I created this piece for the Inspire Me Today website.
Mind your stories.
Mind your stories; question them often.
. Nourish those that serve.
Change those that do not.
Far easier said than done, yes?
. For many of our darker stories
. have cut grooves in the primordial stone of our psyches—
. and the river of mind all too easily turns back into
. these dark and shadowy valleys.
. So mind also your story
. about changing your story;
. be quick to forgive
. both yourself and your world
. should the story be slow to change.
Mind your stories; know them for what they are.
. For more than it is through your wild circumstances,
. it is instead through your stories
. that you might find
. health,
. prosperity,
. and happiness.
Mind your stories about health,
. about what is sickness, wellness,
. and suffering.
. For it is not your suffering,
. but your stories about suffering
. that makes pain either buoyant
. or burdensome.
Mind your stories about prosperity,
. about what is enough.
. For it is not your desire,
. but your stories about desire
. that leaves you
. either full or wanting.
. If you find yourself succumbing to envy,
. surround yourself with the impoverished.
. If you find yourself succumbing to
. anger,
. pride,
. or vanity,
. surround yourself with those
. who are kind, gentle, and wise.
. Do these things, and you may learn
. of the deeper meaning of prosperity.
Mind your stories about happiness,
. about what will bring you joy.
. Be wary of striving for happiness;
. it would be like striving to grow a flower garden.
. You can do only this:
. find a sunny place for the soul,
. prepare the soil of your destiny,
. water the seeds of what might be,
. tend to the weeds of shadowy stories,
. and then,
. perhaps,
. the rose will bloom all bright and shining . . .
. but you can never force her to do so.
And beyond health, prosperity, and happiness,
. mind your larger story.
. Mind your story about your place in our cosmos.
. Know that along with all of the beings
. of the Web of Life,
. you, too, are a child of the Infinite:
. that great, mysterious process
. that worked patiently
. for billions of years
. to bring your tiny but delightful
. sacred sparkle of stardust
. into being.
Finally, mind your contribution to our larger story.
. Ponder your place in the possibility
. that we are growing beyond
. both the story of gods and goddesses
. serving or stymying us
. and the old scientific story
. of a decaying and meaningless Universe
. to a new story of the Infinite,
. a Planetary Story of a mysteriously creative Universe.
. Know that we each have a place
. in the birth of this emerging story,
. and that yours is a vital role as midwife.
For it is through our new story that we can awaken
. to a deeper communion with Earth,
. know and love our place within her Web of Life,
. rejoice in her,
. and share in her bounty.
. And we do so with gratitude, respect,
. and humility,
. for we know that, while we have learned much,
. there is still much to learn
. as our Planetary Story awakens within
. our Holy Universe.
Listen to my interview with Gail regarding this piece.
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