:
"Dearly Beloved...
"Be who God meant you to be and you will set the world on fire.” So said St Catherine of Siena whose festival day it is today. Marriage is intended to be a way in which man and woman help each other to become what God meant each one to be, their deepest and truest selves.
Many are full of fear for the future of the prospects of our world but the message of the celebrations in this country and far beyond its shores is the right one – this is a joyful day! It is good that people in every continent are able to share in these celebrations because this is, as every wedding day should be, a day of hope.
In a sense every wedding is a royal wedding with the bride and the groom as king and queen of creation, making a new life together so that life can flow through them into the future.
William and Catherine, you have chosen to be married in the sight of a generous God who so loved the world that he gave himself to us in the person of Jesus Christ.
And in the Spirit of this generous God, husband and wife are to give themselves to each another.
A spiritual life grows as love finds its centre beyond ourselves. Faithful and committed relationships offer a door into the mystery of spiritual life in which we discover this; the more we give of self, the richer we become in soul; the more we go beyond ourselves in love, the more we become our true selves and our spiritual beauty is more fully revealed. In marriage we are seeking to bring one another into fuller life.
It is of course very hard to wean ourselves away from self-centredness. And people can dream of doing such a thing but the hope should be fulfilled it is necessary a solemn decision that, whatever the difficulties, we are committed to the way of generous love.
You have both made your decision today – “I will” – and by making this new relationship, you have aligned yourselves with what we believe is the way in which life is spiritually evolving, and which will lead to a creative future for the human race.
We stand looking forward to a century which is full of promise and full of peril. Human beings are confronting the question of how to use wisely a power that has been given to us through the discoveries of the last century. We shall not be converted to the promise of the future by more knowledge, but rather by an increase of loving wisdom and reverence, for life, for the earth and for one another.
Marriage should transform, as husband and wife make one another their work of art. It is possible to transform as long as we do not harbour ambitions to reform our partner. There must be no coercion if the Spirit is to flow; each must give the other space and freedom. Chaucer, the London poet, sums it up in a pithy phrase:
“Whan maistrie [mastery] comth, the God of Love anon,
Beteth his wynges, and farewell, he is gon.”
As the reality of God has faded from so many lives in the West, there has been a corresponding inflation of expectations that personal relations alone will supply meaning and happiness in life. This is to load our partner with too great a burden. We are all incomplete: we all need the love which is secure, rather than oppressive, we need mutual forgiveness, to thrive.
As we move towards our partner in love, following the example of Jesus Christ, the Holy Spirit is quickened within us and can increasingly fill our lives with light. This leads to a family life which offers the best conditions in which the next generation can practise and exchange those gifts which can overcome fear and division and incubate the coming world of the Spirit, whose fruits are love and joy and peace.
I pray that all of us present and the many millions watching this ceremony and sharing in your joy today, will do everything in our power to support and uphold you in your new life. And I pray that God will bless you in the way of life that you have chosen, that way which is expressed in the prayer that you have composed together in preparation for this day:
God our Father, we thank you for our families; for the love that we share and for the joy of our marriage.
In the busyness of each day keep our eyes fixed on what is real and important in life and help us to be generous with our time and love and energy.
Strengthened by our union help us to serve and comfort those who suffer. We ask this in the Spirit of Jesus Christ. Amen. "
But, much more than that. Sage advice, for all who share a life, and love with another. It touched me deeply.
I wish the young couple a life that contains more of the joys they are sharing today, than the trials they shall surely encounter, as time goes by.
Here it is:
"Dearly Beloved...
"Be who God meant you to be and you will set the world on fire.” So said St Catherine of Siena whose festival day it is today. Marriage is intended to be a way in which man and woman help each other to become what God meant each one to be, their deepest and truest selves.
Many are full of fear for the future of the prospects of our world but the message of the celebrations in this country and far beyond its shores is the right one – this is a joyful day! It is good that people in every continent are able to share in these celebrations because this is, as every wedding day should be, a day of hope.
In a sense every wedding is a royal wedding with the bride and the groom as king and queen of creation, making a new life together so that life can flow through them into the future.
William and Catherine, you have chosen to be married in the sight of a generous God who so loved the world that he gave himself to us in the person of Jesus Christ.
And in the Spirit of this generous God, husband and wife are to give themselves to each another.
A spiritual life grows as love finds its centre beyond ourselves. Faithful and committed relationships offer a door into the mystery of spiritual life in which we discover this; the more we give of self, the richer we become in soul; the more we go beyond ourselves in love, the more we become our true selves and our spiritual beauty is more fully revealed. In marriage we are seeking to bring one another into fuller life.
It is of course very hard to wean ourselves away from self-centredness. And people can dream of doing such a thing but the hope should be fulfilled it is necessary a solemn decision that, whatever the difficulties, we are committed to the way of generous love.
You have both made your decision today – “I will” – and by making this new relationship, you have aligned yourselves with what we believe is the way in which life is spiritually evolving, and which will lead to a creative future for the human race.
We stand looking forward to a century which is full of promise and full of peril. Human beings are confronting the question of how to use wisely a power that has been given to us through the discoveries of the last century. We shall not be converted to the promise of the future by more knowledge, but rather by an increase of loving wisdom and reverence, for life, for the earth and for one another.
Marriage should transform, as husband and wife make one another their work of art. It is possible to transform as long as we do not harbour ambitions to reform our partner. There must be no coercion if the Spirit is to flow; each must give the other space and freedom. Chaucer, the London poet, sums it up in a pithy phrase:
“Whan maistrie [mastery] comth, the God of Love anon,
Beteth his wynges, and farewell, he is gon.”
As the reality of God has faded from so many lives in the West, there has been a corresponding inflation of expectations that personal relations alone will supply meaning and happiness in life. This is to load our partner with too great a burden. We are all incomplete: we all need the love which is secure, rather than oppressive, we need mutual forgiveness, to thrive.
As we move towards our partner in love, following the example of Jesus Christ, the Holy Spirit is quickened within us and can increasingly fill our lives with light. This leads to a family life which offers the best conditions in which the next generation can practise and exchange those gifts which can overcome fear and division and incubate the coming world of the Spirit, whose fruits are love and joy and peace.
I pray that all of us present and the many millions watching this ceremony and sharing in your joy today, will do everything in our power to support and uphold you in your new life. And I pray that God will bless you in the way of life that you have chosen, that way which is expressed in the prayer that you have composed together in preparation for this day:
God our Father, we thank you for our families; for the love that we share and for the joy of our marriage.
In the busyness of each day keep our eyes fixed on what is real and important in life and help us to be generous with our time and love and energy.
Strengthened by our union help us to serve and comfort those who suffer. We ask this in the Spirit of Jesus Christ. Amen. "
Tuesday, April 19, 2011
SOUL SONGS
“The grand show is eternal. It is always sunrise somewhere; the dew is never dried all at once; a shower is forever falling; vapor is ever rising. Eternal sunrise, eternal dawn and gloaming, on sea and continents and islands, each in its turn, as the round earth rolls.”
John Muir
Thank you Mr. Muir for your spirit, and calling.
Thursday, April 14, 2011
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)