The Hand

It was two summers ago, a few days before I met the man that would become my husband, that I was privileged to hear a story which helped me more clearly understand some things about right relationships. I had gone to a campgrounds with a particular question in my mind and thinking that while I was there I'd be around somebody who would know about the pertinent subject and would be able to answer my question. The question was about an aspect of Native American spiritual teachings. There was a woman there, with whom I was acquainted, who was Indian, Cherokee, I think, so I waited for an appropriate moment and posed the question. She readily answered, and then hung back to leisurely finish breakfast at the table where I sat. When the other campers had left the table she told me she wanted to speak to me about something. She spoke about the maturation of my daughter into a young woman. We engaged in thoughtful conversation. She stressed that I am my daughter's primary teacher concerning womanhood. Then, her eyes became very focused and she said she felt the need to warn me about a spiritual danger that I faced in my own life.

She began to speak of a danger and two or three times asked me, "Do you understand?" as she attempted to make her points.

To this, I repeatedly replied, "No, I don't understand."

She appeared frustrated with our attempt to communicate, but I looked into her eyes and admitted, "I don't understand what you're talking about."

At this, she became quiet and took another approach. Her countenance changed and I felt she revealed herself to me as she would have within her own culture. Her face softened and she resumed speaking with a strong, quiet voice. She began to gesture with her hands as she told me a story that I will try to retell as I remember it.

She held out her hand and gestured over it, stating, "This is your life."

Then, she said, "I will tell you about the people who are safe to be in your life. This is what brings you power"

She brought together her fingertips and pressed them into the palm of the outstretched hand. "This is your family," she said, explaining to me that as many people could be in my family as I was able to hold and that the choice of who I hold in my family is mine alone.

"You can hold many people in the palm of your hand."

She talked about blood family: mother, father, brothers, sisters, grandparents, aunts and uncles, nieces and nephews, children, grandchildren, and cousins. She went on to state that we take non-related people into our family, but that the relationships are the same, that it must be this way. Three people walked by who paused to greet her with hugs and affectionate words. When they moved on, she told me these were such people to her. The husband was her brother, the wife was her sister, and the child was a niece, though they were not blood relatives.

Then, she touched her four fingers and told me that these are special women friends, that there are four positions, and that if these positions are filled with the right friends this will give me strength. She said these people may come and go in my life for many different reasons and that I must be able to adjust and find others to fill the positions. She told me that there is only room for four of this kind of friend and that a woman needs all four of such female friends to develop her potential. They are companions on the spiritual journey and they each have a time and a purpose for traveling with me.

"There are no men in these positions."

She grasped her thumb, deep into the base.

"This is your man. There is only one. See how the thumb joins into the hand and how important it is? The hand is very limited without the thumb."

"When the thumb is severed from the hand there is a big injury. This represents your life. You have had a big injury, but there is a big healing possible and another man can come into your life. There is only one and he will be joined to you as the thumb is joined to the hand."

"Do you understand?"

"Yes, I understand."

New President

We have a new president. The hope is that it's a new day for America. How can I derive inspiration from recent events to persistently continue the hard work of renewing my life?

PPP

In moments of turmoil I can pause to process my perception, not to analyze, not to strategize, not to criticize, but to recognize. Through observation of both my outer and inner state I come to a deep awareness of my total immersion and unity with the Life Force, which is Love.










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The Pathway

Serenity is my desire. Serenity stems from truthfulness. Truthfulness is the foundation of a life of serenity. I walk the pathway of serenity with gratitude and faith. Gratitude brings joy which gives me a spiritual energy I like to call wings. This uplifts me to a holy place. Faith gives me strength, which results in perseverance. I rely on my Creator for the inspiration and guidance that directs both my stillness and my movement.

Compassion manifests itself in the kindness that leads to my service to humanity and truthfulness leads to the awareness that is necessary for my right action. Through this path I come to serenity and I enter into peace. This is the journey of life, which is simply an entering into the center of my being where I experience a stillness that immerses me in the Creative Force.

As I remain in truthfulness my heart unfolds with compassion. I take right action and continue to experience awareness of both my inner and outer being. I respond to my unique life experience with kindness to myself and others, enabled to be of service beyond my capacity as I walk with my gaze fixed on the Creative Source.

Faith keeps me centered and my gratitude increases. I persevere with the strength I am provided by the Provider. I am lifted up and supported. I walk in joy. This is the pathway I am taking to becoming who I am, a loved child of God.

