THE Still Point of the Pandemic World
Blog Archive - 2021
by Dr. Susan Nettleton
January 1, 2021
Happy New Year! A day to celebrate and affirm newness of life for everyone.
Follow the link to a New Year's poem by Larry Morris
January 3, 2021
This morning my grandson walked into my kitchen to show me a drawing he had just scribbled with great flair, wielded from a new pencil. The pencil was freshly sharpened in the electric pencil sharpener I gave him for Christmas. He loves electronics and he really wanted that sharpener! Now put to good use, he asked me what I thought the drawing looked like. I saw a bit of a bird-like head and a tail-like triangle pointing upward, the two shapes linked by an oval full of scribbles. I said, "Look, it's a swan on the water, and these lines are like feathers and splashing water. Draw an eye here and you will see it." He put in the eye and I added three circular lines for moving water. Then he saw it! He ran upstairs, full of pride, to show his dad, shouting, "I drew a swan!"
His joy inspired me to post this link to the poem "Swan" by Mary Oliver. The questions she asks you are perfect for this New Year's first Sunday--did you see it? (Susan Nettleton)
https://www.poeticous.com/mary-oliver/the-swan-1?lns=o
(scroll all the way down to the text)
January 8, 2021
This afternoon, I am taking my computer outside to write where I can look up at the San Gabriel mountain range that rises a block or two away from the backyard. I need the fresh air and I think you probably do as well, wherever you are staying. In the background I hear a plane overhead (someone is still flying somewhere). I hear some hammering on a neighborhood house (someone is renovating nearby). I hear the trash pickup trucks in the distance (the city still has services). Faint human voices and more distinct bird conversations chirp directly overhead (communication continues). Life goes on and beauty, really, is everywhere.
The first week of 2021 has been explosive. The U.S. hit its highest daily death toll since the onset of the Pandemic. The Capitol building was breached by riots. Congress and the Senate weathered attack and despite their shock, picked up their work and continued, while the world waited and watched, until the work was done. After almost a year of stressful events in the unfolding and surging of the Pandemic, everyone is exhausted--even if we are not on the front lines of action, we are all on the front lines of witnessing, of carrying our lives forward, of adapting, surviving and hopefully, supporting something both good and stable. So if you find yourself immobile right now or slow and sluggish, or anxious and unfocused, you have every reason to be that way. Stop, or at least slow down, and let yourself catch up.
This is not about acquiring more information. This post is about rest and recreation in order to shore up our resiliency. You have your spiritual practices, they will keep. Right now, rest, release, wander among the things you most enjoy. Your spiritual practice will pull you back and give the balance. You are included in the whole of life and the whole is within you. Take a fresh breath; then we all begin again. (Susan Nettleton)
January 10, 2021
For today's Sunday post, I am encouraging you to continue my message from Friday's evening post: rest and renew and don't jump ahead of this collective process of change and healing. Tomorrow the country, with the world watching, begins a new week in this new year. Today we gain perspective by letting go to life around us right now and taking the time to be grateful for moments of light and love. In his December blog post on The Hillside Source website, Jack Correu shows us one of the many ways to do that. (Susan Nettleton)
Click here: https://hillsidesource.com/.../sweet-memories-at-the...
January 13, 2021
It is now a week since the assault on the Capitol and we have been inundated with further disturbing news. Tension in Washington D.C. grows as arrests are made , new information is revealed and time moves toward the inauguration. The violence and threats of more continue, as does the surging Pandemic and the death toll. Distribution of the Covid-19 vaccine has begun and with it both a promise and a warning; things will eventually improve, but it will take time. We can expect the vaccination process to shift, the way most collective messages have shifted, as our experience and understanding continues to expand.
If you have not already returned to regular spiritual practice, now is the time to begin again. It is the time to recommit to your Way. Don't let the fatigue of the accumulated stressors undermine your spiritual faith and values and your faith in your own capacity for resilience and healing. I can only repeat the significance of maintaining your inner life and light. When it seems too much, pull back, disengage from the news, take care of yourself. Nurture yourself on more than one level. Then begin again. This is the time to draw on the inner strength that we have been building over all these months, despite our resistance and resentments, despite our frustration and anger, despite our anxiety--even times of panic, we have come this far and in all likelihood, this winter marks the turning point. You are stronger in ways you could not have imagined a year ago. Surprisingly, so are most of the people you know. When we relate from the strength of faith and experience, together, we are even stronger. (Susan Nettleton)
“There are only two days in the year that nothing can be done. One is called yesterday and the other is called tomorrow, so today is the right day to love, believe, do, and mostly live.” Dalai Lama
January 16, 2021
Hillside Sunday Zoom Service January 31, 2021
Susan Nettleton is inviting you to a scheduled Zoom meeting.
Topic: "Walking the Edge of New" by Dr. Susan Nettleton
Time: Jan 31, 2021 11:00 AM Mountain Time (US and Canada)
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January 17, 2021
Throughout this week of news feed after news feed on the assault on the U.S. Capitol and the upcoming inauguration, my mind has been replaying a spiritual--a hymn that bubbles up reminding me that this is the time for affirmation of peace, rather than fear and anger.
1 I’ve got peace like a river, I’ve got peace like a river, I’ve got peace like a river, in my soul. (repeat)
2 I’ve got love like an ocean, I’ve got love like an ocean, I’ve got love like an ocean, in my soul. (repeat)
3 I’ve got joy like a fountain, I’ve got joy like a fountain, I’ve got joy like a fountain, in my soul. (repeat)
In that spirit I offer a link below from the writings of Shr Chinmoy (1931-2007), a spiritual teacher from India who moved to America in 1964 and eventually established a global following. The link below offers 33 short poems on Peace, giving you a wide selection to contemplate and affirm as we move through this upcoming historic week. (Peace, Susan Nettleton)
https://www.srichinmoypoetry.com/selected-poems/poems-peace/
January 18, 2021
In honor of Martin Luther King Day, I am posting two simple yet powerful quotes from him. They are words worth our reflection as we enter this week. (Susan Nettleton)
"I have decided to stick with love. Hate is too great a burden to bear."
"Forgiveness is not an occasional act; it is a constant attitude."
January 21, 2021
Now that America has moved through a peaceful but heavily guarded inauguration of our 46th President Joe Biden, we can breathe a sigh of relief that there was no violence and begin to adjust ourselves to the year ahead. We are asked to begin "afresh" with a focus on choosing unity over division. Part of this new beginning includes committing to wearing masks for another 100 days as well as following through with the vaccination program, seeking any medical information we may need as individuals and learning how the program works in our communities. Realistically, no one is ready to quite let down our guard just yet after the capitol attack, so we will remain watchful as a nation.
I am encouraging you today and tomorrow to consider the process of beginning afresh, spiritually. The passing year has been extraordinarily difficult, not just for us personally, but collectively. Beginning "afresh" inevitably means letting go, in different ways for each of us. Although there is a collective tension and watchfulness we must retain right now, with the Pandemic as well as political threats--we don't have to hold on to all of the difficulty, pain, fear, confusion, and resentment of this last year.
Charles Fillmore, the co-founder of Unity, wrote in his book Christian Healing, "God is in the universe as its constant 'breath' or inspiration; hence it is only necessary to find the point of contact in order to understand the One in whom we all 'live, and move, and have our being'... The point of contact is a willingness and a seeking on your part."
If we are seeking a fresh beginning on a spiritual level, one simple technique is to turn to our breath as a natural symbol of "out with the old, in with the new", trusting that we receive what we need and release what is no long needed. Along with the amazing intelligence of our physiology automatically regulating the breath, we can remember God as the breath of life. Breathing naturally, not controlling it, in this way becomes a form of affirmative prayer. We can inhale new life, new resolve, new inspiration, new peace and exhale our fatigue, our frustration, our fears, even our sadness and loss. Take a deep breath and allow a collective sigh of relief. Then allow yourself healing and renewal as you take in and let go. (Susan Nettleton)
January 24, 2021
For this Sunday's post, I am offering further ideas on cultivating peace in this midst of all the stresses of the Pandemic and the urgency of overcoming divisions as we live this new year. This morning I remembered the work of the 20th century American spiritual teacher who came to be known as Peace Pilgrim (1908-1981). Even though her first public walk for peace began just a few miles from where I am right now, in Pasadena, California (1953), ironically, I first learned of her spiritual depth while I was staying in Bangalore, India in 2004. She continued to walk across America as a teacher and advocate for peace until her death. Here are some quotes to contemplate now in 2021. (Susan Nettleton)
"We can work on inner peace and world peace at the same time. On one hand, people have found inner peace by losing themselves in a cause larger than themselves, like the cause of world peace, because finding inner peace means coming from the self-centered life into the life centered in the good of the whole. On the other hand, one of the ways of working for world peace is to work for more inner peace, because world peace will never be stable until enough of us find inner peace to stabilize it."
"I am constantly thankful. The world is so beautiful, I am thankful. I have endless energy, I am thankful. I am plugged into the source of Universal Supply, I am thankful. I am plugged into the source of Universal Truth, I am thankful. I have this constant feeling of thankfulness, which is a prayer."
"I deal with spiritual truth which should never be sold and need never be bought. When you are ready it will be given."
January 29, 2021
This is your reminder email of our Zoom Service this Sunday!
Topic: Walking the Edge of New with Dr. Susan Nettleton
Time: Jan 31, 2021 11:00 AM Mountain Time (US and Canada)
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February 1, 2021
My talk yesterday concluded with a line from this poem by Rabindranath Tagore (1861-1941). It is a reminder that the spirit of joy underlines the human experience of creativity and discovery. Human joy mirrors what we can only express as Joy in the Divine Creative process that brings forth all levels and expressions of life. We have the capacity to touch that point of Joy by reaching for it, but also being open when it finds us, even in times of great difficulty.
And Joy is Everywhere
It is in the Earth's green covering of grass;
In the blue serenity of the Sky;
In the reckless exuberance of Spring;
In the severe abstinence of gray Winter;
In the Living flesh that animates our bodily frame;
In the perfect poise of the Human figure, noble and upright;
In Living;
In the exercise of all our powers;
In the acquisition of Knowledge;
In fighting evils ...
Joy is there Everywhere. ”
~ Rabindranath Tagore (2016). “SĀDHANĀ - The Realization of life”, p.64.
February 5, 2021
"We must walk consciously only part way toward our goal, and then leap in the dark to our success." Henry David Thoreau
Along with the quote above, I offer you a quote below which at first reading seems complex, in the way astrophysics is complex. They are quotes I read last Sunday, as a part of the talk, "Walking the Edge of New". I decided to post them as one way to lift our vision to a larger frame beyond the Pandemic, just as a meditation exercise. Because of the many stops and starts that have happened with the world's attempt to overcome the Pandemic, it can be difficult at this point to gather up the stamina and enthusiasm to stay focused and optimistic about the necessity of continuing masks (and even double masks here in California) along with social distancing as we again face changes in health advisories and do what is needed to insure vaccinations. Stretching our awareness beyond the focus of our immediate situation paradoxically gives our minds a much needed break from the continued rehearsal of our situation and offers new perspective on the amazing scale of creation. This particular quote below is a reminder that the unknown has always been and continues to be an unconquerable aspect of life. Still, we do discover, uncover, and adapt to our acquired knowledge. The search furthers the creativity of life.
"The Universe has many edges: the edge of transparency, the edge of stars and galaxies, the edge of neutral atoms, and the edge of our cosmic horizon from the Big Bang itself. We can look as far away as our telescopes can take us, but there will always be a fundamental limit. Even if space itself is infinite, the amount of time that’s passed since the hot Big Bang is not. No matter how long we wait, there will always be an “edge” that we’ll never be able to see past."
February 7, 2021
Today is Super Bowl Sunday, a uniquely American tradition that offers the opportunity to vent what I am calling pent-up Pandemic energy through the athletic battleground. Whether you are a sports fan or not, it's a good day to find your way to recreation and healthy release. While many Americans continue to adjust to the demands of the Pandemic, we are warned there will be a price for any super spreader events, especially at a time when the case rates are starting to slow. Stay home, stay digitally connected, shout, laugh, cheer--or head outside for exercise, fresh air, and nature as your companion. There's still time for quiet gratitude, prayer and stillness. (Susan Nettleton)
Here's a link to an excerpt from Maya Angelou's poem, On the Pulse of the Morning. It bring a message that rather than repeating pasts mistakes, together we can move forward with hope.
