Being Satisfied – Apr. 21, 2020
“名與身孰親？身與貨孰多？得與亡孰病？是故甚愛必大費，多藏必厚亡。知足不辱，知止不殆，可以長久。” –道德经, 第四十四章 “Your fame or your own body, which matters more?Your own body or wealth, which is more important?Your gain or your loss, which is more of a concern?Therefore, the more one attaches to things, the greater loss one suffers.The more one stores, the greater misfortune one bears.Being satisfied, one is not disgraced.The one who […]
Sickness and Sadness Happens
Sickness happens, and sometimes sickness leads to death. This is not how we want life to go. We prefer life, and then more life, and then even more life still, please. We want whatever is good and pleasing to increase daily, hourly, moment by moment—blessed multiplication! Is this not what God intends for us as […]
Let Go of Everything – Feb. 18, 2020
I must let go.For so long I have held to the habit of holding on. Even my musclesAre tense; deeply fearful are theyOf relaxing lest they fall away from their place.I cling clutchingly to my friendsLest I lose them.I live under the shadow of being supplanted by another.I cling to my money, not so much […]
Attention – May 27, 2019
Mary Oliver is one who saw “thin places” in the natural world. For her, objects and animals shimmer with eternal presence. For your reflections this week, I have chosen selections from her book of short biographical essays, Upstream (New York: Penguin Press, 2016). –Marjory Zoet Bankson “Sometimes the desire to be lost again, as long […]
