#MicroPoetry|October ’23 Reflections

In these divisive times, when some leaders divert attention from the pressing challenges by sowing polarisation and putting rights in conflict, oppressing the marginalised, and favouring the privileged few, it’s all too simple to succumb to despondency. We risk forgetting the broader sweep of history.

Each of us bears the influence of courageous choices made by both well-known and unsung ancestors who rejected distractions and hatred. Instead, they responded with self-sacrifice and solidarity. Take heart, dear friends, for we hail from a lineage of Saints who recognised that the universality of love points to an ever-evolving and sweepingly-inclusive Covenant …

Time always dances between ease and turmoil, happiness and sorrow. This is an inherent reality of life’s unfolding. What we choose to do, upon which to focus on this unfolding continuum helps us see hope or despair, possibilities or obstacles.

Recognising this is not to deny suffering and pain, but it is a reminder that we all long for peace, not war, embrace, not assault. This universal desire is, I suggest, an ultimate reality to which we not only aspire, but are intended to actively create.

There are many helpful and important conversation about how we support the next generation. Often, they include references to nurture or nature. Specifically, whether who we shall become is influenced by the environment into which we are born or the manner in which we are reared. I suggest it includes both. Ultimately, and not to dismiss the import of whether we are nurtured well in affirming contexts, it is what we choose and how we respond to life’s ups and downs that significantly influences our trajectory.

For those committed to the spiritual journey, a consistent message emerges: the intention we infuse into our disciplines gradually, or suddenly, reveals profound truths brimming with both beauty and challenge. Among the diverse paths to enlightenment, I’ve encountered a common revelation: the divisions we maintain, be it through creed or faith, race or gender, sexuality or class, are all artificial constructs unsupported by the wisdom’s whisper of wisdom or silence’s soliloquy. When this awakening dawns, our human-made illusions swiftly crumble, revealing the interconnectedness of “me in you” and “you in me.”

Human nature can lead us to prefer peace when others resemble us in various ways. This preference for similarity is a topic explored by academics and spiritual thinkers alike, highlighting the tension it presents within one’s faith journey. The path of faith frequently teaches that genuine well-being and peace do not come from forcing others to conform through coercion or violence, but rather from listening attentively. Wisdom often emerges from this discipline, guiding us to assist our neighbours in thriving peacefully within our diverse community, celebrating the divine differences that make us unique.

Do not listen to the lull of the mundane.
Do not adhere to precepts that numb.
Do not believe there is nothing marvellous or wonder-filled.

Channel the child within you and remember.
Remember worlds you created.
Clouds upon which you flew.
Adventures that surpassed what a boxed tube might tell.
Channel the child within and in reknitting yourself with imagination, so miracles we rekindle!

There is a weight to our living in these days in which much feels like it is unravelling. We are witnessing suffering, whether our own or others, and it is hard. By naming this, we are empowered to choose how we might respond, what me might learn, and what we might do.

Whatever wisdom might be revealed in our choices, it does not detract from the suffering in our midst. Whatever we learn, will not diminish struggles. In the dawning of holding such tensions, hope blooms as a maturing sense that we are not alone. When we are offered caring hands, outstretched by the Other, our shared humanity is reflected.

In our bureaucratic world, where rules often govern our actions and unfortunately divide us, it’s tempting to fall into the belief that freedom and liberty are mere empty words used to give the illusion of agency. One common temptation in this environment is to slide into cynicism and, ultimately, apathy.

However, this doesn’t align with the greater narrative we see unfolding in the Universe. Time, as we perceive it, weaves stories of turmoil and chaos, where some things break apart, and others explode into existence. As we gaze back through the Universe’s story, we realise that it’s not about things coming to an end. Instead, they merge into a tapestry of enduring beauty within an ever-changing context. In the language of the Mystics’, we can recognise that what truly endures is Love.