The Universe is Unfolding as It Should…

One Saturday after a really bad week, I found myself walking in the park, then around my neighborhood and finally sat down to find that I was facing a poem (below) by Max Ehrmann. It was a part of a mural. (I am beginning to believe more and more each day that in life there are no coincidences.) As I sat facing the words on the wall, I read them over and over again. Nothing was more fitting to provide comfort to me.

Today I did not walk in the park, nor walked in my neighborhood. In fact I have completed a lot less than I thought that I would before I started my vacation last week. As I was beginning to beat myself up about what I didn’t do, this poem came to me just like it did some weeks ago. “Go placidly among the noise and haste.” Let go and open yourself up to something bigger than what is on a list.” Remember what peace there is in silence.” “Remember what peace there is in silence.”

Desiderata

    – Max Ehrmann

Go placidly amid the noise and haste, and remember what peace there may be in silence.
As far as possible, without surrender, be on good terms with all persons.
Speak your truth quietly and clearly; and listen to others,
even to the dull and ignorant; they too have their story.

Avoid loud and aggressive persons, they are vexations to the spirit.
If you compare yourself with others, you may become vain and bitter,
for always there will be greater and lesser persons than yourself.
Enjoy your achievements as well as your plans.

Keep interested in your own career, however humble;
it is a real possession in the changing fortunes of time.
Exercise caution in your business affairs, for the world is full of trickery.
But let this not blind you to what virtue there is;
many persons strive for high ideals,
and everywhere life is full of heroism.

Be yourself. Especially do not feign affection. Neither be cynical about love;
for in the face of all aridity and disenchantment it is as perennial as the grass.
Take kindly the counsel of the years, gracefully surrendering the things of youth.
Nurture strength of spirit to shield you in sudden misfortune.
But do not distress yourself with dark imaginings.
Many fears are born of fatigue and loneliness.

Beyond a wholesome discipline, be gentle with yourself.
You are a child of the universe no less than the trees and the stars;
you have a right to be here. And whether or not it is clear to you,
no doubt the universe is unfolding as it should.

Therefore be at peace with God, whatever you conceive Him to be.
And whatever your labors and aspirations, in the noisy confusion of life,
keep peace with your soul. With all its sham, drudgery and broken dreams,
it is still a beautiful world. Be cheerful. Strive to be happy.

A Quiet Moment

 

My entries have been far apart from each other because my mind is often full of thoughts that I would not know where to begin to explain just what I am feeling. I came across this poem today after a coworker shared this poet’s work with me. It somehow quieted my mind for a moment.

 

EVERYTHING IS WAITING FOR YOU

                                              -David Whyte

                                                                    

Your great mistake is to act the drama
as if you were alone.  As if life
were a progressive and cunning crime
with no witness to the tiny hidden
transgressions.  To feel abandoned is to deny
the intimacy of your surroundings.  Surely,
even you, at times, have felt the grand array;
the swelling presence, and the chorus, crowding
out your solo voice.  You must note
the way the soap dish enables you,
or the window latch grants you freedom.
Alertness is the hidden discipline of familiarity.
The stairs are your mentor of things
to come, the doors have always been there
to frighten you and invite you,
and the tiny speaker in the phone
is your dream-ladder to divinity.

 

Put down the weight of your aloneness and ease into
the conversation.  The kettle is singing
even as it pours you a drink, the cooking pots
have left their arrogant aloofness and
seen the good in you at last.  All the birds
and creatures of the world are unutterably
themselves.  Everything is waiting for you.

 

 

When You Can Endure

It is the day after Thanksgiving Day and although there hasn’t been anything that has jumped into my mind as to what I should be really, really thankful for, there is a list of things that I know for which I am grateful: life, a sound mind, shelter, family, etc. I do not take any of these things lightly. Some days I am less thankful than the others, but on days when I am in my “woe is me” stage, I am reminded (sometimes immediately, and sometimes eventually) about the many blessings that I have .

