Friday, April 25, 2014

Easter Sunday 2008, Soul Ablaze

He Qi
Easter Sunday
Mark 16: 1-18

And when the Sabbath was over, Mary Magdalene, Mary the mother of James, and Salome bought spices, so that they might go and anoint Him. And very early on the first day of the week, they went to the tomb just as the sun was rising. And they said to one another, “Who will roll away the stone for us from the door of the tomb?”
And looking up, they saw that the stone was rolled back—and it was very large. And they went into the tomb. There they saw a young man sitting on the right side, clad in a white robe; and they were beside themselves with amazement. And he said to them, “Do not be startled; you seek Jesus of Nazareth the Crucified One. He is risen; He is not here; see, there is the place where they laid Him [his body]. But go, and say to his disciples and Peter “He will lead you to Galilee. There you will see Him as He promised you.”
            And they went out and fled from the tomb in great haste, for trembling and astonishment had come upon them; and being awestruck, they were unable to say anything to anyone about what they had experienced.
When He had risen early on the first day of the week, He appeared first to Mary Magdalene from whom He had driven out seven demons. And she went and told those who had walked with Him, as they mourned and wept. But when they heard that He was alive and had been seen by her, their hearts could not grasp it.
After this He appeared in another form to two of them on the way as they were walking
He Qi
over the fields. And they went back and told the rest, but they could not open their hearts to their words either.
Afterwards He appeared to the eleven themselves as they were celebrating the meal. He reproached them for their lack of openness and for their hardness of heart, because they had not wanted to believe those who had seen Him, the Risen One.

And He said to them, “Go into all the world and proclaim the new message from the realm of the angels to the whole of creation. Whoever unites his heart with it  [believes] and is immersed in me [baptized] will attain the salvation. But whoever closes himself against it does not let the power of selflessness into his heart [does not let the power of My Self into his heart] will meet his downfall. And spiritual powers [these signs] will stand by those who unite themselves with it and will attend their path [believe]: Through the power of my being [in my name] they will drive out demons; they will speak a new language; serpents they will make upright, and poisons they are given to drink will not harm them. They will lay their hands on the sick, and give healing forces to them.

Easter Sunday
March 23, 2008
Mark 16: 1-18

When we walk out of a dark space into a bright one, the light can be dazzling. For a while we cannot see. We are unable to orient ourselves. It takes a bit for things to clarify and to emerge from the light.

During Holy Week we moved within a cold darkness, in the blackness and loss of the season’s inner space. And suddenly, overnight, everything has changed to brightness and a perplexing joy. We are like the women moving in the dark toward sunrise; the women in a dark sepulchral cave and seeing dazzling forms, hearing incomprehensible words—He is not here; He is risen. He will lead you to Galilee. There you will see Him.

It takes a while to adjust. And an even longer time to understand, to grasp that He who was lost to us has turned up alive and more than well; and furthermore, different. The mind cannot grasp it. But something has changed.

The animal of the body is quicker to apprehend. Its heart beats in jubilation; every breath is comfort and joy. For heart and breath have already been reunited with the Beloved. The mind is slow; the senses slower yet. But heart, blood and breath have changed. For something in the light is different; Someone is living now in light and air. The soul’s doors and windows have been thrown open, and life and light and warmth come streaming in.

One of the saints has tried to describe it:

I saw a fullness and a singeing

brightness with which I then
felt myself so filled
that words now fail to serve….
I would not say I saw a bodily form
but he was as he is in [the] heaven[s]
which is to say, of such exquisite
beauty that I have no means
to speak of it, save to say
He is the Beauty, the All Good
š
Unfailingly I knew that it was Christ
who warmed me, for nothing sets the soul ablaze
As when Christ has entered it and charms it
with His love.
š
The embrace of God puts fire to the soul….
The effect of this fire in the soul is to render it
certain and secure that Christ is there within it.[1]

This fire of love is ignited in the soul by Christ in us, He who lives in our life, whose light is in our daylight. The fire of His love is a fire of offering, a mysterious fire that does not consume, but creates—more light, more life, more love.

www.thechristiancommunity.org.





[1] Blessed Angela of Foligno (1248 – 1309), in Love’s Immensity, Scott Cairns, p. 86 (“His Entry and Delight”), p. 87 (“A Vision”), and p. 88 (“His Blazing Embrace”).

