The Last Supper: Finally Freed from Storage

I’ve been doing a lot of clearing lately:  clearing out the “granny cabin” and fixing it up for a friend, clearing out boxes of stored items, sorting closets and cabinets, clearing out extraneous “stuff” from our house and yard, throwing out junk and giving things away.  At the same time I’ve been letting go of several ongoing responsibilities and clearing my calendar of all but the most important things.

It’s time.  I’ve been through a period of sustained activity, with deadlines and hurdles along the way.  Part of the pressure that has kept me going is concern for the world.  As I wrote in Shaking the Gates of Hell, I fear that the Powers that Be are creating a living hell on earth, and that we the people, sustained by Spirit, are the only ones who can turn things around.

The key for me is “sustained by Spirit.” Running on adrenaline and caffeine doesn’t work well for me in the long run.  It depletes my energy and leaves me exhausted.  I need some time every day for spiritual replenishment.  And periodically I need to step back and take a thorough inventory, to re-examine my life, relationships, activities, and priorities.  Now is such a time.

I came across the following poem recently, called “Clearing,” by Martha Postlewaite:

Do not try to save the whole world

or do anything grandiose.

Instead, create a clearing in the dense forest of your life

and wait there patiently,

until the song that is your life

falls into your own cupped hands

and you recognize and greet it.

Only then will you know

how to give yourself to this world

so worthy of rescue.