Soul Sunday

Good, serene morning to you. I’ve read about this poem in three different sources lately, so I took it as a sign to share it this Sunday, on the poetry day of the blog. Poems say so much more than what is on the page. This poem speaks of long lasting mature love. Wendell Berry captures it beautifully and succinctly in the poem below. (Write your own poem today and capture a little bit of the essence of your own soul. I assure you that you will be astonished by your soul’s beauty and clarity.)

The Blue Robe
By Wendell Berry

How joyful to be together, alone
as when we first were joined
in our little house by the river
long ago, except that now we know

each other, as we did not then;
and now instead of two stories fumbling
to meet, we belong to one story
that the two, joining, made. And now

we touch each other with the tenderness
of mortals, who know themselves:
how joyful to feel the heart quake

at the sight of a grandmother,
old friend in the morning light,
beautiful in her blue robe!

Are you passing on love or are you passing on pain? Heal your pain and pass on love.

Beautiful Mother Earth

Happy Earth Day! “Earth Day” and I were born in the same year – 1970, although the Earth, herself, is actually 4.543 billion years old. Damn, it sure took us a while to realize that maybe we should celebrate Earth, and to work on not taking her so much for granted (and we really are just at the beginning baby steps on that quest, aren’t we?). What do you love most about Mother Earth? Is it her endless gifts? Is it her awe-striking beauty? Is it her resilience? Is it her loyalty and steadfastness? Is it her ability to house and to feed a whole plethora of living beings? Is it her healthy, reliable relationship with the sun and the moon and the stars? If there was one utterly, genuine physical example of Shel Silverstein’s The Giving Tree, Mother Earth is the ultimate, in the “unconditional giving and loving” regard. On this day, and every day, dearest, most beautiful, most awe-striking, most loving, most nurturing, most hospitable Mother Earth, we humbly say thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you.

“We should honor Mother Earth with gratitude; otherwise our spirituality may become hypocritical.” – Radhanath Swami

“Treat the earth well: it was not given to you by your parents, it was loaned to you by your children. We do not inherit the Earth from our Ancestors, we borrow it from our Children.” – Native American Proverb

“Praised be You, my Lord, through our Sister, Mother Earth, who sustains and governs us, producing varied fruits with coloured flowers and herbs.” – Francis of Assisi

“When we recognize the virtues, the talent, the beauty of Mother Earth, something is born in us, some kind of connection, love is born.” – Thich Nhat Hanh

“How strange that nature does not knock, and yet does not intrude!” – Emily Dickinson

“We still do not know one thousandth of one percent of what nature has revealed to us.” – Albert Einstein

Lovely quote about the world for Earth Day

Are you passing on love or are you passing on pain? Heal your pain and pass on love.