February 12, 2021
After watching parts of the impeachment trial the last few days, I am reflecting on collective trauma. The graphic video footage of the attack on the capitol and the open acknowledgement of emotion--fear, even terror--from Senators and Congressional Representatives, paint a vivid reality of danger and the emotional trauma that follows. Reactions to traumatic events include fear, grief and depression as well as physical symptoms such as dizziness, changes in appetite and sleep patterns, and withdrawal from daily activities. These often continue for weeks following trauma before emotions return to normal. We use the term post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) when symptoms such as flashbacks, nightmares, severe anxiety, and uncontrollable thoughts about what happened continue to be triggered, after experiencing or witnessing trauma. These reactions do not just occur to those who were actually in a life threatening situation. We, as spectators can also be traumatized by the images we see, and the news we hear.
Continued exposure to stories of tragedy and violence, as well as direct exposure to the trauma of others, can overwhelm the nervous system. We have seen this emerging from the medical and staff workers in hospitals during 2020. A remarkable research project in Britain 5 years ago documented that such stress responses are not just caused by direct traumatic experience, but also happen through social media. Written and visual images of violence and trauma produce anxiety and repetitive replay of the material, that trigger stress responses and cause secondary trauma. These symptoms of interrupted sleep, hopelessness, feeling ineffective, eventually lead to compassion fatigue-- caring people can no longer care--until time, rest, self care and support reset our nervous systems.
All of this is an aspect of Pandemic fatigue, and it continues underneath, compounded by the violence and political conflict. Yet, moving through the structure of law and procedure as the trial is aired and viewed by the American public, also has a healing element. It reaffirms a social order to life that includes public observation as a form of participation. The phenomenally courageous officials who openly shared their emotional reactions, serve as role models for us all in the collective process of healing, not just in terms of the capitol attack, but the Pandemic as well. As individuals, one of the ways we re-set and are able, over time to integrate events, is through the spiritual process of meditation and prayer. This integration is re-enforced as we are able to actively share our traumatic experiences with others who are understanding and caring. Collectively, we heal by public events and programs that acknowledge the emotional impact of pain, fear, anger and grief, while reinforcing the qualities of resilience. While the impeachment trial can be seen on different levels with differing agendas, it is also an active acknowledgement of collective trauma. If it has further overwhelmed you, step back from the news. If you have a sense that you can begin to integrate these events now, because of the facts and honest expression of fear and pain, whatever the final verdict, focus on our collective resiliency. (Susan Nettleton)
February 14, 2021
"In the midst of winter I at last discovered that there was in me an invincible summer.” Albert Camus, Retour à Tipasa
For today's Sunday post, I turn to the above quote from 20th century, French Existential philosopher and writer Albert Camus. (1913-1960). Today is St. Valentine's Day, now practiced globally as a celebration of love. Originally, February 14 was set as a Feast Day in AD 496 to commemorate one of the early Christian martyrs, Saint Valentine of Rome. Over a thousand years later, the day had a celebration of romantic love. Today, depending on the culture, it has expanded to include the spectrum of love. In the Northern Hemisphere, Valentine's Day is a winter holiday that bridges the time between New Year's and holiday celebrations of Spring. It gives us a chance to consider the heart of life, including the bond of love that brings us back to a focus on relationships that are essential to human survival, perhaps more essential in the dead of winter. There are of course many types of love, not always easy to define. But it is an emotion that connects and unifies. Love brings a sense of invincible summer, a sense of life at its fullest. The beauty, richness and awe of life can be found in all seasons but in summer, it is no longer hidden. Life thrives.
As extreme weather and life threatening winter storms sweep across the country this week, most of us will withdraw inside and wait it out There are those who cannot because we need them to take watch and take care, as we have needed others throughout the Pandemic "storm", a metaphoric winter experience when life often seems to be frozen. Yet it isn't. Life is moving forward.
Camus's discovery arose with a transcendent experience, when he returned to his homeland Algiers, seeking something...some renewal perhaps or inner resolution after the moral devastation of WWII. On his trip he found it. "And under the glorious December light..., I found exactly what I had come seeking, what, despite the era and the world, was offered me, truly to me alone, in that forsaken nature."
Wherever you may be this February, there lays within you an invincible summer. Perhaps today is the day you too can discover it. (Susan Nettleton)
February 17, 2021
This week has brought welcomed news of some slowing of the Pandemic cases. Even though the trend remains fragile, let it lift you. It is not time to change any of our Covid-19 prevention practices, but it is time to be thankful. Instead of letting fear and hopelessness spiral, we can affirm gratitude that can spiral and touch many areas of our lives. This opening or space of lightening-the-load may also mean that you begin considering where you would like your life to lead when restrictions lift. Maybe there is something new stirring in you. We cannot get ahead of the process or our pushing forward too quickly will push us right back. There are still many, many who need to be vaccinated. There are still unanswered questions regarding the new variants and how the vaccine responds to them. And it is also a time to offer prayer support for those who are struggling in the winter storms and power failures across America. Yet, prayer, gratitude and cautious optimism generates new life and new possibilities.
To further your sense of new possibilities beyond the restraints and devastation of the Pandemic and our changing climate, consider tuning in or looking at the news about the Mars Rover project this Thursday. The NASA rover aptly named "Perseverance" will land live in the Jezero Crater this Thursday afternoon, looking for microbes and evidence of how habitable Mars was in the ancient past. It will begin the work of collecting samples for a return mission to Earth several years from now. The Perseverance Rover will also conduct a test flight of a helicopter/drone for the first time on Mars that could eventually be used for scouting and exploration in future Mars missions. I've included a link below where you can find more information on space.com. Let yourself be inspired by human perseverance and Life's' endless possibilities. (Susan Nettleton)
Follow the link to learn more: https://www.nasa.gov/perseverance
February 21, 2021
For this Sunday morning post I am offering a link to a poem by 20th century American poet Anne Sexton (1928-1974). This is for all of us who have likely spent far more time in our homes than we ever imagined possible. I personally am awaiting my second dose of vaccine and even though masks and social distancing (and yes, frequent hand washing) will still apply, I hope to soon have more adventures out in the larger community. This is something we can all aim for, for each other. We really don't know the future adventures that await us. We know the problems facing us, collectively and individually. If we remember to take the time for stillness, we find that space inside us which is sustaining us through winter, through the time of Covid-19, through the mistakes that are also a part of life and in their own way, often painful way, point us back to Truth. Today I invite you to welcome this Sunday to find peace and beauty and even the transcendent in what is right in front of you. (Susan Nettleton)
February 24, 2021
Yesterday, the weather here was so spring-like that I decided to venture around the block for fresh air and a fresh viewpoint. Even though the latest article in Atlantic Monthly on "The Most Likely Timeline for Life to Return to Normal" predicts very little change in the Covid-19 lifestyle this coming spring (but is hopeful for the summer), we are far more adapted to basic restrictions than we were a year ago. That, in addition to the continuing vaccinations and accumulated medical experience in treatment, will be a significant difference from last year's shocks. The prediction of 500,000 deaths from Covid-19 in American did not seem possible. And yet, now here we are. Yet, as we try to absorb this phenomenal level of loss, the case loads are falling. It is a time to mourn as well as look toward the future. There is no easy way, no perfect way. As I wandered down the street, birdsongs filled the air, the light on new garden growth in the yards was amazing, ) a mid-school age girls' athletic team ran past--all wearing masks with their coach behind shouting, "6 feet apart, 6 feet apart!" It seemed to me there actually were more people out with masks, another observation to fuel my cautious optimism.
Spiritual explorer and writer Alexandra David-Néel (1868-1969) wrote: “The wise expect nothing, hope for nothing, thus avoiding all disappointment and anxiety.” And American spiritual teacher/writer Ram Das advised, “It is important to expect nothing, to take every experience, including the negative ones, as merely steps on the path, and to proceed.” We all vary in our capacity to handle disappointment or wavering faith. Some wisely give up having any expectations whatsoever. While I certainly agree it is better not to expect life to conform to our demands, and not to judge events as they unfold, it seems to me that faith in ultimate Goodness gives us resilience in the face of hardship and devastation and the strength to act in service of that Good, again and again. The Good is already at hand. (Susan Nettleton)
February 28, 2021
For today's Sunday post I give you a link to a poem by American poet James Wright (1928-1980). It is a story of the unexpected realization that comes in a flash. When your heart is pierced to the core of life, the walls of separation crumble. (Susan Nettleton)
March 5, 2021
Yesterday, my household celebrated Butterfly Day--a made-up household event that has come about through the Pandemic. I wrote about our first Butterfly Day in a June 5, 2020 post where I explained the process of ordering caterpillars from an area monarch butterfly farm and carefully caring for them until they form their cocoons and undergo their transformative process, bursting forth with wings and flashes of color. We were able to hatch 2 'families' of the Monarchs until the late summer fires further devastated the butterfly population that spends fall and winter along the coast of California.
Western monarchs fly long miles from the Pacific Northwest to central and southern California each November and the entire cycle of migration from north to south and returning again, can take up to five generations to complete, since new butterflies are hatched from eggs that are laid on the return trip north. In the 1980's the estimate of these migrating beauties along the coast was 4.5 million. But by 2017, the numbers plummeted to 200,000, then 30,000 in 2018. Last November-December the count totaled only 2,000. While the numbers are staggering, data from other areas of the country show positive shifts in migration eastward, possibly due to changing climate features. There is much for science to learn. The monarch butterfly has become a “flagship” species, representing the need to do more for the conservation of all pollinators nationwide. The Western Association of Fish and Wildlife Agencies (WAFWA) that include Washington, Oregon, California, Idaho, Utah, Arizona, and Nevada have now put in place a regional monarch butterfly plan that includes goals and actions for those that winter along the California coast and breed throughout the west.
Yesterday, we celebrated our new monarchs as symbols of the beauty and richness of life and our mutual dependence. We released them with great fan fare, music, and delight. They are one of the gifts of the Pandemic. In the restrictions of this Pandemic, we added only another 5 monarchs, but we all, even the youngest toddlers, grew in our capacity to care for life. Yes, there is grave responsibility facing humanity and our changing planet, but there is also great joy in a newfound relationship with the cycles of life in all of it's forms. (Susan Nettleton)
March 7, 2021
Today's Sunday post is a link to Jack Correu's latest article from our website. He brings us back to the winter crisis in Texas with the reminder that our healing is interwoven with Nature and even though we lose sight of that, we are never outside the web of life that cares for all. Follow the link to read, "Frozen at the Little Shack".
March 9, 2021
Hope you can attend attend our online Sunday Service for Hillside Church--
Susan Nettleton is inviting you to a scheduled Zoom meeting
Topic: A Path of Movement and Rest
Time: Mar 28, 2021 11:00 AM Mountain Time (US and Canada)
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March 11, 2021
Today, is Maha Shivratri, which literally translates to "great night of Shiva", a Hindu festival in India celebrating Lord Shiva, one of the principle deities of Hinduism. It is also personally memorable to me because of a spiritual breakthrough that I experienced, years ago, on Maha Shivratri. In "The Garland of Guru's Sayings" a collection of poetic stanzas from the sayings of Ramana Maharshi by Guru Vachaka Kovai, there is this notation "S(h)iva, the Lord who dances in darkest midnight, stands for the Awareness which sees both light and its absence."
As we watch areas of the country where Covid-19 cases are dropping and yet grapple with the potential for resurgence at any time, it seems to me fitting to share one of these stanzas on Maha Shivratri, 2021. (Susan Nettleton)
28. The Jiva's Unreality Not at all by one's own effort, But by the light of Grace alone, Pure gift of God supreme, can one Behold the light that shines in darkness, The bliss of being Awareness true. Even mid the darkness of the world.
