Monday, May 31, 2010

Remembering Courage in Daily Life

On Memorial Day we remember the courage of those who left the safety of their homes and faced the horrors of war so that we might engage the simple pleasures of living in peace. Today, I'm honoring their sacrifice by remembering the courage it takes to live each day with wisdom, creativity and humor. A few of the following courageous acts in daily life I'm remembering are:

• the courage it takes to offer your life to a force greater than your personal fears and limitations.

• the courage it takes to simply look into the eyes of another, receive that life, and acknowledge our unity.

• the courage of opening to the spacious now containing & continuing through all creations, destructions & renewals.

• the courage to hear the call of the soul, leave the safety of the known, enter the field of uncertainty & discover life's fluid designs.

• the courage it takes to admit that we are lost and willing to listen into silence for direction.

• the courage of peering into the core of your being and see the no-thing that is everything.

• the courage it takes to shift from life being a problem to be solved to engaging it as a mystery to be explored.

• the courage of admitting there is no solid ground beneath our feet and we live in an ocean of fluid possibilities.

• the courage of admitting you are no better or worse than anyone else, that you share the same human hopes and fears.

• the courage it takes to see your most cherished beliefs shattered to reveal the living truth beyond words.

• the courage it takes to see the enemy as a reflection of your hidden fears and honor the one life force connecting you.

• the courage it takes to simply appreciate and enjoy what is.

Sunday, May 2, 2010

A Great Tide Carries Us

The great tide carries us
through currents of ocean desires.
Ignoring this, we flail and squawk,
drawing lines on the sea,
crafting stories in air.

Measuring streets on water,
and identities in sky
we build fluid cities
pretending solid ground
is under foot.

One day, the depths stir.
A mountainous force rises.
Sinuous as a dream,
it eludes perception
until its gargantuan mass
glides through the surface.
An enormous eye
meets our tiny gaze
and we are shocked awake
by the vast consciousness
staring back at us.

Prepare for this moment.
Caress the elusive life force
mysteriously appearing
in the slight gaps
between things.
Live the vast destiny
beyond your small self,
the great tide carrying us.