We do. It is in and through the extended hand that we express our humanity for others to witness.
We rise by lifting others.
At the New Year
As Kenneth Patchen wrote, “there are other bells we could ring” provides choice in living mindfully and sensitively in the world.
In the shape of this night, in the still fall
of snow, Father
In all that is cold and tiny, these little birds
and children
In everything that moves tonight, the trolleys
and the lovers, Father
In the great hush of country, in the ugly noise
of our cities
In this deep throw of stars, in those trenches
where the dead are, Father
In all the wide land waiting, and in the liners
out on the black water
In all that has been said bravely, in all that is
mean anywhere in the world, Father
In all that is good and lovely, in every house
where sham and hatred are
In the name of those who wait, in the sound
of angry voices, Father
Before the bells ring, before this little point in time
has rushed us on
Before this clean moment has gone, before this night
turns to face tomorrow, Father
There is this high singing in the air
Forever this sorrowful human face in eternity’s window
And there are other bells that we would ring, Father
Other bells that we would ring.
When we explore the cracks in everything, we find the light and ring the bells we can and could.
“Ring the bells that still can ring, forget your perfect offering, there is a crack in everything, that’s how the light gets in.”—Leonard Cohen
Words Crystallize
There is a always a deeper secret within the secret which cannot be fully explained. Accepting this wordless and mysterious essence allows us to find our way home.
Wonder Haiku 93
Time is elusive. Yet, we try to manage it, own it, and save it.
If you are a poet….
Thich Nhat Hanh’s poem describes the interconnection of matter. Remove one thing from the link and what remains?
“If you are a poet, you will see clearly that there is a cloud floating in this sheet of paper. Without a cloud, there will be no rain; without rain, the trees cannot grow: and without trees, we cannot make paper. The cloud is essential for the paper to exist. If the cloud is not here, the sheet of paper cannot be here either. So we can say that the cloud and the paper inter-are.”
Free Flight Into The Wordless
The image and the short piece by Pablo Neruda fit so well together. Poetry is a deep inner calling in humans. It is a language that allows us to speak immediately to the world.
“Free Flight into the Wordless” — Image by kenne
Poetry is a deep inner calling in man: from it came liturgy, the
psalms, and also the content of religions. The poet confronted
nature’s phenomena and in the early ages called himself a priest,
to safeguard his vocation. . . . Today’s social poet is still a member
of the earliest order of priests. In the old days he made his
pact with the darkness, and now he must interpret the light.
— Pablo Neruda
Christmas Light
May Sarton provided a simple message for this time of year. When we take a moment and share a few moments of quiet, there is sometimes a feeling of being reborn. It is in the quiet and simple moments we feel love’s presence.
As I prepared to post, I read the poem again. It took May Sarton almost a whole year to feel love’s presence. Regardless of our beliefs, each day is a special celebration and feeling love’s presence. Each day offers silent spaces for meditation and prayer bringing us closer to each other.
Take care and enjoy each day as if it were a special and wonder filled holiday. Merry Christmas and Happy New Year.
When everyone had gone
I sat in the library
With the small silent tree,
She and I alone.
How softly she shone!
And for the first time then
For the first time this year,
I felt reborn again,
I knew love’s presence near.
Love distant, love detached
And strangely without weight,
Was with me in the night
When everyone had gone
And the garland of pure light
Stayed on, stayed on.
Christmas Gift Suggestions
The short poem offers us a way to experience the holidays regardless of how we believe. The suggestions are something we can carry into daily living.
Natures Wisdom
Wisdom is not easy to find. It is buried in the roots of our living. Nature is a space where wisdom does not know bounds in the way humans often place them around phenomena.
Be Still in Haste
Wendell Berry is one of my favourite poets. He writes with such clarity and practical appreciation for the world. Even in clarity, the world remains ambiguous and fuzzy.
I read the last stanza of this poem as an example of the paradox and tension we try to hold. Perhaps, as much as I would like it to be different, time is always starting over in each moment. Each moments holds the eternity of time to paraphrase Alfred North Whitehead, yet I do not sense that unless I pause and notice time is passing me by.
Unless I pause, time passes me by and, yet, I cannot hold time still. It is inevitable it will start afresh in the next moment. In these pauses, I encounter the world and living as creative processes which I experience more fully when I am awake.
How quietly I
begin again
from this moment
looking at the
clock, I start over
so much time has
passed, and is equaled
by whatever
split-second is present
from this
moment this moment
is the first.
ivonprefontaine
Teacher as Transformer 