A poem by Mary Oliver which celebrates life in death
There Are Days When by Neena Sims
What happens if? An invitation to a different space
Note to Self
Enhopened
Contact in a time of contagion
Parts
The Alchemy of Welcome
Waiting
On 'Zoom' Fatigue
The New Normal
"Love takes off the masks..."
“Love takes off the masks that we fear we cannot live without and know we cannot live within. I use the word “love” here not merely in the personal sense but as a state of being, or a state of grace - not in the infantile American sense of being made happy but in the tough and universal sense of quest and daring and growth.”
The glory of Friendship
Safe and Sound
Parts of me, Parts of her
Justin Wise writes about the possibilities which open when we know ourselves as beings of many parts.
What it takes to listen
How to Tell the Truth by Paul Williams
When you just have to talk,
try being silent.
When you feel reluctant to say anything,
make the effort
to put what you’re feeling into words.
This is a place to begin.
Pushing gently
against the current
of your own impulses
is an effective technique
for dislodging
and discovering
your truth.
How to tell the truth?
Taste it
and remember the taste in your heart.
Risk it
from the bottom of your love.
Take the risk
of telling the truth
about what you’re feeling.
Take the risk
of telling your loved one
your secrets.
It’s true
you might be misunderstood.
Look and see
if you’re willing to trust
yourselves
to misunderstand each other
and go on from there.
When someone speaks to you
and you feel yourself not wanting to hear it
try letting it in.
You don’t have to agree that they’re right.
Just take the risk
of listening as if they could possibly be speaking
some truth—
and see what happens.
Listen as if.
Listen as if you can’t always tell
what the truth is.
Listen as if you might be wrong,
especially when you know you’re right.
Listen as if
you were willing to take the risk
of growing beyond
your righteousness.
Listen as if
love mattered.
Everything in Everything
Famous
Justin Wise reflects on what becomes possible when we can find ways to release ourselves from the grip of comparison.
Active Hope by Joanna Macy
Active Hope is not wishful thinking.
Active Hope is not waiting to be rescued
by some savior.
Active Hope is waking up to the beauty of life
on whose behalf we can act.
We belong to this world.
The web of life is calling us forth at this time.
We’ve come a long way and are here to play our part.
With Active Hope we realize that
there are adventures in store,
strengths to discover, and comrades to link arms with.
Active Hope is a readiness to discover the strengths
in ourselves and in others;
a readiness to discover the reasons for hope
and the occasions for love.
A readiness to discover the size and strength of our hearts,
our quickness of mind, our steadiness of purpose,
our own authority, our love for life,
the liveliness of our curiosity,
the unsuspected deep well of patience and diligence,
the keenness of our senses, and our capacity to lead.
None of these can be discovered in an armchair or without risk.