John O'Donohue
Eternal Echoes
There were some things in the news this week that broke my heart and all of this news dealt with people who did not recognize the gift of life in themselves or others. My thought is that they have attempted to numb their hunger and now are being consumed by it. Belonging is a big thing and the hunger to belong is something that I imagine all of us experience at varying levels. The infinity that surrounds us sometimes seems like the only real thing that exists in the world. This can create feelings of isolation and longing. Belonging is a difficult awareness to hold. There are so many ways to belong as family, friend, employee, community member, student, citizen and human person...and so much more. Yet, even with all of these connections there are times that the sense of infinity creeps in and does become a threat. It is in those moments that we as humans stand on the edge of our existence. The temptation is to reject what we know in our relationship to the other. This can be detrimental and I imagine all of us have done it. And then there are those who are convinced they have no one, no place, or no moment that connects them to the rest of us. These are the extremes of knowing only the infinity and being caught in some nihilistic cycle. Tonight I pray for all of the people who are not aware of their belonging who only experience the vastness of their longing and are losing sight of, or have lost sight of their connections.
As a small child, I use to glance through the daily newspaper and put my eyes really close and see the mesh up of dots that composed comics illustrations. Feeling insignificant I often come back to this and search on my destiny in life. What am I meant to do, am I following HIS plan? The month of November, I have dedicated to do some soul searching to challenge myself to think beyond what is expected of me and discover my validity. How can my life become significant like the picture comprised of millions of dots? How and most importantly am I listening to my heart and the great spirt? Following his plan his confusing and often mis-interpeted but I feel through prayer and going with the flow to an extent will lead me to my destiny in life. I appreciate your blog and hope to hear more insight from you Sister Vicki. <3
ReplyDeleteAs I continue to be a part of many lives, I am grateful for an ever new sense of belonging to a bigger world. On Friday, I moved into a world long past and yet so intertwined with the history of a world gone mad. The woman who introduced me to this old world is named Sara and her story of isolation during the Nazi Presence is so powerful and her voice is still not silent. She spent years separated from family especially her children; her world became the camps that destroyed 40 million women, men, and children. Her question was how can God be a part of one and half million deaths of children who never had a chance to live life fully? We can attempt to answer with words. I believe the only way to answer is to continue to reach out and touch each person in loving compassion. We can hear others say that God wasn't responsible; that people of no presence-people who did not connect created such a hell. We need to look at how a lack of presence such as this gives birth to this type of violence. We say never again and yet the description of a world that chooses not to understand moves us to a lack of connection--a lack of presence. Thank you for moving us to a new place of connection and presence!
ReplyDeleteI try my best to live each day knowing that my thoughts, words, and actions reach beyond my own little world and have the power to inspire or destroy those around me. This week I will focus on reaching out my hand to someone who longs to belong.
ReplyDeleteNot sure how to respond to your comments, or if they need a response. If we are like the dots on the comic strip we see our significance in relation to the whole. If one dot is erased it may not be noticed by a reader, yet the vibrancy is lessened. Each dot contributes to the beauty of the piece. I hope November is a great month for experiencing our vibrancy and the necessary contribution we make to the whole. Thank you for sharing
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