March 14, 2021
Over the last few days, there have been many commentaries and articles on the 1 year anniversary of the Pandemic in America. While the review process is an important aspect of healing and recovery, it is still very difficult after this year of uncertainty and turmoil to digest and assimilate all that has happened. We need time. We see a light toward the end, but the Pandemic is not over. One way to affirm a positive movement to our lives now is adding the element of gratitude to our review. This doesn't mean ignoring or suppressing the memories of fear, sadness, and anger. Rather it means adding balance by considering the aspects of the last year that have brought us meaning, depth, a new perception of ourselves and others, and our spiritual life. I am sure each of us has had our own personal 'gifts' of the Pandemic. These grow stronger through our gratitude.
This Sunday, I am leading you to a prose-poem from Contemporary American poet Maya Stein who offers a gentle future vision of such gratitude. Follow the link below. (Susan Nettleton)
March 19, 2021
This week I entered a nearby, local grocery market for the first time in a year. I have been ordering online groceries for pickup during the L.A. County Safer at Home Orders. Now, I am past the 2 week wait after my 2nd vaccine dose and this was the action I chose to mark that turning point. The market requires masks, of course, and follows the limit of 25% capacity, and I really missed picking out my own fresh local produce--that's why I chose this particular venture out. I had planned to only grab a few things aa a first experiment in new "freedom" but when I entered I was overwhelmed by what used to seem like a few options (compared to chain groceries) and now seemed to be the land of plenty! So I lingered a bit, digesting this reality and noting my responses to those well-stocked shelves.
My fellow customers were all solitary older shoppers who mostly observed social distancing. The atmosphere was quiet and focussed but not tense. Still I found myself watchful. I over-bought, later realizing that part of me still expects another lock-down. I considered walking across the street to a nearby coffee shop that does not offer drive through but has online ordering and relatively easy pick up. But after loading the groceries in the car and briefly meditating in the parking lot a bit, I realized this one step back into the community was enough for the day. I was flooded with the awareness of the silent impact of the Pandemic beyond the unfathomable death count and the hospital crises, the violent protests, the closed schools, and social isolation, there is this accumulation of small disruptions in daily rhythms, rituals, and routine.
I write this as a snap shot of re-opening. I believe no one in this culture has escaped some degree of trauma during this Pandemic. Whether we deny it or not, re-entry and reopening is tricky. Take your time. Complete the vaccination process. Observe your own responses--not in judgement but in self-discovery. Trust you inner directive. Let Life lead your way. Then walk through the open door. (Susan Nettleton)
March 21, 2021
Starting with the idea of doors beginning to open (from my March 19 post), I recalled this poem from Lao Tzu's classic Tao te Ching. Here we discover a deeper spiritual aspect of the Pandemic-- not re-opening business and society, but the opening to existence itself--wonder unto wonder. (Susan Nettleton)
follow the link: https://www.awakin.org/read/view.php?tid=475
March 26, 2021
Here is your reminder for this Sunday's Zoom Service!
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Topic: A Path of Movement and Rest
Time: Mar 28, 2021 11:00 AM Mountain Time (US and Canada)
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March 28, 2021
For this Sunday, I am posting one of the poems I read this morning. Contemporary American poet Jane Hirshfield, gives us a Zen perspective on today's topic of movement and rest.
Follow the link: http://inwardboundpoetry.blogspot.com/.../233-door-jane...
April 2, 2021
Today is Good Friday, a holy day in Christianity, marking the crucifixion of Jesus in the unfolding story of Easter and Resurrection. There are many ways to touch the spiritual significance of Easter and our focus at Hillside has often been on one of the last recorded phrases of Jesus as he suffered on the cross, "Father forgive them for they know not what they do." In the various ways of interpreting His final seven phrases that are included in the Bible (recorded by different disciples), this phrase is listed first. These words mark a powerful place to begin to heal when we have reached the limits of our own personal suffering and seek spiritual sustenance, understanding, guidance, and new/renewed life. Throughout the Pandemic, I have been led back to this powerful spiritual principle and practice. Good Friday forgiveness, led by the guidance of your own heart, clears your emotional/mental fields, leaving fertile ground for the seeds of new life. Open wide and forgive. "Just for today." (Susan Nettleton)
April 9, 2021
"We shall not cease from exploration, and the end of all our exploring will be to arrive where we started and know the place for the first time." T.S. Eliot
Yesterday, I had my first post-vaccine lunch with friends, who have also completed their vaccination process. We live in different cities and have several years of history of meeting up half-way, whenever I am in the Los Angeles area. It has been a long time, well over a year, since I have driven the one and a half hour route to the mid-point city. I have only rarely driven outside the immediate neighborhood during the strict stay-at-home orders in LA County. Now I had to think in the way of "travel" that once was second nature to me, but had become a shadowy memory in the daily pressures of a Pandemic household. I rummaged through boxes and found a small travel bag for my spare mask, hand sanitizer, paper towels, phone charger, etc. I slowly reviewed the route on the computer, which involved shifting exits for I-210, Hwy. 57, Hwy. 71, Hwy. 91 to I-15. (Southern California commutes simply can't be compared to New Mexico. ) I watched with wonder my clouded process of organizing what I needed. Then there was the challenging chore of finding something appropriate to wear...my daily crocs and jeans did not seem "special" enough for this journey...
I write all this just to make the point that as restrictions lift, the transition zone is not automatic. We have all been jolted into new routines and demands. Vaccination, as the public health officials frequently remind us, means some recovered freedom, but also the continued responsibility of self-protection and community protection of the unvaccinated.
The drive itself was strange, alternating between surreal and familiar. There was plenty of California traffic, but still, less than previous years. Our favorite comfortable restaurant was gone, but we found a perfect outdoor dining, mask promoting spot. These are friends whose spiritual journeys intertwine with mine. Reconnecting was immediate, giving a solid spiritual perspective to our Pandemic experiences. We laughed a lot, even as we exchanged the deeper issues of our lives. It was so natural. Yet, I watched my own uncertainty flare as we tried to keep the health protocols in place while exploring new places. Constant vigilance seems the new natural too. In the late afternoon, we discovered the perfect bakery--all protocols in place and heavenly treats as well! I drove those winding freeways home, renewed in spirit, ready to begin again. (Susan Nettleton)
April 11, 2021
For this Sunday's post, I am offer a link to a short poem by contemporary American poet Danna Faulds. As we move through this divided corridor of Covid-19 vaccination hope and resurgent/mutations fear, this poem is a reminder that we grow from the Earth but the Earth extends from the Cosmos and therefore, so do we. How can we know and hold to that knowledge, how do we draw our strength from that? All of nature shouts the way, including our own voice. (Susan Nettleton)
April 16, 2021
Today, I hesitated as I approached this Facebook post. The news is a confusing, mixed, mish-mosh of description, interpretations and opinions. Are we moving forward beyond the Pandemic, or are we at a standstill, or are we regressing into new and dark surges? It seems to depend right now on location, the prevalence of variants, politics and of course, unknown/undiscovered factors. So I decided to randomly pickup a book for another source of inspiration. (In a world of synchronicity, is there such a thing as randomness?) I opened a text, published in 1980, "A Buddhist Spectrum: Contributions to Buddhist-Christian Dialogue, by Marco Pallis. My eye landed on this passage, pg. 89) "...Buddhas are normally shown as seated upon a lotus, that serene flower resting on the waters of possibility and thereby evocative of the nature of things...". That one phrase was enough, "resting on the waters of possibility and thereby evocative of the nature of things..." The world, life itself is a continual creative process. Every situation, every event is the flowing water of possibility. Can we "rest" on the waters of the creative, cultivate the serenity latent within ourselves, wait until the nature of the thing, the way, the highest and best possibility reveals itself? The waters of positive possibilities are everywhere. Begin just where you are right now, the parameters of your day, your "world". It's the perfect time to affirm the Good, arising now. (Susan Nettleton)
April 18, 2021
For this Sunday I am posting a link to a portion of the poem "Vacillation" by 20th century Irish poet William Butler Yeats. This is a reminder that a spiritual door can open suddenly, wherever you are and often when least expected. Even though that awakened state may be brief, the impact is life changing. In such a moment, we realize the underlying reality that our lives are "blessed" and in turn, with this discovery the way opens for us to "bless" the world around us. We are an aspect of the ongoing creation of Good. As the Pandemic continues to bring devastation to large parts of the world, this is a time to consider your own capacity to bless and be blessed. That may seem to be unrealistic fantasy, but as another poet, Alfred Tennyson wrote in the 19th century:
"More things are wrought by prayer Than this world dreams of. Wherefore, let thy voice Rise like a fountain for me night and day. For what are men better than sheep or goats That nourish a blind life within the brain, If, knowing God, they lift not hands of prayer Both for themselves and those who call them friend? (Morte D' Arthur)
Why not share your blessings and prayers as much as you can this Sunday? Don't wait until an extraordinary moment. Sometimes it is the best way to find yourself lifted beyond preoccupation with your own situation and entering the door to a new awakening. (Susan Nettleton)
follow the link: https://www.poetryireland.ie/.../view/from-vacillation
April 22, 2021
Today is Earth Day. This year Earth Day includes America's Global Climate Summit, with 40 world leaders assembling online to discuss the urgency and economics of climate change, as well as Earth Day's 51st annual program and events, initiated by earthday.org. (Streaming programs this year). The thematic focus of this year's program is Restore Our Earth. It's a fitting theme as the Pandemic continues it's global spread, with new crises erupting in some countries, while others enter the path of recovery, and we all race to vaccinate the worlds' population. In this 50 year tradition, Earth Day has been a time to appreciate humanity's connection to the Earth as well as promoting awareness of our environmental changes and threats.
The idea of "Restore Our Earth" encourages the application of natural processes in restoring ecosystems, along with emerging green technology and innovating thinking. With over a billion people in 192 countries participating, this is a day of creative, affirmative energy and a call to personal as well as collective action. Take a little time today to reflect that you too have some part to play in this Restoration. Even small actions bring you into a new kind of communion with the earth and with those who work with global projects on a much larger scale. Spiritually though, a greater discovery awaits--as we are in the world, so too, the world lies within us. We are more than of the earth; the earth resides in us. Restoring our Earth requires action in the physical world, but the deeper spiritual mystery is restoring Earth's home in our hearts. (Susan Nettleton)
"I only went out for a walk and finally concluded to stay out till sundown, for going out, I found, was really going in."
-John Muir (Scottish-American environmentalist, 1838-1914)
April 25, 2021
This week, amid the world acknowledgment of Earth Day and the urgent call for countries to enact new policies in the face of climate change and ecological shifts, the Pandemic has taken a grave turn in India as well as Brazil. Here I offer poems from both countries, as a reminder that we are, as one world, in this Pandemic together. (Susan Nettleton)
"Eternal Life" by Contemporary Brazilian poet (1935 - ) Adelia Prado, translated by Ellen Dore Watson, from Ex-Voto, Tupelo Press, 2013
Half a century.
The weight of that word used to send me straight to bed.
No more. I’m gathering wisdom. Alchemists aren’t law breakers — sure, they’re naïve sometimes like the saints,
believing in stones, fish seen in dreams,
signs written on the sky. Where is God?
April is reborn out in the cosmos,
in the most perfect silence.
Inside and outside of me. +++++++++++++
Excerpt from "Harmony" # 22, pg.189-190, "The Garland of Guru's Sayings, the Guru Vachaka Kovai by Sri Muruganar, tr. by Prof. K. Swaminathan (poetic rendition of the teachings of Sri Ramana Maharshi (1879-1950)
...Whatever creed you may believe in, Turn inward with true faith, live up To it, instead of setting out To hate and attack the faith of others. Giving up sundry controversies...choose the best, Self-knowledge. Make your tapas (spiritual disciplines) ripe, Meditate on God and win His grace. While mind exists, creeds too exist. When mind turns inward in Self-quest And gets caught up in the heart, no creed Can in that peace serene survive.
April 28, 2021
Susan Nettleton is inviting you to a scheduled Zoom meeting. Hope you can attend!
