The power of love is in hope, For by it we await the reward of love. The failing of hope is the disappearance of love. Hope is a rest from labors in the midst of labors. Toils depend on it. Mercy encircles it. Experiencing the gifts of the Giver of Life engenders hope. But he who is without experience remains in doubt.
~ from CHRIST THE ETERNAL TAO by Hieromonk Damascene
Every person has a share in this world and a share in the world to come. We understand the concept of a share in the world to come, but what does it mean having a share in this world? Open your hearts. Having a share in this world means I know exactly what I have to do in this world. This is a very high level. If I know that if I don't do it, it just won't happen. Then I've just got to do it. This is my share in this world.
May BLESSINGS OF HEART-SONG be yours, dear friends! And, out of deep silence, may you awaken to the music of the spheres, the rhythm and harmony of Life ...
SPRING BLESSINGS: season of new growth! The miracle of the world around us is an endless source of spiritual nourishment for those who are truly aware. What if our sole purpose, our soul purpose, our basic goal, is simply to be gardeners of the planet iin praise of diversity! Too simple! something to ponder in the silence of our hearts.
We are here because Love recognizes our value and knows what we can become, what we can give, what we can do that will bring new life, new vision, new spirit, new love to the world. The call in the lives of each of us is the call to treasure and value and love one another and all the other creatures and things of the Earth. It is the call to acknowledge and to act from that knowledge that each person is just as valued and just as loved as the next, and all are invited to participate in the communion of that love.
When I had my breakfast I would leave the door open in the summer and the birds would come right inside and pick up the crumbs around my feet. They had no fear of me at all. These birds also brought their families when ready. I later found out that this bird trust was because of my silence. Once I spoke to them, all went like the wind, and I praised God for such trust. Providing I remained silent they had no fear of me and I learned a great deal about their ways.
Every human being has an obligation to return to this planet and to all its creatures the sound of beauty, the power of prayer, the sense of harmony. In O PIONEERS!, Willa Cather reminds us of our need to believe in the good soil of our lives, to do what we can to wake it up and then to wait.
"The land had its little joke. It pretended to be poor because nobody knew how to work it right; and then all at once it worked itself. It woke up out of its sleep and stretched itself and it was so big, so rich, that we suddenly found we were rich, just from sitting still."
We can learn the same lesson from sitting still with the land of the heart. It, too, has its little jokes. We think it is poor soil because we don't know how to work it. When we learn to do our inner work, it will wake up and work itself. All we need is a PATIENT WAITING and a TENDER ABIDING.
Nature's perfect economy is at work in the unfurling of leaves, the structure of galaxies, and the emergence of a butterfly from a chrysalis. Universal patterns, forms and processes are embodiments of efficient harmonies, proportioned relatedness, and ways of sharing. By looking at the world in a certain way, we can see patterns of interconnectedness and come to realize that the world is not a collection of "things", but an unfolding creative process at the deepest level.
Gardening can provide an opportunity to slow down, be still, breathe, and connect with another form of life. For me, it is an experience of communion; I become one with this precious life in my garden, and it heightens my experience of love in the world. And that is what spirituality is all about: growing in love.
As you see the world as part of yourself
you will care for it;
As you see yourself as part of the world
you will be cared for.
When alone with your thoughts,
listen and hear the Silence.
Listen and see the Silence.
Listen and taste the Silence.
Close your eyes and feel the Silence
deep within.
Let the woodlands become your chapel --
your body the altar.
In the Silence, as you begin to
communicate with the Creator,
receive peace.
~ from a Seneca song with thanks to Richard Siebels
