I wanted to share this with you and I hope you will read it - only takes a few minutes. I like Pamela's way of living and sharing her spiritual life without being preachy. Also, of particular interest to Aaron and Sarah may be the link to the website Our Children Ourselves. I haven't looked at it yet but if you get a chance, let me know if there's anything you found useful.
Much love
Maya
From: Pamela Haines
To: pamela haines
Sent: Sunday, December 21, 2008 9:25:24 PM
Subject: Pamela's column #75 Cleaning, decorating, gift-giving
Dear all,
It's the winter solstice tonight. I love it that tomorrow there will be
more light, and the next day even more. And I wish you well in this holiday
season that can be so wonderful and so hard.
This column came to me on the trolley this morning. It was a gift to
me, and I hope it might be a gift to you.
Love,
Pamela
Cleaning, decorating, gift giving
I love the December evening when we gather at a friend¹s house, pack into
every space in the living and dining rooms, and pour ourselves into bringing
Handel¹s Messiah to life. I¹m filled up with beautiful music, and it¹s one
of those gifts that keeps on giving; the music makes its home inside my head
and I keep hearing it for days. As I reflected on what a good choice this
had been about what I wanted in my head, I started to consider how else I
can pay attention to that space.
I already think about the movies, books, and TV I consume with an eye toward
what will remain in my head. What scenes and words, what kinds of
assumptions about human nature and the world we live in, will linger?
I remember wise things that I¹ve heard about this: ³There is both a wolf and
a dove inside each of us. Which will grow? The one that is fed.² ³Hanging
on to resentment is like giving yourself poison and hoping the other person
will die.² It¹s been a thrill to discover that when I start down a path of
resentment inside my head these days, I can often notice it happening,
remember that I don¹t want to go there, and get back on a path of my own
choosing. My inside space is so much cleaner as a result.
Then there¹s the question of other things I might want to add to that space,
to make it an even more inviting place to live. In a children¹s book I came
across recently, a child says: ³Dad believes that the things of nature are
a gift. And that in return, we must give something back. We must give
thanks.² I like being thankful for the sky and the earth as I walk down the
street. My commute goes better when I remember to offer a brief bless and
keep prayer for each person who gets on or off the trolley.
When I focus my attention more on what inclines me toward hope, and less on
what tips me toward despair, it¹s easier to think well about what to do.
It¹s like there¹s less stuff lying around inside to trip me up. (And while I
may need to look straight at despair at times, I always know where to find
it.)
This way of thinking puts housekeeping and interior decorating in a whole
new light. I¹ve never been big on pouring resources into making my external
house beautiful, but I realize that I care deeply about the space inside my
head. I would choose to clean out everything that hinders me from acting
with love and power in the present. I would choose to create lots of space
and light. And I can¹t imagine a better gift than one that enhances that
love, power, space and light.
Some things that have given me hope recently:
Barack Obama
The possibility that our country will actually address the problem of global
warming.
More and more US city dwellers getting their food directly from farmers by
buying a share of their harvest.
The quiet peace and reconciliation work that is being done in Kenya in the
aftermath of much violence.
Introducing: www.ourchildrenourselves.org, a home for all the parenting
writing I've done over the past 20 years.
For earlier columns, go to www.pamelascolumn.blogspot.com.
(If the background is too dark to read, I hope you can get a computer whiz
to help--and let me know what you figured out! When I go there on my Mac
via Safari, it's fine.)
Check out www.startguide.org. START: a way to study and work together with
others to create a better world.
