Tag: realization

  • The Seedling (Poem)

    I walked on the trail and saw

    Amongst the usual plants and trees

    A small sapling that appeared different.

    This thing is not like the other things,

    Thought I. But then I said

    Stop and look again and see.

    I did. Here is what I found:

    Like the other growing things,

    The little seedling grew from the earth;

    The branches reached to the sky;

    The wood was brown and the leaves green;

    The sun and rain and soil nourished it.

    This thing is utterly like the other things.

    So with all, if only we look closely

    With openness.

  • Thoughts on the First Seal

    How would it be, to change our vision?

    We often ask (ourselves or god or the the universe)

    Why did this happen?

    We see an event as a particular discrete thing

    And usually when we query thus,

    Feel that it be extraordinary in some way.

    Often we seek some divine aid or give thanks for that perceived intervention.

    Consider if you will this possibility:

    There are no miracles nor curses. The playing field is level.

    A joyous birth equals a tragic death. The discovery of a vaccine equals the manufacture of a deadly weapon.

    And all equal the purchase of a cup of coffee.

    THESE ARE ALL ORDINARY. Shocking to write.

    Each came about in the same manner, with innumerable causes.

    They have no special quality in and of themselves,

    Though they do carry weight and impact, which we ourselves assign.

    We are the ones who decide what counts as remarkable,

    Either for reasons of evil or good, while we claim signs from some deity.

    If we choose to see this and acknowledge

    That everything is mundane and therefore also terrible and therefore also glorious,

    Then we can (perhaps) take a better path.