Topic: Faith as Trust (Part II, Movement & Rest)
Sunday, May 16, 2021. Time: 11:00 a.m. Mountain Time
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May 1, 2021
As we enter May 2021, much is changing in U.S. with the Pandemic. We have been through many previous changes, much upheaval and tragedy, as well as extraordinary scientific breakthroughs and human acts of courage and self-giving. With the amazing vaccine roll-out, Covid-19 cases across the country are falling (but not in all states) and the Covid-19 "rules" are changing. Far from perfect, the fact that we have vaccines at all, in such a short time period, produced under extreme social conditions, is to me amazing--as of April 29, CDC reports a total of 237, 360, 493 vaccines have been administered. That breaks down to 143,793,565 (43%) people with one shot and 99,668,945 fully vaccinated. Yesterday and today more are added, even if the numbers are slowing down. As cases drop, the recommendations loosen.
While the new recommendations for people who are vaccinated are liberating for some, for others, particularly for those who work, visit or live with children, they are confusing. We may be able to be outdoors without masks, but it is never clear whether those without masks have been vaccinated or not. Children as yet cannot be vaccinated. Over age 2, they need to wear masks outside the household. That's a skill that must be practiced and learned. Masks remain essential for those who are immune compromised and must take exceptional precautions. In addition, we are all warned to continue to wear masks in "crowds". What is the definition of a crowd? (My rule of thumb is that I am in a crowd when I cannot maintain social distancing of 6 ft., but in some situations, social distancing is now defined as 3 ft. In a brief pinch, I'll use 3 feet, but maybe it's more prudent to just wear a mask...) This dilemma is compounded by the ambiguous message of the more transmissible variants, the surges in specific states in the U.S. and the overwhelming global spread across the globe, most particularly today in India with it's variant. The scientific research about transmission, immunity and vaccines on the newest variants is still in process and not yet clear.
We have been at this point of confusion before. Overall for the U.S., the news is positive. It's important to remember that because, spiritually, we can choose to focus on the Good, while doing our best to protect ourselves and others. At the same time, when our public protocols begin to become foggy, it's time to tune-in to our intuitive leanings, on the deepest level we can access. Each situation is different and we need to approach it with refreshed awareness. Eventually the confusion will lift. Time and experience with new knowledge, accumulated through research, as well as public and communal reflection, will clear the way. In the meantime, stay with your moments of prayer and meditation. And above all, listen to the inner directive. (Susan Nettleton)
May 2, 2021
or this Sunday's post, I am sharing a link for a poem by Sufi poet Sanai Hakim (Afghanistan 1050-1113). I am choosing this poem because it has the feel of visionary insight and at the same time is like the opening of a fantasy tale and spiritual journey. The time of Covid-19 easily leads to murkiness, or we can use the modern term "brain fog". Why not let that fog paradoxically open visionary doors? Perhaps even now we are in the spiritual "fire" of new life. (Susan Nettleton)
https://www.poetry-chaikhana.com/.../Thenthrought/index.html
May 6, 2021
If you have not yet turned in prayer today for our country and our world, take the time now to join in the National Day of Prayer in America. Just let the words flow from you, or if not words, silent blessings in the spirit of letting go to the Highest and Best you envision. As American Poet, Mary Oliver,reminds us in her poem"Praying", begin by paying attention and let your heart lead. (Susan Nettleton)
follow the link: https://becomingflame.com/2018/01/19/praying-by-mary-oliver/
May 9, 2021
It's Sunday and it's Mother's Day. Mother's Day originally was begun with a link between religious worship services and the honoring of mothers for all that they do in the care of their children and families, and community. Initially, the predominantly Christian idea (in 1908) was for families to attend church services together, in acknowledgement of God's love, expressed through a mother's heart and hands. Over the years, with the growth of mass marketing techniques, Mother's Day became commercialized. On one hand, this diminished the religious meaning. On the other hand, the tradition spread to become an multi-international recognition of the role of mothers. Eventually, Mother's Day leveraged recognition of the crucial role that father's play in human culture with the establishment of Father's Day.
The larger cultural, intentional, conscious reflection on our mothers--our own, societies', and indeed Divine Mothers--is a wondrous example of how consciousness itself grows and expands. The process can be painful for some. It can easily get diluted and tainted with issues of materialism and profit, as well as personal emotions of obligation, rivalry and disappointment. Yet overall, in honoring one level of mothering, we have opened the door to a deeper understanding that life takes care of life. There are layers to our relationship with our mothers, because we are all complex and even mysterious beings, just as there are layers to our understanding of Divine or Transcendent Love and Care. Divine Mothers exist in all spiritual traditions and in the human heart as well--male or female. (Susan Nettleton)
For further contemplation, follow the link below: https://megansspark.blogspot.com/.../they-say-she-is... (Contemporary American poet, Judy Grahn)
May 14, 2021
Here is your reminder for this Sunday's Zoom Service!
Susan Nettleton is inviting you to a scheduled Zoom meeting. Hope you can attend!
Topic: Faith as Trust (Part II, Movement & Rest)
Sunday, May 16 11:00 A.M. (Mountain Time), 10:00 A.M. (Pacific Time)
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May 16, 2021
I am posting late this Sunday night. In this morning's talk I spoke of rest as nourishment and sleep as the point of rest when we are our most vulnerable selves. Because we are vulnerable and defenseless, we are the most open to spiritual nourishment, healing, and restorative energy. So tonight I offer the link the Rilke poem I read this morning: You Darkness. (Susan Nettleton)
https://www.maryreynoldsthompson.com/.../unc.../you-darkness
May 22, 2021
I have spent the week watching and reading developments on the CDC's Covid-19 announcement that those who are vaccinated no longer need to wear masks or social distance, except in very crowded situations, in public transportation, and in the case of the immune compromised. The non-vaccinated are advised to continue wearing masks. On Sunday, I spoke a bit about the announcement in terms of trust as an aspect of faith. I also spoke of my multi-generational household and our decision to continue current mask practices. because young children have no vaccine as yet. The week has brought a cross current of opinions and state announcements, stirring confusion and controversy. Still, Covid-19 case rates continue to decline.
Vaccinations are now at the forefront of public health outreach, while we face daily news of catastrophic Covid-19 spread across the globe. Research has shown that this vaccines are powerfully protective. No vaccine is 100% effective. We know this from years of annual flu vaccines. What we don't really have is data that shows how much additional protection mask wearing would provide in a population that has partial or the majority vaccinated. We do know that the 2020-2021 flu season saw the number of flu hospitalizations and deaths plummet. This is attributed to masks, social distancing and people staying home when ill. The new Covid-19 recommendations are meant to spur more people to follow through, be vaccinated, and then be mask free. There is some hope among medical practitioners that we have learned to use masks and other health prevention that could continue to be practiced when needed and benefit public health, even when the Pandemic is gone.
In America after 2020, trust is not automatic, but without some amount of trust, we cannot progress. Trust on a human level is one thing, but trust on a spiritual level brings the idea of faith. Trust is an aspect of faith. The idea of trust includes the question who or what are you trusting? Life requires some degree of trust. As a culture, we are now sorting out whether or not we can trust that non-vaccinated people will wear masks and that those who do not wear masks have indeed been vaccinated. Since a certain amount of the population have refused to wear masks all along, or greatly resisted, wearing only when forced, this brings an unusual reckoning with our personal ideas of trust and realistic expectations. With new guidelines, we are given the freedom and responsibility to assess our personal level of risk, the risk we potentially bring to others, and measure our own tolerance for risk after over a year of Pandemic threat.
Trust in something beyond our own efforts is an essential part of faith, especially when sooner or later we find ourselves in situations and pursuits which are beyond our total control. Spiritual clarity begins when you can answer who and what are you trusting. Where is your focal point? What has personally carried you through this Pandemic? For most of us, it is a mix of human support, reliable information, our own intelligence, intuition, experience, and spiritual faith. These may seem separate and at times conflicting, but with deepening understanding, God (or however you name the Un-namable) becomes the overriding, organizing principle of life. Trust that. (Susan Nettleton)
May 23, 2021
For this Sunday's post, I turn to our website blogger Jack Correu and his Little Shack of Insight. Here is a reminder that the world of nature continues to offer it's beauty and delight, even in as we humans struggle with the Pandemic and environmental shifts. We need our day of rest from our inner and outer wrangling. Take time today to be aware of the peak of Spring and it's annual reminder of renewal and awakening. (Susan Nettleton) Follow the link below:
https://hillsidesource.com/.../the-little-forest-sings-by...
May 27, 2021
This week, I crossed a new milestone. I made a dental appointment for an exam. That hardly seems like a milestone, except that it was a symbolic new level of re-entry into PRE post-pandemic life. I am coining the new phrase because the Pandemic is not over, but certainly in California, there is cautious optimism that we are moving beyond it. It's a time of taking stock of what needs to be done, while it can be done--moving forward, but a with sense that the situation could still change--looking backward, yet, each day brings lower case counts and rising vaccinations.
My teeth had been giving me signals to begin my return to a "changing normal" with the dentist. My car gave me signals, too, that it needed a visit to the mechanic. The mechanic responded that his business was swamped by people who now felt free to have things fixed that they had largely ignored over the last year. I have to wait my turn. The dentist squeezed me in, all masking protocols, practical distancing, and sanitation stations well in place. I felt safe, comfortable and reassured. I go back tomorrow for my cleaning.
Different areas of the country, differing populations will have their own pace and so will you as an individual. What is calling you to action? Expect the back and forth movement of returning to life beyond your doorstep, as is the way of all healing. Listen, especially to the calling of self-care. (Susan Nettleton)
May 30, 2021
Tomorrow is Memorial Day, a time to remember, mourn and express gratitude for those who have died in service to America in war. Yet, the weekend has become a time to celebrate the change of season, as spring reaches its fullness and becomes summer, with it's images of outdoor freedom. To the heaviness of war and loss, we have come to add the joy of sharing summer. Last year, that sense of summer brought terrible surges in the Pandemic; hopefully this Memorial weekend will be different. War remains heavy, including our metaphor of war against the Pandemic, and a contemplation of the sacrifices made by first responders, medical staff and essential workers. It all seems a strange mixing of emotions, tragedy, heroics, and celebration. But these polarities can meet in the human reach for meaning. As the American poet Archibald MacLeish wrote his poem "The Young Dead Soldiers Do Not Speak":
"...They say, We leave you our deaths: give them their meaning: give them an end to the war and a true peace: give them a victory that ends the war and a peace afterwards: give them their meaning. "
We are the ones that shape the meaning. We honor the sacrifice by our recognition and gratitude, and by remembering. And we expand that meaning, as we expand spiritually, moving beyond a world that is full of division and conflict, to a mystical revelation of ourselves and those who have sacrificed. Follow the link to America's poet laureate for 2019-2021, Joy Harjo's poem "Remember." (Susan Nettleton)
https://wordsfortheyear.com/.../05/25/remember-by-joy-harjo/
June 6, 2021
For this Sunday, I am posting a quote by Japanese writer Haruki Murakami (1949-current). When I read it, I immediately thought of these times, although it was written in 2002, in his book Kafka on the Shore. Murakami speaks of an internal, metaphysical storm, but his passage to me seemed to perfectly fit this phase of the Pandemic. The storm is really both something that takes place inside us, and something that takes place all around us--a reminder that we are both a part of life, affected by the collective movement, and at the same time, we are the center. It's a worth Sunday meditation. (Susan Nettleton)
"...Because this storm isn't something that blew in from far away, something that has nothing to do with you. This storm is you. Something inside of you. So all you can do is give in to it, step right inside the storm, closing your eyes and plugging up your ears so the sand doesn't get in, and walk through it, step by step...."