Lately, there are things that have happened that in a lot of ways are forcing me to be conscious of the simple things. Sometimes I get caught up and begin to act as if I am the only one going through emotional pain or challenges, but the reality is we are never alone, especially in our grief or pain. More importantly, we are never alone especially in our return to triumph and happiness.

I visited a bookstore in my neighborhood last week and went straight to the poetry section, I needed to read things from authors whose words soothed my soul and I came across a collection of Hafiz’s poems entitled, The Gift, and the first poem that I opened up to was:

                                       When You Can Endure

 

When the words stop
And you can endure the silence
That reveals your heart’s pain
of emptiness
Or that great wrenching-sweet longing,
That is the time to try and listen
To what the Beloved’s
Eyes
Most want
To
Say.

 

Need to say no more.

Inward

“You can explore the universe, looking for somebody who is more deserving of your love and affection than you are yourself, and you will not find that person anywhere.”
                                                                   – Buddha

 

Where have I been? It has been some time that I have typed words with the intention of turning them into complete sentences and paragraphs. The fall is here and winter is soon to be upon us.  Nature is slowing down and is soon to retreat. I guess I am doing some retreating of my own. I felt compelled to post that quote above by Buddha. No sure if it will connect to what I am writing about in the body of this post, but maybe it will.

 

I have spent some time trying to figure stuff out and trying to find extra meaning in things. The truth is we can only try our best. We have to learn, I have to learn that there are things that will be and forgiveness is necessary, acceptance is mandatory and change is constant. Being okay with uncertainty empowers one to stay grounded.

It  is November, to shed, to release, to withdraw in tempting. The desire to become anew is acknowledged.

 

Yesterday I listened to a great stanza from Leaves of Grass that I feel emdodies more of what I am trying to articulate. Here a man with a very robust voice reads. I hope it speaks to you in some way.

Be Well.

How to Be Alone

One of the many positives to having a Facebook account, is every now and again, coming across something that totally makes your day due to a random post by a “friend.” Tanya Davis’ guide to being alone is so witty and true that I couln’t help but post it:

First Clean…then Dream

I’m cleaning out my room filled with papers, and old magazines, clothes I do not wear, sample cds and other things that add to the clutter in my room… to my life.
There is something to be said about cleansing, whether a physical one like what I’m doing to my room, or what I did to my body some weeks ago. The obvious cliche is that it invites more of the goodness in…BUT it also feel damn good!

The funny thing is my parents are cleaning out the basement. They have caught the bug, too. They too are inviting the goodness in. My mom just handed me a home made card that a group of friends made for me when they surprised me with a graduation party in undergrad. The card, filled with well wishes, written by names of some people I have long forgotten ( I am not very good with names. Never forgets a face though), has a poem that reads:

“Dream Big”
–Author unknown

 
“If there were ever a time to dare,
To make a difference
To embark on something worth doing,

It is now.

Not for any grand cause, necessarily –
But for something that tugs at your hear
Something that is worth your aspiration,
Something that is your dream.

You owe it to yourself
To make your days count.

Have fun.  Dig deep. Stretch.

Dream big.

Know, though,
That things worth doing
Seldom come easym

There will be times when you want to turn around
Pack it up and call it quits

Those times tell you
That you are pushing yourself
And that you are not afraid to learn by trying.

Persist.

Because with an idea,
Determination and the right tools,
You can do great things.

Let your instincts, your intellect
And let your heart guide you.

Trust.

Believe in the incredible power
Of the human mind
Of doing something that makes a difference
Of working hard
Of laughing and hoping
Of lasting friends
Of all the things that will cross your path this year.
The start of something new
Brings the hope of something great.

Anything is possible
There is only one you
And you will pass this way but once.

Do it right.”

I am open.