Thursday, April 24, 2014

Easter Sunday 2009, Quickening of Breath

Easter Sunday
Mileseva Monastery
Mark 16: 1-18

And when the Sabbath was over, Mary Magdalene, Mary the mother of James, and Salome bought spices, so that they might go and anoint Him. And very early on the first day of the week, they went to the tomb just as the sun was rising. And they said to one another, “Who will roll away the stone for us from the door of the tomb?”
And looking up, they saw that the stone was rolled back—and it was very large. And they went into the tomb. There they saw a young man sitting on the right side, clad in a white robe; and they were beside themselves with amazement. And he said to them, “Do not be startled; you seek Jesus of Nazareth the Crucified One. He is risen; He is not here; see, there is the place where they laid Him [his body]. But go, and say to his disciples and Peter “He will lead you to Galilee. There you will see Him as He promised you.”
            And they went out and fled from the tomb in great haste, for trembling and astonishment had come upon them; and being awestruck, they were unable to say anything to anyone about what they had experienced.
When He had risen early on the first day of the week, He appeared first to Mary Magdalene from whom He had driven out seven demons. And she went and told those who had walked with Him, as they mourned and wept. But when they heard that He was alive and had been seen by her, their hearts could not grasp it.
After this He appeared in another form to two of them on the way as they were walking over the fields. And they went back and told the rest, but they could not open their hearts to their words either.
Afterwards He appeared to the eleven themselves as they were celebrating the meal. He reproached them for their lack of openness and for their hardness of heart, because they had not wanted to believe those who had seen Him, the Risen One.

And He said to them, “Go into all the world and proclaim the new
He Qi
message from the realm of the angels to the whole of creation. Whoever unites his heart with it  [believes] and is immersed in me [baptized] will attain the salvation. But whoever closes himself against it does not let the power of selflessness into his heart [does not let the power of My Self into his heart] will meet his downfall. And spiritual powers [these signs] will stand by those who unite themselves with it and will attend their path [believe]: Through the power of my being [in my name] they will drive out demons; they will speak a new language; serpents they will make upright, and poisons they are given to drink will not harm them. They will lay their hands on the sick, and give healing forces to them.

Easter Sunday
April 12, 2009
Mark 16: 1 – 18

Three women approach a cave-like tomb. They expect a heavy stone barrier. Instead they find the stone removed. Instead of silence, they hear words. Instead of the dead, the see a young man clad in shining white.

He gives them two messages: Jesus of Nazareth is not in this tomb—see for your selves. Furthermore, tell his followers that He will lead them to the rich paradisal beauty of Galilee.

In recent weeks, the seasonal prayer spoke of the place of the heart being empty. We could imagine the scene at the tomb being replayed today. But instead of an outer cave, it is the interior space, the heart-space in which it takes place. Those three coming to grieve and minister are our own thoughts, our feelings, our desire to act. We expect to encounter a heavy darkness in the heart-space; but instead we find that what once was, is no more. Instead of sad silence, we find heart’s pounding, a quickening of breath. Suddenly it is light again.

For Someone in our heart is whispering poet-words to us:

I arise today
Burne-Jones

Blessed by all things
Wings of breath
Delight of eyes
Wonder of whisper
Intimacy of touch
Eternity of soul
Urgency of thought
Miracle of health
Embrace of God….[1]

The stone barrier has been removed. He who died lives, and walks our lives’ paths ahead of us. May we live this day.