"And once the storm is over you won't remember how you made it through, how you managed to survive. You won't even be sure, in fact, whether the storm is really over. But one thing is certain. When you come out of the storm you won't be the same person who walked in. That's what this storm's all about.” Haruki Murakami
June 13, 2021
Sundays offer a tradition of a day set aside for spiritual gratitude, renewal and even repair. As more areas of the country loosen Covid-19 restrictions, we have the opportunity to explore new possibilities for our lives as we balance an ongoing risk with the need to move forward in our lives. I find myself ready to tackle many tasks that were necessarily set aside during the peak months of the Pandemic and seek inner guidance for the best use of this time. As a part of my own re-entry contemplation, I'll continue to post, but for right now, only on Sundays. And I will post the schedule for the next Zoom service here as well. If you would like to be on our e-invitation list for e-mail notification of Zoom services, email the request to: hillsideew@aol.com
Whether Covid-19 will continue to fade or whether it will surge again as it continues to mutate in areas that are resistant to vaccinations, is not clear. But now, it is summer and there is new freedom. Gratitude, renewal and repair seem the order of the day. In that process, as old as mankind, we automatically begin to spin a vision for our future. Let it be filled with Light, Love and Laughter. Below is a passage by Aelred of Rievaulx: England. c. 1110-1167, from Sacred Poems and Prayers of Love, edited by Mary Ford-Grabowsky (1998)-- a reminder of the ageless Divine power of renewal. (Susan Nettleton)
"Just as day declines to evening, so often after some little pleasure my heart declines into depression. Everything seems dull, every action feels like a burden. If anyone speaks, I scarcely listen. If anyone knocks, I scarcely hear. My heart is as hard as flint. Then I go out into the field to meditate, to read the holy Scriptures, and I write down my deepest thoughts as though in a letter to You. And suddenly your grace, O Lord, shatters the darkness with daylight, lifts the burden, relieves the tension. Soon tears follow sighs, and heavenly joy floods over me again."
June 20, 2021
This weekend has marked the first federal recognition of Juneteenth by declaring a federal holiday. The official, public celebration of the end of American slavery in 1863, is a powerful acknowledgement that goes beyond symbolic recognition of equality. It opens the way for the country to heal by a confession of slavery as a part of our history. It gives a reason to 'tell the story' for future generations. It demonstrates that healing comes through truth. It reaffirms mankind's capacity to repent, to grow in understanding, and bring the shadowy into the light. It has taken over 150 years to get to just this point and the turning point came in the pain of the Pandemic.
We all understand that prejudice and race-based injustices still foment here and across the globe. Yet, there is healing here. Here is a fruit of a spiritually-based movement that has pushed human consciousness to expand beyond primitive ideas and emotions to come a bit closer to our capacity for spiritual truth, truth that includes unity in diversity, individuality in inclusiveness, freedom in inter-dependency, redemption and forgiveness. I encourage you to take some time to reflect on the ways of collective consciousness--you are not left out. (Susan Nettleton)
This poem by Persian poet Hafiz (1350-1390) is a place to start. (From "The Soul in Love", ed. by Deepak Chopra, 2001, pg. 52.)
"Blessing"
We are all great rivers flowing to their end Swirling inside us is the silt of ages and creatures and lands And rain that has fallen for millions of years. All this makes us cloudy with mud. Unable to see God. As we struggle for clarity and the open sky The Lord keeps saying the same thing Come to me now and be blessed, Come.
June 26, 2021
Susan Nettleton is inviting you to a scheduled Zoom meeting.
Topic: A God With Heart
Time: Jul 11, 2021 10:00 AM Pacific Time (US and Canada)
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June 27, 2021
Last week, California officially "re-opened" with 70% of the population over age 12 now at least vaccinated with at least one shot. On July 1, New Mexico also plans re-opening with 60% of those over 16, fully vaccinated and 70% of adults with at least 1 shot. Take a moment for amazement and gratitude that human clarity, focus and I believe prayer has made these numbers possible. (The development of vaccines and programs of mass inoculations, this quickly is indeed amazing.) Yes, there are other states doing well and yet others which are not. Still it is incredible, even miraculous, that we have achieved this.
In the push to bring the rest of the country to these turning points and to aid the global catastrophic spread of Covid and new variants, we are again flooded with news reports and scientific and political opinions. Even though, we face these and other ongoing global issues, let today bring a reminder of what we have managed to accomplish, individually, as well as collectively. Take a little time today to quieten all the outer voices for inner listening and guidance. There is a pressure coming from the culture to return to activity, to push for further ground, and to even ignore the time of the Pandemic. Give yourself time outside the field of that pressure, to be grateful, to remember the events of your Pandemic time as it passes and to consider positive possibilities for your life and your community. There are choices facing each of us. Gratitude and the inner directive point our way. Listen. (Susan Nettleton)
Psalm 93, from Steve Mitchell's translation: A Book of Psalms (1993)
God acts within every moment
and creates the world with each breath.
He speaks from the center of the universe,
in the silence beyond all thought.
Mightier than the crash of a thunderstorm,
mightier than the roar of the sea,
is God's voice silently speaking
in the depths of the listening heart.
July 4, 2021
Today is American Independence Day, celebrated as the birth of a new kind of nation, now 245 years old. It's declaration of this independence was carefully crafted to present a clear statement of human rights and freedom as the foundation of a "new experiment" in government.
"We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness."
The process of living these formative ideals over the last 245 years has of course brought need for clarification, amendments, challenges, conflicts, and maturation. Times change and with them their demands. On a human level, we continue to struggle to actually live and demonstrate our highest ideals. As I was reflecting on those struggles over this time of Pandemic and the political upheavals that have come with Covid-19 across the globe, I ran across an essay by one of the early leaders of New Thought, Emmett Fox. His essay was written in 1942, at Christmas, a year after the attack on Pearl Harbor and America's entrance into WWII. Here is an excerpt from his Christmas message:
"Christmas has come around once more, and we find the nation passing through a time of great testing. Today the American people are called upon to prove their faith in God, and in those American principles which are written in our Constitution. The response has been magnificent. Every section of the community has demonstrated its unshakeable resolve to make every effort toward the great Victory that we know will be ours. People do not speak of making "sacrifices" today, for we feel that to forego, temporarily, some of our liberties and some of our comforts, is a privilege and a high honor. Above all...we rejoice in the knowledge that we can help those we love with our prayers, realizing that they 'who dwell in the secret place, abide in the shadow of the Almighty'--and that they can throw the protection of their prayers around their loved ones. "
These words are not about specific facts. This is affirmative prayer in a time of heroism and grave danger for many, and yes, actual sacrifice, not just for this country, but for the world. Here is the practice of claiming the highest spiritual truth that flows from your heart, as a prayerful declaration. Now, we are in a delicate balance on many issues in this country--the Pandemic variants and vaccines, our relationship with the world's nations and populations, and our planet's ecological changes. Consider your personal prayer for your country and community on this 4th of July, 2021. Think of it as a prayerful birthday wish from your heart. What gift of grace do you affirm for America? Speak your word. Amen. (Susan Nettleton)
July 9, 2021
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July 11, 2021
Today I am posting a link to a poem I read at this Sunday's Zoom Service, "A God with Heart". This poem by American poet e.e. cummings sings of heart connection that cuts across the forms of life and weaves them together in the spirit of love and joy. This morning I spoke of Divine Intimacy, the experience of being in close companionship, a heart connection that allows for spiritual love, an exchange between our human identity and the source of our life, as we cultivate a deepening intimacy with God in prayer and meditation. To discover God as Love, especially in overwhelmingly difficult times, we may need to drawer nearer. "Draw near to God, and God will draw near to you." (Bible: James 4:8).
Although in New Thought, we affirm our oneness with God and all of life, Divine intimacy implies some degree of space between us with our human limitations and God as the powerful realm of spiritual possibilities. Theological scholar and writer Evelyn Underhill makes the point, that the space that creates separation is necessary for love. It hit me, reading this poem, that "the wonder that's keeping the stars apart" is that separation. All creation exists because of space, which is separation, and yet... the connection remains. Love binds Creation's parts in the paradox of Wholeness we name God. (Susan Nettleton)
July 18, 2021
Today I want to pull you further into love from a spiritual perspective. Let's consider two quotes from two different spiritual traditions. From the 13th century Sufi poet and Islamic scholar Rumi: “Your task is not to seek for love, but merely to seek and find all the barriers within yourself that you have built against it.”
Then we have Austrian Jewish and Israeli philosopher, Martin Buber who wrote: "Every lock has it's key which fits into and opens it. But there are strong thieves who know how to open locks without keys. They break the lock. So every mystery in the world can be unriddled by the particular kind of meditation fitted to it. But God loves the thief who breaks the lock open: I mean, the man who breaks his heart for God." (Ten Rungs: Collected Hasidic Sayings)
Both of these spiritual writers point us in the same direction; Love already resides in the human heart, but it is hidden and buried behind layers of armor. Each of us have our individual stories of love that include our feelings (and thoughts) toward ourselves, other people (romance, family, deep friendships, strangers), other creatures, life itself, and the spiritual realm. Each disappointing experience, or painful loss or rejection, adds it's own layer of what we accept, consciously or unconsciously, as protection from accumulated pain. But in doing so, we actually have less and less access to Love. We are further and further removed from Love's life enhancing, healing power. We are further removed from the source of creativity and connection. We are less alive, blocked in our capacity to both give and receive.
This time of Pandemic has brought fear, pain, loss and grief. It has also brought new heights of discovery, compassion, and giving. As cases begin to rise again, the pull to withdraw, to return to or remain in a shell of protection, can be strong. Can we lay aside the barriers of our heart, unlocking the power of Love, even as we put on our masks again, follow through with vaccines, and listen for the next step? This time Love can lead. (Susan Nettleton)
July 25, 2021
Friday night in the U.S. was Guru Purnima, seen here in the west as the Buck full moon. The Sanskrit word Guru is derived from the word Gu, meaning ignorance or darkness, and Ru meaning elimination or removal. A Guru is someone who removes ignorance, providing light and knowledge to the student. Purnima is a term for full moon. So Friday night's super moon was also the day to acknowledge, celebrate and offer gratitude for our teachers on various levels in India, Nepal, and Bhutan by Hindus, Jains and Buddhists.
I was reminded of this festival and it's relationship to the summer full moon by texts from two different friends that day. Later in the evening I remembered the moon, and took a peak out my window. The pull to the window was timed perfectly. I saw a huge full moon, absolutely glowing. It was a soft globe, hovering over the tops of pine trees lining the street. The sky had just a bit of ivory haze, further softening the face of the moon and highlighting a dramatic portrait: large mellow round eyes, a long slightly slanted, bent nose, and a mouth in a gentle smile. Heaven's beneficence was smiling at the earth in these times of great need. I thought of centuries of tribes, communities and lone travelers who had seen such moons and how natural it was to feel it as alive, as a watchful presence. That night the moon was powerfully magnetic and magnificent.
On Saturday, I started receiving texts from others sharing their moon stories--all with the same amazement and spiritual wonder. Even though living in different time zones, and looking from different angles and viewpoints, it was as though we had unknowingly met one another at that moon. And despite our collective struggles with the Pandemic, weather disasters, climate change, and political conflicts, the skies offered humanity support. I knew in other areas of the globe, the Guru Purnima festivals were being celebrated. Gratitude was the feeling of the day.
A Zen story, from Paul Reps' classic "Zen Flesh, Zen Bone" came to mind: Ryokan, a Zen master, lived the simplest kind of life in a little hut at the foot of a mountain. One evening a thief visited the hut only to discover there was nothing to steal. Ryokan returned and caught him. “You have come a long way to visit me,” he told the prowler, “and you should not return empty-handed. Please take my clothes as a gift.” The thief was bewildered. He took the clothes and slunk away. Ryokan sat there, watching the moon. “Poor fellow,” he mused, “I wish I could have given him this beautiful moon.”
The moon, like the sun, is available to us all--expressions of the great mystery and beauty of life. They too are our teachers, our Gurus. Why not spend some time with them, drinking their light? (Susan Nettleton)
August 1, 2021
This morning I am reflecting on a short message written by Emmett Fox, called "Raise the Shades". In it, he uses the classic New Thought analogy for finding the Good of Life and a path to spiritual healing: you do not fight with darkness. Whether "darkness" is the idea of evil, or some difficulty or illness that is a source of anxiety, or a dark view of your life and your relationships, deep faith places it's attention on the Good that underlies life. "When you switch on the light in a room you do not have to chase the shadows out through the door or window. The light floods the room, and all is well, for darkness is not an entity; it is only the absence of light". (Emmett Fox)
Over the course of the Pandemic, I have written many times on "feeding" the light. Emmett Fox moves us beyond any sense that we must put forth personal prayer effort to "create" light. That would be like sitting in a dark house with every window closed and shades pulled down, while we work to make the sun shine brighter, so the rooms too will be brighter. Rather, the teaching has always been that the Good that we are seeking is here. Our prayer and spiritual practice is to lift the shades and open the windows of our minds and hearts to the Light all around us. This doesn't deny our opportunities to participate in society and cultures' attempts to better the conditions of the world through scientific breakthroughs and medical advances, through social reform and avenues of justice, and through challenging our human destruction of nature and our environment; it means the source of our direction, creativity, and progress is spiritual Light in an ongoing process of God's unfolding Good.
