Where am I running to, Lord? Why am I in such a hurry when what I really want is to slow down to your timing and to enjoy the present moment you have given me? Too often, when you give me something to savor I am mentally looking ahead to what might happen next. Slow me down, Beloved: my body, my mind, my reactions, my emotions. Get me off this racetrack. Teach me how to go down deep into the moment of now to enjoy your goodness in peace, with you.
Thy voice is heard as a melodious chant in the stillness of my heart, and is translated in my head by words which are inadequate and yet replete with Thee. And these words are addressed to the Earth, remember that I am present in you and lose not hope; each effort, each grief, each joy and each pang, each call of thy heart, each aspiration of thy soul, each renewal of thy seasons, all, all without exception, what seems to thee sorrowful and what seems to thee joyous, what seems to thee ugly and what seems to thee beautiful, all infallibly lead thee towards me, who am endless Peace, shadowless Light, perfect Harmony, Certitude, Rest and Supreme Blessedness.
Hearken, O Earth, to the sublime voice that arises,
Hearken, and take new courage.
It is necessary that we find God, who cannot be found in noise and unpeace. God is the friend of silence. See how Nature -- trees, flowers, and grass -- grow in stillness; how stars, moon, and sun run their course in silence. The more we receive through quiet prayer, the more we can give in the activity of our daily lives. In essence, it is not what WE say, but what GOD says to us and through us. All our words are useless if they do not come from within.
Throughout my life, by means of my life, the world has little by little caught fire in my sight until, aflame all around me, it has become my experience in contact with the earth -- the diaphany of the Divine at the heart of the universe on fire ... Christ's heart, a fire! capable of penetrating everything and gradually spreading everywhere.
I pledge allegiance to the Earth and to the flora, fauna and human life that it supports, one planet, indivisible, with safe air, water and soil, economic justice, equal rights and peace for all.
Each of us has the responsibility to protect sacred land and life in every country of the world, in whatever way he or she can. We must remember that lightning and wind are not controlled by human boundaries. A sacred breath unifies the divine web of life. Any part that is broken affects us all. May you walk in balance.
It was architect Mies van der Rohe who said, "God dwells in the details". Scientists study fractals to find order hidden within chaos, the details of our world. Fractals -- we are finding that they suggest an underlying order in things as diverse as stock market fluctuations, flooding ... and the order hidden within the chaos of a running stream. I catch hints and whispers of a beneficent universe... Our familiar, intimate environment is a universe in itself -- and one full of delightful revelations.