[1] John O’Donohue, “Matins II”, in Eternal Echoes

Wednesday, April 23, 2014

Easter Sunday 2010, Essence of Life

Easter Sunday
Mark 16: 1-18

And when the Sabbath was over, Mary Magdalene, Mary the mother of James, and Salome bought spices, so that they might go and anoint Him. And very early on the first day of the week, they went to the tomb just as the sun was rising. And they said to one another, “Who will roll away the stone for us from the door of the tomb?”
Benjamin Gerritz
And looking up, they saw that the stone was rolled back—and it was very large. And they went into the tomb. There they saw a young man sitting on the right side, clad in a white robe; and they were beside themselves with amazement. And he said to them, “Do not be startled; you seek Jesus of Nazareth the Crucified One. He is risen; He is not here; see, there is the place where they laid Him [his body]. But go, and say to his disciples and Peter “He will lead you to Galilee. There you will see Him as He promised you.”
            And they went out and fled from the tomb in great haste, for trembling and astonishment had come upon them; and being awestruck, they were unable to say anything to anyone about what they had experienced.
When He had risen early on the first day of the week, He appeared first to Mary Magdalene from whom He had driven out seven demons. And she went and told those who had walked with Him, as they mourned and wept. But when they heard that He was alive and had been seen by her, their hearts could not grasp it.
After this He appeared in another form to two of them on the way as they were walking over the fields. And they went back and told the rest, but they could not open their hearts to their words either.
Afterwards He appeared to the eleven themselves as they were celebrating the meal. He reproached them for their lack of openness and for their hardness of heart, because they had not wanted to believe those who had seen Him, the Risen One.

And He said to them, “Go into all the world and proclaim the new message from the realm of the angels to the whole of creation. Whoever unites his heart with it  [believes] and is immersed in me [baptized] will attain the salvation. But whoever closes himself against it does not let the power of selflessness into his heart [does not let the power of My Self into his heart] will meet his downfall. And spiritual powers [these signs] will stand by those who unite themselves with it and will attend their path [believe]: Through the power of my being [in my name] they will drive out demons; they will speak a new language; serpents they will make upright, and poisons they are given to drink will not harm them. They will lay their hands on the sick, and give healing forces to them.


Easter Sunday
Dore
April 4, 2010
Mark 16:1 – 18


Human perception is a complicated thing. Sometimes we can see a thing and not recognize it at all. Sometimes our expectations prevent us from taking in what is actually there. And sometimes we see things that seem to make no sense at all.

The women go sadly to the tomb, expecting to meet with the usual results of death. Instead they are startled to meet a very much alive young man in white. He speaks calming words to them. He knows that they have come to anoint the corpse of Jesus, who had undergone torture and execution. Contrary to their expectation, the young man assures them that the bodily Jesus they are expecting to find is not there—they can see for themselves that the grave is empty. He says that Jesus is risen. Empty grave. Risen? What could that possibly mean? They are astonished, confused and speechless.

And so are the other disciples when they hear the story, despite multiple reports. It is an event so radically new in human history that it was at first imperceptible, ungraspable, unbelievable, as it continues to be today. Perhaps there are other ways of perceiving truth, besides sensory perception and thought. Perhaps an open heart is a better organ for perceiving some things than the mind is.

At the first Easter, the living essence of Life itself entered the realm of death, and remained there, itself alive. Since that time, Death the Spectre holds in its arms a secret. In the bosom of death there shines the young man in white, radiantly joyful. The young man now occupies the once empty void at the center of death. The young man is the picture of death’s now living heart.  Death is no longer a stopping place, a dead end. The young man in death’s heart points out the way further.

Go, he says, walk toward the sun-drenched regions of living light. There you will see Him who wrestled with death and filled it with Life. There you will behold Him, the powerful healer and giver of grace. You will find Him at the heart’s altar. There you will behold the One who is the meaning of the earth.

www.thechristiancommunity.org 


Tuesday, April 22, 2014

2nd Easter 2011, Inspired

2nd Easter
John 20: 19-29

On the evening of the first day after the Sabbath, the disciples were together with the doors locked for fear of the authorities. Jesus came and stood in their midst and said,
“Peace be with you!”
And while he said this, he showed them his hands and his side.
Full of joy the disciples recognized the Lord. And again he said, “Peace be with you. As the Father has sent me, so I am sending you.”
And when he said this, he breathed on them and said, “Receive Holy Spirit through which the world will receive healing. From now on you shall work in human destinies with spiritual power, so that they shall have the strength to wrest themselves free from the load of sin, and at the same time to bear the consequences of their offences.”
Now Thomas, one of the twelve, called the Twin, was not there with them when Jesus came. Later the disciples said to him, “We have seen the Lord.”
But he replied, “If I do not see in his hand the marks of the nails, and do not put my finger in the place where the nails were, and place my hand in his side, I cannot believe it.”
Eight days later, the disciples were again gathered in the inner room and Thomas was with them. Though the doors were locked, Jesus came and stood in their midst and said, “Peace be with you.”
Then he said to Thomas, “Stretch out your finger and see my hands, and stretch out your hand and put it into my side. Be not rigid in your heart, but rather feel and trust in my power in your heart.”
Then Thomas said to him, “You are the Lord of my soul; you are the God whom I serve.”
And Jesus said to him, “Have you found my power in yourself because you have seen me? Blessed are those who find my power in their hearts, even when their eye does not yet see me.”