This Sunday, pull up the shades and open the windows. Yes, today may be extraordinarily hot--all the more reason to grasp the metaphor of Light. (Susan Nettleton)
For poetic contemplation on opening your window follow the links:
August 8, 2021
This morning I am reflecting on our capacity to say "Yes". As the Pandemic turns from 'fading out' to resurgence, with the Delta variant rapidly spreading, those who have refused vaccination put not only themselves at great risk, but also contribute to greater risk for children and the immune compromised. And with rising cases, potentially even more threatening mutations can emerge. The right to say 'yes' or 'no' continues as a political debate with serious consequences.
This Sunday though, consider a larger spiritual perspective on yes and no. To say "yes" to something automatically brings with it a "no" to something else--an aspect of duality or the opposites inherent in the world. Developmentally, infants first individuate by learning to say no; refusal is the beginning of separation and autonomy. Some people struggle with autonomy their whole life, but over time, most of us mature and learn the joy inherent in "yes", while maintaining our ability to say "no". Yes and no are relevant spiritually when it comes to our choices in the world. As Lao Tzu says in The Tao te Ching (No. 38, Witter Bynner trans.)
..."False teachers of life use flowery words
And start nonsense.
The man of stamina stays with the root
Below the tapering,
Stays with the fruit
Beyond the flowering:
He has his no and he has his yes."
When we enter the spiritual life, we have our 'no' to distractions and conflicts that confuse or undermine our spiritual intent. We have our 'yes' to spiritual practice and guidance. Eventually though, the spiritual life is not about autonomy, it is about surrender. As the great statesman Dag Hammarskjöld put it: “I don't know Who — or what — put the question, I don't know when it was put. I don't even remember answering. But at some moment I did answer Yes to Someone — or Something — and from that hour I was certain that existence is meaningful and that, therefore, my life, in self-surrender, had a goal.”
I personally had such an experience after many early spiritual experiences -- choice points and turning points; some were times of clarity and some were times of struggle, but this one clearly stands out as the moment Hammarskjöld describes. It was an overwhelming energy entering my heart as a question. It was not a question I can articulate, but it was asking permission, and this time there was no doubt. My heart answered, "Yes."
Only after that "yes", can we move pass the autonomous "no", and say as Hammarskjöld said:
“For all that has been, Thanks. To all that shall be, Yes.”
August 15, 2021
Look upward! It's been a rough week for news: the surging Pandemic, vaccine and mask refusal, the devastating Dixie fire, the U.N. Climate report and international upheavals. I sought my own freedom from the collective burden by heading outside. While on an evening walk, I turned onto a neighborhood street with pines at least 4 stories high. Despite the recent heat, they were thriving. Most bore newly sprouted short branches up and around the lower trunks. The short new growth sprouted vibrant green needles, making the trees resemble gigantic bottle brushes. In a flash, I saw the unrelenting and reassuring resilience of nature. But my eyes only briefly hovered there; instead, the magnetic view pulled my vision upward. It was a moment of gratitude and peace for such beauty and power in these times of human struggle. I felt awe.
The ancient idea of God (or gods) above in Heaven and humanity below on Earth, remains a deeply rooted spiritual image despite our knowledge of a round globe, suspended in infinite space, spanning all directions. The image has it's usefulness, reminding humanity of what we do not yet know and more importantly, what we do not control. We understand the meaning of pointing upward to the spiritual level, or letting our eyes gaze upward in prayer, just as we may bow or lower our heads in times of reverence. The western Bible has many references to this upward turning and Jesus, despite his Oneness with God, would publicly pray with eyes turned upward (e.g. John 17:1, 11:41). Physically, the upward gaze can sometimes signal a medical condition, but spiritually, it is part of the human psyche--even if momentary--allowing our humanhood to acknowledge our dependency and faith in something greater than the solitary self. Even when we have assimilated the realization that the Allness of God or Transcendent Good is indeed an inner reality--the actual essence of the self--our upward gaze has its purpose.
In 2015 a research article: "Awe, the Small Self, and Prosocial Behavior" by Paul K. Piff , et. al. was published online by the American Psychological Association. The article describes 5 psychological experiments providing the first experimental evidence that awe creates a diminished sense of individual self and self concern and increases prosocial behavior. One of those experiments measured the effect of awe, generated as the participants stood gazing upward for 1 minute in a grove of towering trees. Unlike the control group which looked up at a building, the tree group reported both an increase in their own ethical behavior and a decrease in their sense of individual entitlement. The underlying dynamic suggests the towering impact of nature shrinks our inflated sense of self importance, pointing us to a broader social context and our place within our community. This shift includes taking action to help others in ways that benefit society as a whole. While further research on awe is now being done that tracks awe in other natural environments beyond "looking upward" (and even through video and virtual reality experiments), my point today brings us back to the immensity of nature, to those living trees.
Sunday is a time for spiritual renewal, which is also your part in the renewal of collective consciousness. We need to nourish our inner life and paradoxically we can find that nourishment outside. Begin with a tree. Look upward. (Susan Nettleton)
For a link to the cited research, click here then scroll to 'Articles and External' links: https://hillsidesource.com/philosophers
For poetic inspiration, follow the link: https://thewellnessalmanac.com/.../when-i-am-among-the...
August 22, 2021
I look behind and after
And find that all is right,
In my deepest sorrows
There is a soul of light
---Swami Vivekananda (1863-1902)
Here yesterday, the sky was overcast-- a cool but gray day, the morning with a slight mist. The dark clouds were followed by a portend of autumn, progressing to a foreboding Pandemic winter. This cloudiness, supported with a weary dose of morning news, spread sluggishness to my thoughts. The news was highlighting tragic stories, mainly of the Covid-19 surges and an array of conflicting opinions, with a tiny sprinkling of encouragement. Yet on a short walk, I found people out and about, friendly and commenting on the refreshing weather! Then it hit me what a blessing this weather was: the cool, humid, cloudy day offered protection where a year ago, fire had exploded and began to creep down the mountain. Elsewhere in the state, firefighters that had battled last year's fire and won, were now expending all their skill and resources to save other communities. I had missed the obvious gift of the weather, while tangled in the Pandemic mood.
I sat down for an hour of meditation to reconcile all this on the inner level. After 47 years of meditation practice, I know the key for me and the key is choice. It's not easy to describe and I think it is better to not describe, especially for those who are new to meditation practice. If you invest the time in practice--by whatever technique--meditation will begin to function and essentially teach you. Too little consistency and that process will dwindle. Too much adherence to technique will sap the natural movement of the process, forcing it along unnatural paths. For me now, meditation involves a shift from 'ordinary, in-the-world consciousness' to 'expansive conscious' (although to name either is misleading), and this shift, as a practice, is a choice. There are other circumstances where choice is not the right word, but for daily practice it is. Yesterday, I teetered between the gloomy morning and the morning of grace, until I was ready to let go of the world's struggle and accept the grace of the moment.
In the Buddhist Sutras, Buddha gives advice to the monk Sona, who is struggling with monastic spiritual practice. Buddha compares the effort as being like the musical strings of the Indian vina, which are sometimes too tight and sometimes too slack. Buddha: “Now what do you think, Sona. Before, when you were a house-dweller, were you skilled at playing the vina?” Sona: “Yes, lord.”
Buddha: “And what do you think: when the strings of your vina were too taut, was your vina in tune & playable?” Sona: “No, lord.”Buddha: “And what do you think: when the strings of your vina were too loose, was your vina in tune & playable?” Sona: “No, lord.”“And what do you think: when the strings of your vina were neither too taut nor too loose, but tuned to be right on pitch, was your vina in tune & playable?” Sona: “Yes, lord.”
Buddha: “In the same way, Sona, over-aroused persistence leads to restlessness, overly slack persistence leads to laziness. Thus you should determine the right pitch for your persistence, attune the pitch of the faculties, and there take up the object [of meditation].”
When I finished the meditation, the day was lighter. I decided to write this post for Sunday. When I finished this, I looked out to a clear blue sky. (Susan Nettleton)
(gratitude to Bodhipaksa and "real Buddha Quotes")
August 26, 2021
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August 29, 2021
"As soon as you have made a thought, laugh at it"
-Lao Tzu
This weekend I again felt an aura of regression to last summer as the Pandemic surges continue and many hospitals are at crisis points; there are heat waves, fires, a potentially extremely dangerous hurricane in the gulf headed toward New Orleans and the escalating crises in Afghanistan. After filling my head and heart with the news, I opened my front door and sat at the threshold listening to the bird songs mixed with the sound of "fire scouting" LA County drones...followed by stillness. There is peace here. Sometimes, all we need is to move outside our thoughts and let the day speak to us directly. If the day portends a storm, then it's time to seek shelter. But this is not the case here, instead I heard in the bird song, and in the drone (that watchful protector), and in the stillness, the call to prayer.
I decided this Sunday is a good day for a prayer exercise as an aspect of the larger spiritual practice of the Presence of God. This practice dates from a 17th century book written on the teachings of a Carmelite friar called Brother Lawrence. Brother Lawrence entered a Paris monastery after suffering a crippling injury as a soldier during the 30 Years War. In the monastery, he was assigned the role of cook and he remained that the rest of his life. There he developed a spiritual practice of continual prayer as he went about his pots and pans, fulfilling his duties. His friend, Father Joseph de Beaufort, kept letters and records of his conversations with Brother Lawrence and over time compiled them into the book: "The Practice of the Presence of God". It is now a spiritual classic, 500 years later.
Brother Lawrence's spiritual mastery developed over years of monastic life in the face of the hardships of the 17th century. In previous posts, I have written of practices that flow from his teachings, but the events surrounding today, this last Sunday in August, seem to call for a particular form-- a prayer vigil made of momentary, spontaneous prayers whenever you catch your thoughts headed in "the wrong direction". It's not about a strained vigilance of your thinking, but more of a reassuring practice, guided by emotions. Fear, frustration, sadness, anger, despair can all intrude on your day, arising from infinite, varying concerns--from the personal level to the larger issues of the community, country and world, ranging from minor glitches in your day to looming threats of the Pandemic and other disasters. Follow your feelings when they tug at you. Behind those feelings are thoughts. Thoughts in the moment can be changed to prayerful thoughts. Momentary prayerful thoughts, when captured with our attention and intention, accumulate to reaffirm our spiritual ground. The practice begins to open new possibilities and our own spiritual potential. The possibilities and potentials of one individual, includes the possibility and potential of all in the Wholeness of life. Leave room for that.
These are not long, involved, well-thought-out prayers or affirmations. This is meant as a simple, momentary practice in invoking the spiritual life as you drop your emotional shadows. And it is more. Prayer is a lifting of consciousness. Prayer is freshness of life. Prayer is healing. (Susan Nettleton)
September 5, 2021
For this Sunday post on Labor Day weekend, I am considering a teaching from Hinduism, "Work is Worship." Like many issues in a pluralistic society, the history of Labor Day and it's evolution is complex. It is meant to honor American workers for the contribution they have made in building and sustaining the country and has now become a way to culturally close the summer season with get-togethers and travel. The Pandemic brings a renewed recognition of our collective dependency on workers (from so many different roles) who have courageously kept life moving forward. Tomorrow's Labor Day is a time to reflect on the vast field of American workers. Today though, consider the practice of our own work as worship. This idea is presented in the spiritual classic, Bhagavad-Gita, described as the essence of the Upanishads, the Sanskrit philosophical texts which form the foundations of Hinduism.