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A Moment of Clarity

Walking the labyrinth must have created a focused meditative experience, for a couple of days later, an insight came to me totally beyond what I had expected, and totally beyond the issue upon which I had meditated. I experienced a moment of clarity which infused me with joy. I was given both a visual image and the words to help me stay focused, especially in times of tests. Upon returning home, only a few minutes after this experience, I opened the mailbox to find notice of some unexpected news which I would have been spiritually unprepared to handle had I not just experienced that moment. As it was, I accepted calmly what life handed me and felt assured that God was with me in that moment and for whatever I will face in this matter. The image is in the form of a seed labyrinth with four quadrants and words associated with certain key spots. The image provides cues for the thoughts that lead me to a great calm.

Sacred Spaces

I have spent some time in the past few weeks exploring the nearby parks, particularly searching for a place that feels like a sacred space to me. Yesterday, we came upon a pine grove on a knoll above a marshy area. Also, I walked a labyrinth while meditating on a specific transition I am going through, then picked up a rock to bring home as a reminder of the insight that came to me. I later learned that this labyrinth is one of the largest and most beautiful within a hundred mile radius of my new home.

An Old Journal

This is part of a journal entry I found from December 23, 2006:

"I feel as if I have come to almost a complete stillness in my soul. I ask only that I be open to love, that I may give and receive love without obstruction, that I grow in infinite intimacy with my Creator as I joyfully embrace the co-creative experience. May I be fully human-in servitude unto my Lord."

Now, I look back at the amazing events that have unfolded, both within my own life and in the outer world. First, there were the confirmations, then the tests. It has been tumultuous for me, but now I am back to the peace and I am grateful.

TMI About My Holiday Preparations

The following is an excerpt with some revisions (as in names have been omitted to protect the innocent)from an e-mail I recently sent to a friend who has a great sense of humor.

"I left a note on the kitchen counter telling my husband I want a burn barrel for Christmas (and I think I may get it. I'm excited.)

We are working through some of the holiday issues. I don't celebrate Christmas within my own religion, but I do like some of the special little things that come connected to the season...(like opening the curtains and gazing at the neighbors' twinkling lights or attending a holiday musical evening at one of the local churches where friends attend...or sharing my friend's traditional plate of cookies).

We talked about this before we got married. But, after I sold the 7 ft. artificial Christmas tree that was in his (our) garage and he finally agreed it would be alright to find another home for the tree that had been the one he had given his mom when she was in a nursing home before she passed away (it's still with the designated yard sale items), he started calling me a scrooge. I gladly acquiesced to his ribbing and decorated a bit. Now we have a little table-topper tree as a centerpiece on the dining room table (my daughter had wanted that some years ago and we still have it.) And, I put up this ancient artificial tree (it must have been one of the first ones to come out in the stores) that my husband has dragged around with him in all of his moves all of his adult life. I actually like it because it's not very bushy and there is room to see the ornaments hanging. Hmmm...most of the ornaments went in the yard sale, too! What to do? Well, we still had some lights and a few ornaments, the ones that didn't sell and a couple of especially beautiful ones that I had held back, not knowing if they held any special sentimental value for my husband. In addition, I got out these crocheted potholders that are some kind of family tradition in his "clan" and hung them on the tree.

My daughter said it's the ugliest tree she has ever seen. I think it's beautiful and have been lighting it for morning prayer and meditation time. That's something I'm needing to be more regular with, so the pretty lights are an encouragement to me. (I finally found the music I like to play in the mornings that I had put in a special place where I wouldn't lose it-which, of course, I did-in all the moving about and rearranging.)

We haven't gotten very far in making plans for the holidays,..."

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Ye are the Stars

"O friends! Be not careless of the virtues
with which ye have been endowed, neither
be neglectful of your high destiny. Suffer not
your labors to be wasted through the vain
imaginations which certain hearts have
devised. Ye are the stars of the heaven of
understanding, the breeze that stirreth at the
break of day, the soft-flowing waters upon
which must depend the very life of all men,
the letters inscribed upon His sacred scroll."

~ Baha'u'llah
Gleanings from the Writings
of Baha'u'llah
p. 196

Meditation

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To the Planters of Trees

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Just for Today

Just for today I will believe in myself. I will listen to my inner guide, the voice of my spirit. I will feel my feelings and know that I am a loved child of God. I will unconditionally accept myself for who I am today. I will know that my life experiences, including what seem to be mistakes, can lead toward my unique purpose in this world. I will trust myself to stay centered and to turn the mirror of my heart toward the Divine Light. For today, my outward life will manifest my inner nobility. Baha'u'llah, the Lord of the Age, is my protector and my guide. The power of the universe flows through me and is the continuous source of my renewal.