Beams of Love

And we are put on Earth a little space
That we may learn to bear the beams of love.

William Blake

LOVE is the gift of the Divine Universe. It patiently waits to be acknowledged and enjoyed.

It is the exquisite experience of being cared for, cherished, honored.

It is so MAGNIFICENT and BREATHTAKING that we may feel the angst of fear on some level and draw back from it...without even recognizing this shift. And, after having created this space, we may fill it with words and distractions which serve to separate us from this astonishing experience, to keep us protected by ego from the perceived possibility of being hurt or the disquieting sense that something this wonderful cannot be…or the feeling that we are not worthy or deserving of it.

But this magnificent gift IS the ENERGY of the universe…and we are worthy of it by reason of our existence. And we cannot escape it anyway for LOVE follows us everywhere, tapping us gently on the shoulder, awaiting our recognition and response…awaiting our SURRENDER.

We are here to find our way to LOVE…the receiving of it and the giving.

And it is the GIVING of LOVE that provides us with the courage to make the leap to RECEIVING it for when we give LOVE, we join with the universe in wanting and wishing only the best for each other.

If we look to the example of a person very dear to us whom we love and care for…we can recognize that we want this person to do what is best for himself…even if it is not what we prefer. LOVE prompts that understanding, that acceptance, that behavior in us. And the giving of that unconditional, unselfish LOVE brings us happiness and peace.

If we view this loved one as a microcosm of the world, it is clear that loving everyone is wanting everyone to do what feels best to him…as each individual navigates his life lessons and journey.

Ram Dass says LOVE is “your deeper heart, your intuitive heart. It is the place where the higher mind, pure awareness, the subtler emotions, and your soul identity all come together and connect you to the universe.”

And we are put on Earth a little space
That we may learn to bear the beams of love.

William Blake

Holding Space

The beginning of love is to let those we love be perfectly themselves, and not to twist them to fit our own image. Otherwise we love only the reflection of ourselves we find in them.

Thomas Merton

It seems so perfectly reasonable to want others to be like we are…to treat us the way we treat them, to see the world through our eyes, to react and respond in the ways we find most fitting. How comfortable that would be…How perfectly relaxing…How delightful not to ever have to deal with comments or with behavior that makes us feel uneasy.

The reason we interact with the world in the way we do is because our behavior is the product of our experiences. We have done some suffering and some learning and have come to some conclusions about the way we choose to live. And we are weary from the battle and desire to coexist peacefully with others in this very personal world we have created for ourselves.

The problem is that the same work we are doing for ourselves…that same task of making sense out of our lives and experiences and making mistakes and finding new ways of responding is also the work of every other human being. And we are, all of us, on our own journeys about how we learn the lessons and what directions the path we choose will take us. Thus, the great variety in human behavior.

It is so easy to question why someone can’t see what we see or do what we do…and to be annoyed and irritated by this. But if we expand our vision past the feeling of the moment, we can see the maze of life journeys unfolding and intersecting each other…each in its own rhythm and pace which may very well not be a match for ours.

If we look to the example of a person very dear to us whom we love and care for…we can probably recognize that we want this person to do what is best for him/herself…even if it is not what we prefer. Love prompts that understanding, that acceptance, that behavior in us. And, if we view this loved one as a microcosm of the world, it is clear that loving everyone is wanting everyone to do what feels best to them…as each individual navigates their life lessons and journeys…not on our time line and schedule but on theirs.

We HOLD SPACE for them while they do this and send our blessings. And when we hold space for another person, we support them but do not interfere with the work of their journey. We respect and honor others as they find their way and do not force them to behave as we would like them to. If we use the beautiful example of the way we, hopefully, treat someone we care for as a microcosm and extend it to the macrocosm of the world, we will be emitting a powerful and transforming message of LOVE as we send our blessings to every fellow inhabitant of this glorious universe.


Just as I choose to bring into my life
the experiences I desire,
I also practice
the Art of Allowing
and
HONOR THE PATHS of others.

Mystic Marks: Bookmarks for the Soul

Dancing With the Stars!

It’s Monday night, eight p.m. and the bouncy, brilliant theme song of Dancing With the Stars beams into the room! Die hard sports fan are busy with Monday Night Football but I’m ready for a lavish evening of musicality, costumes and lights. Once the dancing starts, my feet will not stand still. No matter what command I give them. Dancing with the Stars is talking to some primitive longing that cannot be denied in the human soul. A longing to move, to feel, to be completely engaged in the moment. And the dancers are expressing it with passion and artistry.

The background stories on the stars and professionals are so interesting and amazing. Jennifer Grey, who performed an intricate Argentine Tango last week with Derek Hough, suffered for years from a neck injury she got in a car accident. Now she wants to prove that she can do what she had never expected of herself. Florence Henderson, TV icon, has been glowing with delight at the sheer joy of being one of the dancers…her already huge eyes growing even bigger…revealing the intense drive of her spirit. Others have told stories of hardship and pain and frustration, sharing the extreme difficulties involved in practicing so many hours each day. But something is obviously driving them…To excel? To achieve their personal best? To let the soul shine? To be so absolutely lost in the moment? Whatever it is that propels them forward, it’s real and it’s palpable and it shows in everything they do.

And their passionate desire to dance, to compete, to reach for the stars is complemented so beautifully by the AFFECTION they always seem to develop for each other. They are thrilled when they perform brilliantly but they are also thrilled when their fellow dancers do so. They celebrate each other, supporting, praising and encouraging each individual. They hug one another during moments of triumph and despair. Notice their eyes and you will see a world in which people have CONNECTED with each other.

This is an assembly of individuals where all the performers are expressing their emotions (in one manner or another) and dancing their hearts out and encouraging and applauding each other. Watch the way this group swarms around the couple that has been eliminated at the end of the Results Show on Tuesday night. With warm and affectionate hugs. With a world of empathic emotions on their faces. They are a family of friends and they want the best for each other. A microcosm of a beautiful universe. The one we would all love to live in…where everyone is a part of the greater whole and knows it…embraces it…loves it.

When head judge Len Goodman announces at the beginning of the show, Live From Hollywood, maybe he’s really saying Live From A World To Come!