End of Year Report

Today, as I sat in my cubicle at work, I overheard my co-worker state that she was glad that 2009 was over.  For me, 2009 was a mixed bag, but for the most part it was a good year — I grew a lot. And  I have come a far way from 2008! For the New Year Weekend  I am going off to the Berkshires. My plan is to claim this upcoming New Year and continue this period of growth. I want to be more creative, healthy, cultivate my passion and the list goes on. I seriously want to really let go and truly forgive AND not try to figure everything and everyone out, things like that are just not possible… I sometimes feel as if I can’t even figure me out much less someone else. So, with the reality of living in the time of terrorism and Islamaphobia, the recession, increased poverty and hunger, I choose to be optimistic, looking forward to the new year and I am thankful for my present state of existence and I acknowledge things of the past.

Ash Wednesday (Excerpt)
T.S. Eliot

Because I do not hope to turn again
Because I do not hope
Because I do not hope to turn
Desiring this man’s gift and that man’s scope
I no longer strive to strive towards such things
(Why should the agèd eagle stretch its wings?)
Why should I mourn
The vanished power of the usual reign?

Because I do not hope to know
The infirm glory of the positive hour
Because I do not think
Because I know I shall not know
The one veritable transitory power
Because I cannot drink
There, where trees flower, and springs flow, for there is
nothing again

Because I know that time is always time
And place is always and only place
And what is actual is actual only for one time
And only for one place
I rejoice that things are as they are and
I renounce the blessèd face
And renounce the voice
Because I cannot hope to turn again
Consequently I rejoice, having to construct something
Upon which to rejoice…

Love Jones

I watched Love Jones tonight, a movie riddled with poems, Jazz and the sensuality of love — black love. I became nostalgic and proceeded to post Sonia Sanchez’s Poem #3 on my Facebook page…while listening to the movie’s soundtrack. And even now as Dionne Ferris’ Hopeless is playing while I write this, I am hopeful.

Loving Hafiz… in Shades of Grey

Not sure if you understand the love I feel for Hafiz’s work. I came across another collection of his work at Borders again two days ago,  and read poems that I connected with immediately. Hafiz, the man whose spirit wondered for Love without labels, who appreciated the grey of what life has to offer and did not stay stuck in the black and the white of identity. I feel connected to him because if I were as  gifted as he, my words would communicate the same meaning—this appreciation for variety. One of my favorite quotes of his delves into not needing the label of religious identity, “I have learned so much from God That I can no longer call myself a Christian, a Hindu, a Muslim, a Buddhist, a Jew” he wrote… and yes, I get that. Although I am fasting for Ramadan and I identify with Islam in a tremendous way, I would be lying to myself if I did not say that I do not think that one religion supersedes another, or even the disbelief in one. If you believe in humanity, admire the wondrous splendor of this world and love with honesty and sincerity, that is God—there is not separation in my book, and from what I sense from Hafiz, he understood that.

Another Poem:

Would You Think It Odd?

             - Hafiz

Would you think it odd if Hafiz said,

“I am in love with every church
And mosque
And temple
And any kind of shrine

Because I know it is there
That the people say the different names
Of the One God”

Would you tell your friends
I was a bit strange if I admitted

I am indeed in love with every mind
And heart and body.

O I am sincerely
Plumb crazy
About your every thought and yearning
And limb

Because, my dear,
I know
That it is through these

That you search for him.

Love After Love

Finding this, right after writing the last post,makes me know that I am in a process of something that will allow me to find the part of me (my highest self, the one who is content and free) that is waiting for me to just be.

-Derek Walcott

The time will come
when, with elation
you will greet yourself arriving
at your own door, in your own mirror
and each will smile at the other’s welcome,

and say, sit here. Eat.
You will love again the stranger who was your self.
Give wine. Give bread. Give back your heart
to itself, to the stranger who has loved you

all your life, whom you ignored
for another, who knows you by heart.
Take down the love letters from the bookshelf,

the photographs, the desperate notes,
peel your own image from the mirror.
Sit. Feast on your life.