Aligning with Grace

This quote, from the poet May Sarton's writings, is one that is often repeated and illustrated. It is a favorite of many, and certainly of mine as well: "Help us to be always hopeful gardeners of spirit, who know that without darkness nothing comes to birth, as without light, nothing flowers." You and I, might not be actual gardeners in the traditional sense, but we are all called to be gardeners of spirit - tending our own inner, delicate, souls.  Another famous writer and spiritual figure, John Henry Newman, wrote: "Growth is the only evidence of life." And still another, Francis de Sales, noted in the 17th century, that true growth is often a slow and hidden process. What is to be learned from all this wisdom? We are told that true growth - within and without - is often slow, and perhaps not noticeable to many outside of us. There are difficult and challenging experiences to be dealt with along the way. There are days of both light and darkness, as well as da...

As I watered my plants and waited for a dear soul friend to come visit me this morning, I thought of the many different ways in which we garden... Sometimes we garden in our yards... Sometimes we tend the garden of other people's hearts... This friend I awaited, has done this for me many times throughout the last few years... But sometimes we are gardeners to our own souls...We tug and pull out the weeds of what no longer serves us, and create room for our dreams to take root and for our souls to grow... Over cups of tea, my friend and I shared experiences from our meditation and yoga practices, which we do from time to time. I described an ability to plug into bliss very deeply in my sitting practice, but conversely mourned all I had lost in my yoga practice, lamenting that in many ways, I felt like a raw beginner. She wisely noted, that it did not matter - for it shed light on what was ultimately important - the essence of the practice - and the poses that were now elusive disclo...

I look into the eyes of a biker - and I wonder - what it would be like to be him...On some level I know...Only from that place of oneness can I ever truly know... From that place - I know what is in his soul - just as I know how it feels to be fully Conscious on the tip of my toe... This place of Oneness calls me...And when I am there, I am not held captive by my head or my senses...I am only there... Namaste! When you are in that place in you - and I am in that place in me - there is only Oneness...We are only One! Unison Benediction Return to the most human, nothing less will nourish the torn spirit, the bewildered heart, the angry mind: And from the ultimate duress pierced with the breath of anguish, speak of love Return, return to the deep sources nothing less will teach the stiff hands a new way to serve, to carve into our lives a form of tenderness and still than ancient necessary pain to preserve Return to the most human, nothing less will teach the angry spirit, the bewildered ...