In order to endeavor to calm my busy mind, I use various meditations, both physical and mental. The one I used this morning on the labyrinth path is one that helps me center into the day. It was originally inspired by the wonderful contribution of John O'Donohue's writings. An irish poet and theologian who died too soon, O'Donohue offers astoundingly beautiful perspectives on life and the Divine. Do check him out if you do not know him. A treasure.
One sensibility that he brings forth is that we are inspirited clay, we humans....we are nature and spirit combined...embodied life. So, as I was walking some time ago, I thought of these words. They work best for me when I am walking:
I am grateful for Earth
knowledge of growth and transformation
wisdom of being and interdependence
manifesting, responding Earth
I am of earth.
I am grateful for Sky
knowledge of space and eternity
wisdom of breath and interconnectedness
ever present, all encompassing Sky
I am of sky.
What serendipity to log onto your blog for the first time and find this beautiful blog post. Last night in journaling group, we were just talking about the need we all sometimes feel for meditative movement -- how there are times when nothing else stills the inner turmoil.
ReplyDeleteAnother serendipity: the women in the journaling group have enjoyed John O'Donohue's words so many times in opening and closing our journaling circle. What a treasure we all find his writing to be. I’ve used his book of blessings more times than I can count.
And still another: You write about walking your labyrinth, holding within you O’Donohue’s sensibility that we are inspirited clay. This brings me full circle on a meandering path that reaches from July 2009 to today.
Earlier this evening, in a book manuscript I was editing, I stumbled across a reference to an organization called the TKF Foundation. Its mission is to create “Open Spaces, Sacred Places,” especially in drug-afflicted urban areas and other troubled neighborhoods where people need a place of solace and respite. One of the things the Foundation does is to build benches out of recycled wood and eventually place them in these green spaces, to encourage community and contemplation.
And each bench houses a secret: a special small cubby built beneath the bench seat that holds a weatherproof journal and a pen. The Foundation’s hope is that people will write in the journal when they visit the public green space, not only as a way to encounter themselves on the page but also as a way to take comfort from the words of others who have shared in the journal.
I encountered my first TKF journal in July 2009, while attending a facilitator training retreat for SoulCollage® at the Bon Secours Retreat Center outside Baltimore. Their bench is placed next to their labyrinth, which I had just walked. I sat down and discovered, to my amazement, the little journal tucked away in there. I read it cover to cover, with tears streaming down my face most of the time. I remember being so struck by the idea of a weatherproof journal in a bench cubby that I actually wrote down the TKF Foundation’s name in my own journal, with the intention to look it up on the internet when I got back home – I’d never heard of them before attending the Bon Secours retreat. But when I returned home afterward, everyday life ensued, and I forgot about it – until today, when I found that reference to it in the manuscript I was working on.
Today’s rediscovery led me at last to the TKF Foundation’s website (tkffdn.org/about/about_tkf.php). There I was able to read many more entries from journals that the Foundation has placed in various locations around the Baltimore-DC metro area. Shortly before I logged onto your blog tonight, I’d read the following entry from a TKF journal whose bench is placed in a public green space near Baltimore Clayworks:
“3.25.10 -- A piece of clay is like a soul. It will be built up, torn down, and overcome challenges as it grows with time. But it will solve a great purpose in the end. It will be a piece of art, sculpted by the hands and mind of a being skilled and blessed with the gift of creativity."
Thank you for posting this blog entry, Lisa, and for reminding me of what truly matters.