Quiet Reflections and Prayers
I found I could exist
in the world
and also in my heart —
participating fully
in daily life
without the need
or desire
to stay in
constant dialogue
about the story
on the surface —
choosing instead
to play a little
higher card,
to put these things
aside for a moment —
honoring and holding
a little space
for a deeper story
to be known.
Because I had tired
of old ways
or because I sensed
the time had come
to forge
a different path,
I settled in
just below the surface —
daring to stand still
in chaos,
becoming willing
to listen with my heart —
letting go of the need
to be neatly sorted —
rediscovering the subtle,
natural beauty
in the return to
a gentler way of being.
And so there was
a sacred reunification
with life.
Each moment became
a gentle reminder
of the subtle beauty
and grace
of being
in my heart
and in a healing world,
a point of reference
for which there was
no creatable experience
to match
and no words
to express
or explain.
Life became
a series of
small surrenders
to a gentler way
of being
in my heart
and in the world —
trusting in what appeared
and faded —
knowing both the space behind
and the unfolding story
at once
and having the courage
and inner strength
to hold it all.
And so my heart
grew weary of the search
for some kind of
relief
from the story
being told on the surface
through the eyes
of the wounded places
in me.
And so its quiet,
wordless whispers
and its ability
to sink in a little deeper
became louder.
And my willingness
to listen
a little more intently
became my greatest strength.
I found there was
calm
in the middle of chaos —
sinking down in
and through
to the place called
state of prayer ––
holding on
to the space within,
honoring whatever appeared —
letting go
of everything else.
Sometimes the story
on the surface
was too much.
And so I found
I could toss it up
and trust the pieces
to come back down
a little more gently.
And I was thankful
for the quiet
wordless messages
from my heart
that took its place.
I didn’t wish them
to be less subtle anymore
because I knew they came
from that pure place
where nothing is too much.
When the outer world
becomes loud
and I feel I have lost
my inner space,
when I forget
all I have learned,
remind me
of the quiet place
in my heart
where all is okay
no matter what.
Help me to hold
all that is
not quite beautiful
and to let go.
Amen
The deepest kind
of healing,
I found,
didn’t come out of
neatly wrapped packages,
but from the persistent search
and willingness to sink
right down into
what appeared on the surface —
to see through it,
honoring without needing
to analyze or fix —
to become quiet
in my heart
so that the pure love
and clarity
I found there
naturally became
the starting point
in all instances.
I wondered how long
I could be
in the stillness
of my heart
and in a healing world.
But I had walked
the edge
and let go of
the space within.
And I had found
my way back.
And so I vowed
to hold the gap
in-between us
for as long as it took —
until we were one.
Laurie's Notes 