Last night I dreamed about going to some kind of spa.  It must have been a wish-fulfillment dream.  My Unconscious always seems to know just what I need.

I was up early this morning after a full and intense two weeks, grateful to be sitting on my deck watching the sun illuminate the trees.  It’s glorious to bask in the beauty of creation and be open to the grace that is showered upon us in every moment.

I often forget.  Whatever I’m doing becomes primary.  My resting place becomes my to-do list.

So many things are of urgent and immediate importance–economic, social, and environmental crises are all around.  I know I need to do my part, stay aware, and be willing to act.  But if I lose touch with the Holy Spirit who guides me, I won’t be clear about what to contribute or have anything of value to contribute anyway.  So wherever I am, when I remember, I consciously and deliberately pull my attention back to the present moment.  I “practice the presence of God.”

This is much easier to do when I am faithful to my regular practice of contemplative prayer and meditation.  Setting that time aside in the morning makes it more likely that I will remember and return during the activity of the day.  This is especially important when I’m working hardest and life is at its busiest.  Otherwise, in the words of Rabindranath Tagore, “my work becomes an endless toil in a shoreless sea of toil.”

Today I’m grateful to be taking time for refreshment.  Today I remember to find my rest in God.

A Moment’s Indulgence

Rabindranath Tagore (1861 – 1941).

I ask for a moment’s indulgence to sit by thy side. The works
that I have in hand I will finish afterwards.

Away from the sight of thy face my heart knows no rest nor respite,
and my work becomes an endless toil in a shoreless sea of toil.

Today the summer has come at my window with its sighs and murmurs; and
the bees are plying their minstrelsy at the court of the flowering grove.

Now it is time to sit quiet, face to face with thee, and to sing
dedication of life in this silent and overflowing leisure.