life, like mancala...a game of hope & mystery...

I find you, Lord, in all Things & in all

my fellow creatures, pulsing with your life;

as a tiny seed you sleep in what is small

& in the vast you vastly yield yourself.

The wondrous game that power plays with Things

is to move in such submission through the world:

groping in roots & growing thick in trunks

& in treetops like a rising from the dead.

…Rilke

the promise of the spiritual quest is this…..to linger in the lightness of heart…an abiding awarensess….not cajoled into perfection….knowing the tranquil fearlessness which comes from breathing in the human condition….a life lived…..

longing for that place of grace & sureness…

Opening up the secret of our human nature, revealing to ourselves & to each other our deep & soulful longings, our fear & sadness, our joy & wonder, is the critical step on the spiritual path. It is the step that makes the difference between living our own, real spirituality & just acquiring someone else’s beliefs. We could say that the history of human suffering is our inability to come to terms with our spiritual hunger. Like one big cosmic joke, humans were born yearning, yet without the map to get ‘there.’ The source of our spiritual longing resides in a place deep within us. It is a quiet & faithful place that can become our most dependable friend when we learn to access its powerful wisdom…….Elizabeth Lesser