2nd Easter

May 1, 2011
John 20: 19-29

Our breathing is a two-sided process. With each in-breath, we take in something of the world. And with each exhalation, we breathe something of ourselves out into the world. But modern life, with its stresses and anxieties, makes our breathing too shallow—we often take in too little, give out too little of ourselves.

In today’s reading, the disciples are locked in a room together for fear of what the world may do to them. Christ enters this anxious space and He breathes onto them and asks them to receive His breath. He wants to breathe into them His holy, healing spirit-breath. He wants to fill their lungs with His life, fill their souls with His peaceful courage, and His love. He wants to breathe into them His power to overcome. They will inhale His breath, the fresh breath of spring and new life, His resuscitating power. They in turn will be able to breathe His healing spirit out into the world. They will breathe out peace and love, courage, strength and comfort.

We too have the opportunity to be breathed into, to be ‘inspired’, by Christ. We have come together in a room into which we invite His spirit. We ask that His grace-bearing spirit breathe down onto us, into us, as we breathe out the offering of our souls’ devotion. We receive His peace, along with the bread and wine of His transformed body. Bread and wine become for us the touchstone of His transforming power. Like Thomas we will be able to say to Him, ‘You are the Lord of my soul; you are the God whom I serve.’






Easter Sunday 2011, Sun Bird

Easter Sunday
Mark 16: 1-18

And when the Sabbath was over, Mary Magdalene, Mary the mother of James, and Salome bought spices, so that they might go and anoint Him. And very early on the first day of the week, they went to the tomb just as the sun was rising. And they said to one another, “Who will roll away the stone for us from the door of the tomb?”
And looking up, they saw that the stone was rolled back—and it was very large. And they went into the tomb. There they saw a young man sitting on the right side, clad in a white robe; and they were beside themselves with amazement. And he said to them, “Do not be startled; you seek Jesus of Nazareth the Crucified One. He is risen; He is not here; see, there is the place where they laid Him [his body]. But go, and say to his disciples and Peter “He will lead you to Galilee. There you will see Him as He promised you.”
            And they went out and fled from the tomb in great haste, for trembling and astonishment had come upon them; and being awestruck, they were unable to say anything to anyone about what they had experienced.
Rembrandt
When He had risen early on the first day of the week, He appeared first to Mary Magdalene from whom He had driven out seven demons. And she went and told those who had walked with Him, as they mourned and wept. But when they heard that He was alive and had been seen by her, their hearts could not grasp it.
After this He appeared in another form to two of them on the way as they were walking over the fields. And they went back and told the rest, but they could not open their hearts to their words either.
Afterwards He appeared to the eleven themselves as they were celebrating the meal. He reproached them for their lack of openness and for their hardness of heart, because they had not wanted to believe those who had seen Him, the Risen One.

And He said to them, “Go into all the world and proclaim the new message from the realm of the angels to the whole of creation. Whoever unites his heart with it  [believes] and is immersed in me [baptized] will attain the salvation. But whoever closes himself against it does not let the power of selflessness into his heart [does not let the power of My Self into his heart] will meet his downfall. And spiritual powers [these signs] will stand by those who unite themselves with it and will attend their path [believe]: Through the power of my being [in my name] they will drive out demons; they will speak a new language; serpents they will make upright, and poisons they are given to drink will not harm them. They will lay their hands on the sick, and give healing forces to them.

Easter Sunday
April 24, 2011
Mark 16: 1 – 18

Many ancient mythologies tell of a bird of great beauty, with colored plumage
of red and gold. It first appeared on the primeval mound that rose from the watery chaos at the first creation. It first cry, so melodious that the rising sun stops to listen—marks the beginning of time and its rhythmic division into hours, days, weeks, years. It lives on the dew.

This bird has a very long lifespan, some say 500, some say 1,000 years. As the end of its life approaches, the bird builds a pyre nest of the branches of aromatic trees, like the healing myrrh. It sets it afire and is consumed. After three days there arises a young bird, who gathers the ashes of the nest, which was both sepulcher and cradle, and forms them into an egg of myrrh. It takes this egg to the city of the sun and deposits it on the altar of the Sun God, thus ushering in a new phase out of its own life.

