The Ascending Path

PC: Aaron Springston

Today I took a friend to a pain clinic in a neighboring town. As I sat in the waiting room, I was morbidly fascinated by the people sharing their tales of pain and medical horror stories. I questioned those sitting closest to me. I asked them how long they’d been in pain, if they felt they would ever be pain free, what their future looked like to them. There was no hope in this room, at least none other than the hope that a new drug would be discovered to mask their torture. One thing I noticed about them was their sadness. It could be argued that their intense pain caused them to be sad. But I wondered if perhaps it was a circular feeling, and their sadness caused pain, and their pain fed their sadness, and on and on. This brief encounter caused me to see certain things from another perspective. I shall ponder this…

“Who that has felt the loss of human peace has not gained stronger desires for spiritual joy? The aspiration after heavenly good comes even before we discover what belongs to wisdom and Love. The loss of earthly hopes and pleasures brightens the ascending path of many a heart. The pains of sense quickly inform us that the pleasures of sense are mortal and that joy is spiritual.” Mary Baker Eddy - Science & Health Page 60: 24-28

Unseparated Idea

PC: Aaron Springston

You are the presence of God. Does this statement make you uneasy? Perhaps traditional theology has taught you that such an idea is sacrilege. Maybe you simply feel too inferior to accept yourself as Godlike. It's not so difficult to say that you are one with everything. We're happy to feel a connection with all things and often go on retreats and do workshops which help us feel this unity. But what does this thing called Oneness really mean? It could be taken wholly on a material basis, and you might say that we're all the same in our physical makeup of minerals and flesh, etc. You might be willing to go a step further and say we're all the same because God made us in Its image and likeness. Does it make you cringe to call God It rather than He? We're rather accustomed to anthropomorphizing God, making deity like us rather than the other way around. As we learn to accept and embrace our identity as the experience and expression of God, we learn we can proudly announce our goodness, our wholeness, even our perfection. This honors God and Its creation in a way that self-conscious deprecation or self-righteous pride cannot. What a beautiful day to explore what all this means in daily practice!

"God, without the image and likeness of Himself, would be a nonentity, or Mind unexpressed. He would be without a witness or proof of [Its] own nature. Spiritual man is the image or idea of God, an idea which cannot be lost nor separated from its divine Principle." Mary Baker Eddy - Science & Health Page 303:25-30

Listening

photo credit: Aaron Springston

Communications are a tricky thing. The practice of quieting the mind is integral to listening. I've found that when thought is jumping about, it's impossible to truly listen to anything. One thought leads to another, and before you know it, you've gone all around the world and have no idea what's happening right in front of you. By the same token, if I want to hear from the point of spiritual discernment, it's pretty darn hard to do if my own self won't be quiet long enough to concentrate on a simple sentence in a book. This is always a good indicator me: If I can't read and digest what I've read, then I'd best have a "time out" and quiet my monkey mind from its busy-ness! What a peaceful, harmonious world this will be when we all take time to quiet self-importance and listen for Self-knowledge.

"The point for each one to decide is, whether it is mortal mind or immortal Mind that is causative. We should forsake the basis of matter for metaphysical Science and its divine Principle." Mary Baker Eddy - Science & Health Page 195:11-14

Queen of the Sun

photo credit: Aaron Springston

At this time of the year, I love revisiting a documentary called “Queen of the Sun". In this film about bees, we are told that pollen is materialized light. I love that, don't you? When thought of like this, it seems possible that we, too, are materialized light. We're also shown that the bee's light is freed through blocks of honeycomb, beautifully shared with all as sweet, beautiful honey. And yet again, the light is freed in the goodness of beeswax candles. The freeing of light is cumulative with the bees, and we can experience the same thing as we unshackle the light and peace and joy within ourselves. Another lesson from the bees is the importance of community. Watching them working together for a common cause is uplifting and inspiring to me. It makes me want to join with my neighbors and do something important. But wait -- I'm doing that! What blesses one blesses all. My awakening to light and joy and peace is yours, too. Bees, people, trees -- as infinite ideas, we're all in this together!

“Light is a symbol of Mind, of Life, Truth, and Love, and not a vitalizing property of matter. Science reveals only one Mind, and this one shining by its own light and governing the universe, including man, in perfect harmony.." Mary Baker Eddy - Science & Health Page 510:27-1

A Union of Hearts

Ken and Sandy Starbird
photo credit: Judy Rhodes

I am told of a study about marriage which has ascertained that the young get married for sex and children; 30-50s (maybe older) people join together for help with a business or to pool resources for whatever reason. But elders marry for companionship. I find this interesting for many reasons! I’ve been married three times and I don’t think it was ever for the top reasons given in this study. I plan on marrying soon, for the final time, and we don’t fall into the category of  companionship seekers. We are both comfortable with ourselves, so much so that we plan to live in different states — but not different states of mind, and that’s what we find important. Words have always been more important to us than physical presence. We feel no separation. We are awakening to something new, fearlessly!

“Marriage should signify a union of hearts.” Mary Baker Eddy - Science & Health Page 64:17

Stretched Thought

I’ve been making it a point to hang out with people who are outside of my regular social circle. It’s easy to fall into the habit of establishing tribes who agree with our belief systems. We join churches because folks support us in our preconceived beliefs and further root us in those understandings. We may join a community choir for the love of singing, or a theater group to act. Many of the multitude of activities we participate in encourage our personal growth and foster new experiences; others cause us to be more deeply set in our ways. I love to participate in pods which do neither. Finding a group of people whose beliefs and understandings are as varied as our ages and clothing choices is a stimulating and freeing activity! This is one of the reasons I love the group of people who regularly play duplicate bridge in my area. My thought is stretched and amused in many ways by these folks. May we continue to enjoy the openness this activity fosters!

“…sacrifice is nowhere and love is everywhere. For communication embraces everything, and in the peace it re-establishes, love comes of itself.” A Course in Miracles Chapter 15 XI:7

Forgiven and Understood

"I can forgive but I'll never forget." How often have we heard those words? I think the realization that we're all doing the best we can in any given situation has been a freeing thought for me. Perhaps recognizing what is of value and what is valueless is a factor in forgiveness, also. Nothing is of value if it's changeable and transient. Reality is that which does not change. Nothing else truly matters. I spoke with a distant relative who told me she was so sad that I “hadn’t had a chance to forgive my parents before they died”. I had to laugh, because no blame leaves nothing to forgive!

“The real world is the state of mind in which the only purpose of the world is seen to be forgiveness. Fear is not its goal, for the escape from guilt becomes its aim. The value of forgiveness is perceived and takes the place of idols, which are sought no longer, for their ‘gifts’ are not held dear. No rules are idly set, and no demands are made of anyone or anything to twist and fit into the dream of fear. Instead, there is a wish to understand all things created as they really are. And it is recognized that all things must be first forgiven, and then understood.” A Course in Miracles Chapter 30:V:1