Tag: spiritual journey
The Remedy
When in isolation,
and the feeling of it overwhelms,
remember the love within you.
Look to your heart and
the fullness there, the fullness that
swells with your sweet attention to it.
You are not alone.
You are the branch which stretches and shades from
every tree you have ever sat under.
You are the sea spray that has kissed your face
from every stroll on the beach.
You are the joy of your beloved pet who
always blesses you with pure affection.
You are the song that the morning bird sings.
You are even the touch of every hand held and
every embrace shared.
Every heart contains these wonders
for they have been memorized within
its secret and divine chambers.
Therefore, your heart is the keeper
and she waits for you.
Learning to trust her
allows you to relax into your life
and glow as designed to do so
no matter what is happening outside of you.
Those who know this, know how
to live from the inside.
They know how to touch God.
It is that simple.
The Presence lives in you, so
you are not alone.
Copyright© Cynthia Cady Stanton, April 2020, During the Covid 19 Pandemic
I am as sure as I live that nothing is so near to me as God. God is nearer to me than I am to myself; my existence depends on the nearness and presence of God. – Meister Eckhart
First Draft
This is not a good poem.
I can’t seem to find my voice –
It is missing among the tangle
in my heart.
I keep digging in the bramble
and coming up empty.
I invite her back
and tell her I miss her soothing tones
which lift and heal.
I miss her guidance.
I know this is an important time –
a time when the losses are dramatic and scary
and a deeper knowing
is required.
I have been preparing for this moment
as have you.
Life has brought us here together.
We have certainly hit the brambles before.
And we have made it through…
But this time I find myself speechless.
The brambles are thick and unrelenting,
paralyzing expression.
It seems a moment
when words cannot dare to speak
what the heart cannot sort
or feel.
It is a time
to nurture the silence.
It needs space right now.
The words can rest
until they know what to say.
Copyright© Cynthia Cady Stanton, April 10, 2020
Covid 19 Pandemic
Home
My heart is at a loss as it
searches for a home –
even as I sit here, even as I sit here in
the comfort of this place.
My heart is at a loss as it
reaches for a peace –
a peace that calms my restless soul, a soul
that cannot settle in this mess.
My heart is at a loss as it
feels strangled by new limits,
limits that are new and have descended in a
tidal wave, a wave that overwhelms me.
My heart is at a loss as it dreams of
better days, as it dreams of better days filled with
comfort and touch, the touch that heals and soothes,
and plays with long-lost freedom.
This is the home I am in, a home that
holds the fears and worries, a home
that keeps me safe from harm, still. Though my heart is
a tangle which longs to loosen, it is my home, it
is my home.
Copyright© Cynthia Cady Stanton, March, 2020
Be You
There are examples everywhere…
The petals of the flower
unfold with grace
and without struggle.
The dog wags his tail
without question
or worry about how silly he may appear.
The cloud floats
across a big sky –
allowing the breezes to direct it.
The waves surge –
rising and falling
to a mysterious rhythm and song
and changes as necessary.
So, what is this angst
that pulls at you,
fooling you into thinking
that there is something wrong?
Look at the path ahead.
It unwinds without effort.
You need not know where it leads.
It matters not
how your path differs
from the one next to you.
This is your path.
Feel the ground under you.
Walk.
Copyright© Cynthia Cady Stanton, 2020
What Lies Beneath
The deeper I go
into understanding all
that is,
the more
I appreciate this
gift of life.
Working with the dying
is a visual lesson
of the peeling away of
the layers.
It is also a heart lesson.
For when the exterior is finished,
what is left?
This is the ever-present question.
To live from heart and soul,
and to avoid the outward distractions,
means to leave
your presence and love behind
when the body is gone.
So, I am learning the lessons
of letting go now.
I let go of everything
that is not connected to Truth and Love.
Because when my body is gone,
I want those who knew me
to know that my love was real
and that I lived with an open
and generous heart.
For it is the Love that lies beneath
that lingers after we leave.
This is the miracle of
eternal life.
We live on in the hearts of others
and in the memory of time.
Copyright© Cynthia Cady Stanton, 2019
The Nub of It All
You will not find your way through a constant push. You will not reach your perceived pinnacle by force of will or never-ending trying. Believe it or not, the struggle is not necessary. In fact, it is harmful. For the more you exert against your imagined challenges, the farther away from presence you are. So, drop it all. Let go of your effortful ways. Open your eyes and look upon yourself as if you are separate from who you are in the world…because, in fact, you are. And as you look, don’t you dare be harsh. For there is no judgment here. We are all given this chance to learn to correct ourselves and embrace a larger belonging. We are born infants in a world which leads us astray from the truth of who we really are. Only those who catch glimpses of this reality are able to wake up and be free. So, get curious about how you move through your day. Keep a watchful eye as to your habits and reactions – your feelings. Look within at your thoughts and the movement of your heart. Listen to your life. Observe how the world works and interacts but keep a larger view. Pay attention and open your heart and mind to inspiration. Take pauses. Be receptive to your learning. Eventually, the gift of freedom and unimaginable presence will bubble up within you, lifting you up and out of your misdirected ways, and bring you a sparkling and sustainable joy along with all the energy you need to do the work you are here to do. You will learn what love really is and how to extend it and embrace it. It is really that simple. You just get out of your own way. You learn to be.
Copyright© Cynthia Cady Stanton, 2019
Entering the New
Mosaic Moments
Transitions increase a felt wistfulness.
We look back
and long for
what worked before.
Those pieces of us that
like routine and
the comfort of the predictable –
well, those parts feel sharp
in such seasons –
the edges hurt.
And yet, there is the buzz –
the bubbling energy of the new,
of possibility.
There are new faces to greet,
new tasks to learn and
fresh ways to open the heart
and to be.
Life is
as life does-
and its mysteries inspire and instruct.
Its best when
there is a mix of things
for the creative touch of God is genius
and multi-dimensional.
So, even when loss
is the larger piece at the time,
there will always be the sparkle
and felt presence
of grace, of love … even joy.
When awake,
we can wonder at and
give thanks for
the whole design of it all.
We see our piece in the creation.
Copyright© Cynthia Cady Stanton, 2019
Gratitude for Anne Lamott and her coining of the term, “mosaic moments” in her recent book, Almost Everything.
Homecoming
When walking next to the shore,
take in the salted air.
It tastes like your tears.
When walking next to the shore,
listen to the music of the surf.
It is the soundtrack of the movement in your heart.
When walking next to the shore,
watch the swoop and dance of the Plover birds.
They effortlessly play in the waves,
undaunted by the constant changes beneath their tiny feet.
Witness the lesson.
A walk by the ocean
is always a homecoming.
The whispers heard soothe the soul.
The sprays felt baptize us anew.
We are reminded that
sometimes we need to get wet
to begin again.
So take a walk on the beach.
Hear the invitation of its dynamic landscape:
Let’s be the ocean together.
Copyright© Cynthia Cady Stanton, 2019
You are not a drop in the ocean. You are the entire ocean in a drop. – Rumi
