INSIDE YOU AND FAR BEYOND YOU

The road seen, then not seen, the hillside
hiding then revealing the way you should take,
the road dropping away from you as if leaving you
to walk on thin air, then catching you, holding you up,
when you thought you would fall – and the way forward
always in the end, the way that you came, the way
that you followed, the way that carried you into your future,
that brought you to this place, no matter that
it sometimes had to take your promise from you,
no matter that it always had to break your heart
along the way: the sense of having walked
from far inside yourself out into the revelation,
to have risked yourself for something that seemed
to stand both inside you and far beyond you,
and that called you back in the end
to the only road you could follow…

Excerpt from “Santiago”
From PILGRIM: Poems by David Whyte
©2012 David Whyte

Opening poem chosen and read by Nancy L.

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“The animals and the trees are exactly as they were created to be and in that simple witness they reveal a path of yielding, of not resisting, of simply allowing themselves to unfold as intended.”(Christine Valters Painter)

It is after the tulip magnolia trees drop their beautiful flowers that there is a time of new growth. What would happen to our hearts if we could follow a path of yielding, of not resisting, of letting go. By simply allowing ourselves to unfold, perhaps we could find new growth.

Photos and reflection by Denise P.

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My intention today lacked clarity — several thoughts swirled in my mind… moving toward inner peace… it all belongs, the beauty, the joy and the suffering… and finally, as inspired by David Whyte, that I was on “the only road I could follow”. The morning was glorious– crisp late winter air, magnificent tulip magnolias against the bluest sky, smiling daffodils, and birds greeting the early spring. Peace and joy and serenity were everywhere… this sacred cathedral of nature soothes and renews my soul. 

Amongst this beauty and peace were also signs that “it all belongs.” The camellias and tulip magnolias were dropping their petals so they could return to the earth and nourish new life… and I felt in my heart that I was indeed,  on “the only road I could follow. “

Photos and reflection by Nancy L.

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