The Sun Bird is the image for Christ, the Sun Spirit and the creator of time. He lives on the dew of His Father’s will. He rises anew after His life is consumed with love for humanity. In the grave, like the Sun Bird, He creates a new form out of the ashes of the old. As the young man at the tomb told the women: He is risen; His body is not here—see the place where they laid Him.’ (Mark 16:6) When two of his disciples are walking across the field, they are overtaken by Him, unrecognized. The three of them discuss what had just taken place, and how this all fitted in with the scriptural prophecies. Afterward, they finally realized with Whom they had been, and they say, ‘Did our hearts not already burn within us as He spoke to us on the way?” (Luke 24:13, ff.)

Because Christ is also eternal, from beyond time, everything He did in His human life and death is still ongoing. His descent into the depths of earthly existence, in life and in death, means that these are the very places we can always find Him. He walks with us through all our greater and lesser deaths.
He is also always here in the very depths of our own being, in the deepest core of our heart, with His power to renew. He lives in us as the firebird, the force that consumes and un-forms the old when its time is past. And He is the phoenix force that helps us re-form ourselves anew out of the ashes.

The grave is empty; the heart is full. For Christ has entered the very pulse of our life. The earth is living in the sun’s spirit-radiant power. For it, along with us, has been placed on the altar of the Sun-God.

www.thechristiancommunity.org

Monday, April 21, 2014

Easter Sunday 2012, Breath is Resurrection

Wolfhugel
Easter Sunday
Mark 16: 1-18

And when the Sabbath was over, Mary Magdalene, Mary the mother of James, and Salome bought spices, so that they might go and anoint Him. And very early on the first day of the week, they went to the tomb just as the sun was rising. And they said to one another, “Who will roll away the stone for us from the door of the tomb?”
And looking up, they saw that the stone was rolled back—and it was very large. And they went into the tomb. There they saw a young man sitting on the right side, clad in a white robe; and they were beside themselves with amazement. And he said to them, “Do not be startled; you seek Jesus of Nazareth the Crucified One. He is risen; He is not here; see, there is the place where they laid Him [his body]. But go, and say to his disciples and Peter “He will lead you to Galilee. There you will see Him as He promised you.”
            And they went out and fled from the tomb in great haste, for trembling and astonishment had come upon them; and being awestruck, they were unable to say anything to anyone about what they had experienced.
When He had risen early on the first day of the week, He appeared first to Mary Magdalene from whom He had driven out seven demons. And she went and told those who had walked with Him, as they mourned and wept. But when they heard that He was alive and had been seen by her, their hearts could not grasp it.
After this He appeared in another form to two of them on the way as
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they were walking over the fields. And they went back and told the rest, but they could not open their hearts to their words either.
Afterwards He appeared to the eleven themselves as they were celebrating the meal. He reproached them for their lack of openness and for their hardness of heart, because they had not wanted to believe those who had seen Him, the Risen One.
And He said to them, “Go into all the world and proclaim the new message from the realm of the angels to the whole of creation. Whoever unites his heart with it  [believes] and is immersed in me [baptized] will attain the salvation. But whoever closes himself against it does not let the power of selflessness into his heart [does not let the power of My Self into his heart] will meet his downfall. And spiritual powers [these signs] will stand by those who unite themselves with it and will attend their path [believe]: Through the power of my being [in my name] they will drive out demons; they will speak a new language; serpents they will make upright, and poisons they are given to drink will not harm them. They will lay their hands on the sick, and give healing forces to them.

Easter Sunday
April 8, 2012
Mark 16:1-18

The heart is a house with many chambers and many doors. With each beat, doors open and doors close, letting in enlivened blood from the breath, and sending the spent to be renewed. Our heart is also the place where our souls and spirits reside. And the soul’s chambers also have doors.

Three days after his death, Christ appears in various unfamiliar ways to those who love Him. To the women at the tomb, He is a young man in white; to Mary Magdalene He seems to be a gardener until He calls her by name. The two on the way to Emmaus don’t recognize Him until He breaks bread. ‘Did our hearts not burn within us as he was speaking?’ they say. Yet even some of his devoted followers cannot open the soul door of their hearts to the possibility that He lives. When finally they all experience Him together, He chides them for their close-heartedness.