There are layers and varying interpretations to "work as worship". Some teachings interpret this as meaning that in true devotion to God, you can have no expectation of any return or reward, personal gain or acknowledgement for your labor. This extreme can create inner conflict and an unrealistic servitude for those trying to live "selflessly". It also can impose a mis-interpreted religious concept that undermines fair, healthy work conditions and the basic human dignity that comes with working in and for society. Elevating work to a form of worship does not mean sacrificing basic human needs. In instructing his disciples on the work that they were to do in their world--healing, teaching and lifting others from their burdens, Jesus told them to receive what support they were offered: "... for the laborer is worthy of his hire".
The 15th century Telugu poet, Bammera Pothana, wrote, "Work is worship. But also worship will help us in doing our work properly." This means when work is understood as a form of worship, we lay the spiritual ground of daily life. We shift personal focus to our role in the wholeness of life, the mystery of life, while dedicating our activity to a spiritual recognition of, and devotion to, that which sustains us and life around us. It is a shifting of consciousness from personal, separate struggle to the larger transcendent reality, however we envision that. This opens a door to new meaning and from that meaning comes new understanding, strength and competency. That is our spiritual ground. That is worship.
Emmett Fox lends further meaning with his definition that worship is confidence. Work as worship has the added dimension of confidence in God and our Oneness with God so that we can let go of fear, doubt, and resentment in work and move through our day assured that things are working toward the greatest possible outcome. Work becomes spiritual practice and we are worthy of our hire. (Susan Nettleton)
for a poetic reflection of workers, follow the link: https://www.poetryoutloud.org/poem/to-be-of-use/
September 10, 2021
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September 12, 2021
For this Sunday's message, I am posting a portion of my Zoom talk on the "Wonder and Trouble of Things." The complete Zoom recording will be available later in the month at hillsidesource.com along with various audio recordings of my previous talks and older talks by Dr. Larry Morris. Here I am addressing one of the areas of "Things" that cause confusion and conflict between the material world's agenda and spiritual teachings.
Spiritually we have centuries of traditions that have made and revered sacred objects, ceremonial objects, that represent, embody, invoke or at least remind us of God, and divine intervention. At the same time, religious teachings warn of the corrupting power of things and the desire for 'things' that undermine spiritual values. The concern is that Spiritual values are undermined when we place the highest value on what we own and our greatest attachments are to those 'things'. With the current climate crisis, 'things' have suddenly take on a serious material tone--the harm that the material does to the natural, the ecosystem. The spiritual trouble, isn't so much an issue of the object itself, but rather our relationship to it. The value of a thing is subjective; it depends on your point of view and the meaning you give to it. Values are shaped by more that our subjective experience, values are set in the marketplace and in the collective, in institutions that include religion. This sets up dualistic value conflicts. God is "All that is", and yet, "all that is" is not considered of value. If society has an underlying belief that all things belong to the Source, then the idea of personal ownership itself is called into question. In Society, the idea of ownership is extremely important. Being clear on laws and rules of ownership actually does decrease conflict. It doesn't help so much with envy or resentment but it can make ownership clear and goods more manageable; the owner has final control. Spiritually, when you can freely give of what society or your yourself think belongs to you exclusively, the act of giving itself, is a breaking through the separation between you and other, yes, but more importantly between you and God, or you and the continual flow of all that is necessary for your life. Instead of the concept of ownership, we have the idea of Stewardship. You are the human channel through which your piece of the world is managed, responsibly, inline with your spiritual principles and the laws of your society.
Follow the link below to a poem on Things by Jane Hirschfield
September 19, 2021
This Sunday, I am reflecting on the potential of our casual interactions with other people. Yesterday morning in a spontaneous text, I said, " I am headed out to adventure!" Actually, I was only planning a morning neighborhood walk and possibly coffee, but at that moment, I decided to walk to the local library to get a library card. I had considered this for weeks, but buried the ideal under a pile of other tasks. Within a few minutes, I had broken through inertia, printed out the form, grabbed my ID and mask and was out the door. These walks are often a revelation--after months and months of Pandemic isolation with only family, followed by vaccine excitement and "opening back up" in spring and early summer and then an abrupt return of surges and renewed mandates, neighborhood walks have become a reality check on community spirit.
The streets were lively, with both the masked and unmasked, parents with strollers, and bicyclists. As I wove in and out of social distancing, particularly around the youngest who have yet to have vaccines, I realized that my movements and those around me, were their own form of messaging. The mask I wore said: "I take the Pandemic and community health seriously", as the walk among the shops and outdoor restaurant tables said, "I am trusting we will get through this time and there is much to enjoy even now". I felt--not thought--similar messages from those out and about. Here, all businesses very clearly require masks so conflict is usually removed in advance. It's understood that outdoor masks are optional (although recommended for the unvaccinated). The library hadn't opened, so I walked to a struggling, independent coffee shop. There, my latte and tip were another message: "your work matters and contributes to the community." I walked outdoors: "staying inside for too long increases risk". I finished the coffee in the nearby park, where masked and unmasked children played, a discussion group for young girls met in a circle, and families wandered about: "outside with others is healthier and we really are in this together." The library staff were pleased to offer a new card and eagerly explained programs and services, while a musician played a piano, and more masked children checked out books: "life and learning go on...".
As the morning unfolded, I became more and more aware of my presence and that of others as a form of affirmative prayer. Prayer is not just something you do with thoughts and words. In illness, in loss or serious trouble, just sitting supportively with someone can be prayer. It is that much more so when done with spiritual awareness. Spiritually, we are participants in collective well-being. We can lift one another or pull downward to collective despair. The human being innately reads the tone of voice, words, feeling states, movements of others and responds. In time of collective trauma and conflict, small things may not seem to matter. But healing is not miraculously instantaneous; it arises from the affirmative movements, words and respect of everyday life. Today is the day to heal. (Susan Nettleton).
September 26, 2021
This Sunday, I am reflecting on a quote by Canadian songwriter and musician Leonard Cohen.(1934-2016):
If you don't become the ocean,
you'll be seasick every day.
Written years before the Pandemic, Cohen captures the essence of the ultimate spiritual solution to the upheaval and anxiety of life in 2021. Though he remained faithful to the practice of Judaism his entire life, he never saw his religion as a block to deep appreciation of other spiritual traditions. He studied Zen for many years, including 5 years in seclusion at Mount Baldy Zen Center, and was ordained as a Buddhist priest. This little proverb is testimony to his years in Zen; yet points to a universal principle.
These years of Pandemic have been as tumultuous as any ocean storm, demanding that we interpret and personally process new information daily--not just regarding our personal or family health but the changing ground that impacts different streams of community and global conditions. While we can override the mounting stressors that toss and turn us, using the vast coping techniques modern life offers us--including daily spiritual practices--we can get caught in a mind set that spirituality is about managing our emotions, managing our anxious/resentful/despairing or resistant thoughts, and/or keeping our physical bodies healthy, tension-free and strong. These are all potentially useful goals, but they fall short of a larger spiritual awakening. We are treating the sea-sickness; when the larger reality reveals we are the ocean.
This takes us to the root of spirituality, Oneness. This is not an abstract, vague idea or belief in the unity of life. This is personal identification with the wholeness of life. You are that ocean that is tossing the massive ships and the people and things within them, up and about. To "become that" is not an act of will or choice or reasoning. You ARE that. The "becoming" is in the recognition. That is why it is called Awakening. (Susan Nettleton)
for further insight, follow the link to "Oceans" by Juan Ramón Jiménez:
September 27, 2021
I am posting two academic opportunities. The first is our call for applications for the 2022 Larry Morris Memorial Scholarship ($2,500 scholarship) for a UNM student with an academic project in the field of mystical/spiritual literature. University of New Mexico graduate students majoring in the field of English Literature or any Language/Literature Department or area relevant to contemporary spirituality/mysticism with a GPA of 3.2 or above may apply. Here's the link to more information and application: hillsidesource.com/scholarship
I am also posting a link to another opportunity for recent university graduates or undergraduates in New Mexico This is a call for applications to a funded 2022 summer residency seminar on "Works on Paper" (prints, drawings and photographs) , funded by the Getty Foundation and the Pomona Benton Museum of Art at Pomona College in Claremont, Ca. The 2 part program includes orientation January 13-14, 2022 and classes, lectures and student project June 6-June 12, 2022, at Pomona and institutions in the greater L.A. area. In addition to all expenses paid, there is $1500 student honorarium. For further info on the program and application follow this link: https://www.pomona.edu/museum/learn/the-allpaper-seminar
October 3, 2021
A few days ago while idly flipping through a cookbook I hadn't opened in years, I discovered a quote by American poet, author and activist, Maya Angelou:
"Each person deserves a day away in which no problems are confronted, no solutions searched for. Each of us needs to withdraw from the cares which will not withdraw from us. We need hours of aimless wandering or spates of time sitting on park benches, observing the mysterious world of ants and the canopy of treetops."
There is a quiet calm to her words. The words are of course partially addressing the world of the writer and poet--or really, any creative spirit. The creative needs the space and time to expand and grow, to take form and reach some plateau of definition, even if it continues to reverberate with ongoing possibilities. Artists and thinkers of every type, even experimental cooks need room to tinker and taste, watch and wonder, without the world and it's demands closing in. But this quote expands that artistic need to all us, "each person". How else can we open to life's larger, immense possibilities that hold unrealized joys and unknown solutions?
As a child, Angelou remained mute for 5 years after a traumatic event. Like most children, she blamed herself. She became fearful of her own voice, refusing to speak. During this long period of traumatic silence, she read and absorbed literature, poetry and new ways of understanding life through quiet observation. A teacher eventually led her to recover her voice by convincing her that she could love poetry more by actually speaking it.
This story gives added depth to the quote above. We don't remain withdrawn; what we gather in, we eventually give expression to in one form or another. Paradoxically, those cares that will not withdraw from us potentially announce a gift, an expansion that we will never discover until we withdraw from them. If not today, choose a day, or even a few hours to be carefree. Go where your trouble and your striving cannot find you. Stop seeking solutions, simply wander aimlessly, sit...watching...listening... receiving. (Susan Nettleton)
October 10, 2021
Today is good day to clear up hindrances. There are of course many varying levels to that call: obstacles to your physical movements, emotional stumbling blocks, the barriers to the fields of ideas and relationships. Intense attachments in all those arenas are likely to entangle our energy in ways that siphon our resolve to live from our highest values that fulfill our deepest needs. That is why spiritual teachings bring our attachments into focus, to be considered in spiritual practice and day to day living. Ultimately, the intent is to acquire the freedom to listen and respond to the promptings of our own inner guiding Intelligence and overseeing Love, accessible to each of us. We can call that God, Spirit, Higher Power, Transcendence--what we call it is not the point; the point is our receptivity and response, that which aligns us with the Good and the unfathomable Whole.
Earlier this week, I ran into what seemed like a critical obstacle in daily life--my internet shut down! All the standard procedures of rebooting and resetting failed. A phone call to the provider did give me the clarity that the modem was working fine, but offered no further help other than through email, which of course I could not access. A quick trip to the local library gave me public access (an essential service for any urban center!). There I was able to discern that my wifi was also fine, but while I could use the public access, my personal internet service was not connecting with my computer. I went home. None of the possible "fixes" I had found worked. My frustration level finally led me back to meditation.
In meditation I realized that there would be a solution, but now it was evening and all of this could wait another day. Contrary to the habitual power of daily routine and rhythm, life really does not depend on the internet, nor on completing my work as planned. I would start again tomorrow. At that moment, a friend texted and I told her of my day of obstacles. Though we do not have the same OS, she shared a similar recent experience, offering what had been her solution: clear the browser history, then restart. And it worked! I had to 'clear the field' of weeks and weeks and weeks of accumulated data. Somewhere, something in that pile had triggered the glitch. Are human minds and personal habits that different?
