Today’s blog
Lynn Murphy Mark
Words of wisdom
From today’s Meditation comes a quote by Dr. Barbara Holmes, found in her book, “Joy Unspeakable”:
When you least expect it, during the most mundane daily tasks, a shift of focus occurs. This shift bends us toward the universe, a cosmos of soul and spirit, bone and flesh, which constantly reaches toward divinity. Ecclesial organizations want to control access to this milieu but cannot. The only divisions between the sacred and the secular are in the minds of those who believe in and reinforce the split…”
After reading that and thinking on it for a few minutes I thought about the occasions when I get a sense of great joy.
They happen, as she says, when I least expect them. The other night I was on the computer researching tickets for the Polar Express ride at Union Station. My grandsons, who are 4 and 6, will be here for Christmas and will be with me on Christmas Eve. Jackie and I will dress them in matching pajamas, which we might wear as well, and head down to Union Station for a train ride.
Suddenly it occurred to me that we are going into the Fall and early Winter season in the next few months. I felt a sense of gratitude for what the season will bring – Halloween, Thanksgiving, and Christmas. Halloween will be quiet here, but Jan and I are going to Florida for Thanksgiving, Jackie and the boys will be here for Christmas, and on January 3 we are flying out to Los Angeles for a few days with Ted and Sarah. That accumulation of experiences brings me a big serving of happy when I think of the opportunities before me.
On Tuesday I was walking out of the building where USCIS is located. At my side were two clients and we were all smiling like there was no tomorrow. We had just accomplished something life changing for them. As we were walking I stopped and declared, “I’m so happy for you that I can hardly stand it!”. We all paused together and had a group hug. My client is overjoyed because our next step is to bring her two sons here from the Philippines. Anyone walking past us would have felt the gratitude and anticipation emanating from the three of us.
Another time, in Santa Fe, I was driving down Cerillos Road which is not always the happiest road due to traffic. It was almost dusk and the sun was casting an orange glow on to the Sangre de Cristo mountains. I noticed that and felt a jolt of joy. “I get to live here and witness this!”, is what went through my mind. There were many occasions in Santa Fe where the very landscape made me feel blessed to be a part of it. And, like Dr. Holmes wrote, it often happened when least expected. I feel this same way at the edge of an ocean, or in the presence of the Grand Canyon, or in a gathering of good friends.
And as a reminder that we all will transition to the next holy place someday, yesterday two friends each lost their sisters. I learned that both women died peacefully, with family in attendance, and hospice for support. They each died in their own homes, the place they most wanted to be. One sister had fought cancer for 7 years, and the other sister’s body was just worn out and ready to go on to someplace different.
Thank you, Dr. Holmes, for writing words of wisdom and sharing them and reminding me that sacred spaces and sacred times will manifest even when I’m not paying attention.