Collot d' Herbois
Christ is the being of Love. He says to them, to us—whoever unites his heart with the new message of Life, whoever is immersed in Me, in Love, will be healed of the rift between God and the human.

Our hearts are the key. They are the place where Love would dwell. The Sunday Service for the Children says that although Christ died, He, Love, becomes alive in the hearts of those who make room for Him there.

Every Easter His love is renewed in us. His warmth changes our heartbeat into jubilating, healing power. ‘See’, He says, ‘Here I am. I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door [of the heart] I will come in and share the holy meal with them and they with me.’ Rev 3:20 So rejoice and open. As the poet says:

Every breath is a resurrection.
…We're reborn in all the sacred parts
Of our own bodies:
the heart
… the brain
Releases its shower
Of sparks,
and the tear
Embarks on its pilgrimage
Down the cheek to meet
The smiling mouth.[1]





[1] ~ Gregory Orr ~ “Resurrection”, in Concerning the Book that is the Body of the Beloved

Sunday, April 20, 2014

Easter 2014, Beauty by Beauty


Easter Sunday
Mark 16: 1-18

And when the Sabbath was over, Mary Magdalene, Mary the mother of James, and Salome bought spices, so that they might go and anoint Him. And very early on the first day of the week, they went to the tomb just as the sun was rising. And they said to one another, “Who will roll away the stone for us from the door of the tomb?”
And looking up, they saw that the stone was rolled back—and it was very large. And they went into the tomb. There they saw a young man sitting on the right side, clad in a white robe; and they were beside themselves with amazement. And he said to them, “Do not be startled; you seek Jesus of Nazareth the Crucified One. He is risen; He is not here; see, there is the place where they laid Him [his body]. But go, and say to his disciples and Peter “He will lead you to Galilee. There you will see Him as He promised you.”
            And they went out and fled from the tomb in great haste, for trembling and astonishment had come upon them; and being awestruck, they were unable to say anything to anyone about what they had experienced.
When He had risen early on the first day of the week, He appeared first to Mary Magdalene from whom He had driven out seven demons. And she went and told those who had walked with Him, as they mourned and wept. But when they heard that He was alive and had been seen by her, their hearts could not grasp it.
After this He appeared in another form to two of them on the way as they were walking over the fields. And they went back and told the rest, but they could not open their hearts to their words either.
Afterwards He appeared to the eleven themselves as they were celebrating the meal. He reproached them for their lack of openness and for their hardness of heart, because they had not wanted to believe those who had seen Him, the Risen One.
And He said to them, “Go into all the world and proclaim the new message from the realm of the angels to the whole of creation. Whoever unites his heart with it  [believes] and is immersed in me [baptized] will attain the salvation. But whoever closes himself against it does not let the power of selflessness into his heart [does not let the power of My Self into his heart] will meet his downfall. And spiritual powers [these signs] will stand by those who unite themselves with it and will attend their path [believe]: Through the power of my being [in my name] they will drive out demons; they will speak a new language; serpents they will make upright, and poisons they are given to drink will not harm them. They will lay their hands on the sick, and give healing forces to them.

Easter Sunday
April 20, 2014
Mark 16; 1-18

Today the world begins anew. The old ways have died. Some of them may even have been beloved, and we still grieve their passing. Yet the new ways are rising. We may not yet be able to see where they are leading.  At first, in the brightness of dawn, their forms are difficult to make out; for at dawn, a path is often covered in mist, still partially hidden in darkness. But over time the new path will reveal itself; the goal will appear more and more distinct, more and more real. And with courage and joy we will step forth on the journey, the journey towards our true humanity.

For what Christ has given to us this day is—ourselves. He has given us back the possibility to become what the Father intended us to be: designed in His image, according to His beauteous likeness. Now, over lifetimes we can walk the path toward the goal of our true being.  Today we can begin again. In the words of the poet:

The red dawn now is rearranging the earth
Grunewald

Thought by thought
Beauty by beauty

Each sunrise a link in the ladder

Thought by thought
Beauty by beauty

The ladder the backbone
Of shimmering deity

Thought by thought
Beauty by beauty

Child stirring in the web of your mother
Do not be afraid
Old man turning to walk through the door
Do not be afraid[1]






[1] Joy Harjo,  “MORNING SONG”, from How We became Human