We have no choice but to trust the way our brains sort and file and connect accumulated bits of information and experiences, retrieving them as necessary. The quiet practice of meditation (as well as natural sleep) allows that process to work more efficiently. But meditation is also a process where we disentangle ourselves from emotional obstacles and false ideas. We see our accumulated history in a new light. We forgive. We let go. And the Light turns back on...(Susan Nettleton)
"You were running well. Who hindered you from obeying the truth?" Galatians 5:7
October 17, 2021
"Life" by Juan Ramón Jiménez
What I used to regard as a glory shut in my face,
was a door, opening
toward this clarity:
Country without a name:
Nothing can destroy it, this road
of doors, opening, one after another,
always toward reality:
Life without calculation!
While everyday carries within it the opportunity for inner realization, there is something to dedicating a time and space for deepening our spiritual reflection, a rhythm and routine. Humanity has discovered and developed countless and conflicting ways of connecting and maintaining a spiritual perspective over the long course of human history. You most likely have experienced a variety of religious/spiritual ideas, ceremonies, rituals, prayer, attitudes and ways of interacting in the course of your life, but sooner or later we settle in with that which nourishes and strengthens us personally. For me, the cornerstone remains meditation which at times melts into prayer and vice-verse.
When reflecting on my own spiritual journey, I can identify a handful of specific experiences that were turning points--points of no return with the spiritual life. By that I mean, they marked a shift where there was no possibility of turning back to an earlier understanding or way of living. I cannot say those were all ecstatic or joyous moments, but rather a cracking of a fixed viewpoint and an expansion, revelation...growth.
Each peak was followed by busy times of adjustment of my life to the new growth. Not that I always understood it in that way, nor that I "chose" all the adjustments, but such growth brings the excitement of both renewal and discovery. Realistically, in between such times there are plateaus and beyond plateaus, dry spells that stretch to the limit before cracking open another door of expansion. This is the way humans grow, beyond the physical growth of childhood.
When spiritual practice becomes a necessary part of your own daily life, the routine and rhythm sustain you. As British writer/mystic Paul Brunton (1898-1981)wrote: "...When we put the mind in repose and recollect who we are our effort needs no further reward. We have secured balm for the day and all life looks good." We don't look for the life changing but for the life sustaining, our daily spiritual bread. A practice of meditation, led by your own intuitive promptings, will not leave you where you started, but you may not truly appreciate that if you are looking for the life changing peak. Let the calculating mind rest today, the mind that strategizes, weighs and measures. Be fed and grow strong. Doors will open when it's time. (Susan Nettleton)
October 24, 2021
The universe is deathless,
Is deathless because, having no finite self,
It stays infinite.
A sound man by not advancing himself
Stays the further ahead of himself,
By not confining himself to himself
Sustains himself outside himself:
By never being an end in himself
He endlessly becomes himself. (#7, The Way of Life, tr. Witter Bynner)
Today I invite you to relax in moments that scramble your sense of order. We've had almost two years of life being scrambled by Covid-19 and information, breakthroughs, misinformation, things opening, things closing, receding, re-surging, and in the midst of it all, having to find solid ground here and now. It's time to consider your ability to let the "irrational" move through you and pass on. That ability is dependent on where and how you discover solid ground. What grounds you? The skill is to relax, not resist, and let your ground of being re-emerge. Faith means you let it find you; faith is a quiet confidence in yourself and in Life. Order does re-emerge, when you relax. Consider a bigger spiritual picture at work.
The "ground of being" of our life doesn't change, but our understanding of it does. This brings to mind the author Thomas Merton (1915-1986). Born in Prades, France, the child of an American mother and a New Zealander father, he spent his early years in America, France, Bermuda, and England. At the age of 26, he withdrew from the world to enter a Catholic ascetic order of Trappist monks in Kentucky, the Abbey of Gethsemani. During his lifetime, he wrote over sixty books and hundreds of poems and articles, probing the depths of monastic spirituality, his growing grasp and respect of Eastern religions, and the painful political issues of his times, including the nuclear arms race, the civil rights movement, and nonviolence. Throughout these works, he wrestled with a tremendous inward pull to disengage from the outer world and an emerging push to publicly express his own deepening understanding of social forces and their moral consequences to that larger world.
What seems like extreme contradictions in a brilliant mind, is a powerful picture of the kind of contradictions that sooner or later become evident in any spiritual path taken seriously. Creation itself is sustained on one level by apparent polarity or dualism. One the other hand, spiritual "awakening" brings awareness of the unity of all life. We are separate individuals, yet we can intuit or directly experience the shattering of all boundaries and separation. Spiritual awareness opens further contradictions in our own identities and sense of purpose. Life is no longer solely about our individual development, comforts, success, needs. We are larger than our personal lives. We are larger than the wants, stereotypes and "shoulds" of the marketplace. And yet, if we neglect ourselves as individuals, we give up our capacity to give our uniqueness to the whole, to contribute what we alone have to contribute in the unfolding of this mystery of life. What now feels as the pull to remain in Pandemic mode as we are pushed into rejoining the outer world of work, socializing and community participation, is a manifestation of this larger spiritual contradiction. This is the paradox of Lao Tzu's passage above, resolved in the mystical experience of sweet irrational worship in Merton's poem ink below. (Susan Nettleton)
October 31, 2021
Listen, my child, to the silence.
An undulating silence,
a silence
that turns valleys and echoes slippery,
bends foreheads
toward the ground.
(Federico García Lorca-1898-1936), Selected Verse, ed. Christopher Maurer, 2004)
Tonight's Halloween is yet another experiment in navigating the Pandemic while venturing outward, exploring new avenues for tradition as the world rapidly changes. Lately, I have been contemplating the ways in which cultures pass on core values to the next generation, teaching character traits and early concepts of right and wrong that we build on and adjust over a lifetime. Folktales (and Halloween offers many, both ancient and modern) are one way we share our collective history, reinforcing cultural values. Although now in the age of Covid, young children have learned to easily shift back and forth between picture books and computers and phones with animated You Tube storytelling, the classic tales like Goldilocks and the Three Bears and The Three Little Pigs endure. And in all cultures, the power of oral tradition still links one generation to another as teachers, parents and grandparents tell "the stories".
These seem like trivial events when we are facing so much in the way of cultural polarization, the ongoing threat of Pandemic, and climate change. And yet folk tales, along with celebrations such as Halloween and Carnival and other secular and religious traditions, weave a fabric of stability and belonging to humans, even as life demands we change. While tonight is Halloween, tomorrow is All Saints Day in the Catholic tradition. These two days, back to back, underscore the human attempt to reconcile what often seems like opposing forces in humanity: good and evil, right and wrong, the world of the living and the dead, Saint and sinner, spiritual and profane, heaven and earth. Indeed, there are traditions that view Halloween, along with the Day of the Dead, as a time when these divides dissolve and polarities blend, sliding one into another, if only for a brief window of time. If you don't have a plan or tradition for Halloween, this is actually a good time to meditate. A new view of Oneness may await. (Susan Nettleton)
"When you are no longer caught up in the dichotomy of right and wrong or good and bad you can never do anything wrong. As long as you are caught up in this duality, the danger is that you will always do wrong." U.G. Krishnamurti (1918-2007)
November 7, 2021
"Himalayas of the Heart" by Larry Morris (1939-2015)
A salute to those
fearless daring explorers
of the Inner Journey
who risk all for awakening
those intrepid travelers
through Inner Space
who seek The Kingdom
of infinite untouched Peace.
This past week marked the 6th anniversary of the death of Dr. Larry Morris who led Hillside Church for 33 years. This seems a good occasion to offer two of his poems for today's Sunday post. Through ministry, he became a prolific spiritual writer and poet, his poetry arising from his own journey. The above salute applies not just to Larry and those he knew--the writers and teachers who shaped his way--but it also applies to you, if you too seek that Kingdom of infinite untouched Peace. This is the Peace you have yet to find--that which underlies your longing for peace in your life and in the world around you, underlies the longing that others for whom you care can also touch such Peace. The Himalaya mountain range contains some of the highest peaks on Earth, including the highest, Mt. Everest. Although there are those who physically set out to climb those peaks, many of whom have life changing experiences, here is a reminder that the spiritual journey is actually through Inner Space, toward an awareness of oneself and one's own heart. That journey demands courage as well as, sooner or later, the touch of Grace. Inner exploration leads back to yourself, to meeting yourself again and again, until you come to a frontier where the sense of self can no longer be sustained as you have viewed it your whole life; it must give way to something larger, something interwoven into the fabric of Life itself and blended with all that is. This is the birth of new life and yet paradoxically, it is the discovery of what has been true all along-- God's Secret. (Susan Nettleton)
"God's Secret" by Larry Morris
The love we thought
the universe could never give us
the surprise Birthday cake
with the candle that we can
never blow out
the wish that can
never be extinguished
the dream that never
evaporates into our common life.
for more poems by Larry Morris, scroll down the page to the Larry Morris poems section at:
November 14, 2021
This week I have been contemplating two quotes from very different 20th century writers. Each quote--separate and apart from the complete philosophical orientation and context of the authors-- struck me as unusual approaches to expanding our lives in this new phase of the Pandemic. This "phase" is new because of the experience we have gathered in our almost 2 years under the Pandemic threat, the extraordinary success of vaccines and the early promise of new treatment for Covid 19. At the same time, we shoulder a collective awareness of viral mutations and seasonal surges as ongoing possibilities during the years to come. Moving beyond the trauma and fear of the last 2 years is not going to happen by denial or dismissal of the continued threat, nor by suppressing all that we felt and experienced in the process--both gain and loss. But neither can it be a continued one-pointed focus on contagion. The world grows more complex. Moving beyond these years of Pandemic requires expansion.
For those who nurture their spiritual life, that expansion is spiritual expansion and it is the expansion of consciousness. We participate in the healing, renewing activity of life at this time, in the place where we are, as active spirituality--willing to grow beyond what we have known and trusting an unfolding Good. Here are the quotes for a Sunday contemplation on expansion, this November, 2021:
"So many things fail to interest us, simply because they don't find in us enough surfaces on which to live, and what we have to do then is to increase the number of planes in our mind, so that a much larger number of themes can find a place in it at the same time." José Ortega y Gasset (1883-1955)
"What we think is less than what we know; What we know is less than what we love; What we love is so much less than what there is; and to this precise extent, we are much less than what we are." R.D. Laing (1927-1982)
Consider a broader expanse of love, love that feeds new planes (even dimensions) of involvement--widening, spacious themes that spark new ways of knowing, ways of responding, flowing from our minds and hearts. (Susan Nettleton)
November 19, 2021
Susan Nettleton is inviting you to a scheduled Zoom meeting. Hope you can make it!
Topic: The Imperfect
Time: Nov 21, 2021 11:00 A.M. Mountain Time (10:00 A.M. Pacific Time)
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November 21, 2021
Today's post is an excerpt from this morning's Zoom talk on "The Imperfect"
We each have our struggles in our attempts at perfection and concern over other's judgement of our mistakes, but there is also this human tendency to personally judge others. Society sets up the legal and civil means for judgement and corrective action or punishment for trespass or harm to others or the social order. But our focus here is how we as individuals, trying to live spiritually, handle other's imperfections, not just our own. In the sermon on the mount Jesus sums up the issue with "judge not others lest you be judged" and the piercing line that basically says why judge a speck of some dirt in someone else's eye when you are walking around with a log in yours? Here is a profound and difficult truth, which is why I think religion in general with all it's tenants of shoulds and collective moral judgements and proclamation of spiritual consequences, caution people about our judging mentality: The human tendency to project our own flaws on to others and/or defend against our flaws, failure, and mistakes through hyper-vigilance of the mistakes of others.
Of course I have to mention forgiveness here, including self-forgiveness as we deal with the imperfect. In away all of this is about forgiveness, coming to terms with the imperfect. Sometimes, the real block to forgiving others is about not wanting to recognize the same imperfection in ourselves. Our judgement of others can actually be the window, the mirror, the uprooting and acknowledgment of our own flaws and mistakes. It can lead to self acceptance, self-forgiveness and asking and accepting it for those mistakes--on any level. Forgiveness work includes asking and accepting forgiveness as an inner process; it's not always appropriate or helpful to do that as a spoken request. Reflecting on our own mistakes makes forgiving others a lot easier. I am not saying a correlation is always there, but even if you do not find a point of identification in your judgement, you do learn to identify as an imperfect character in life's drama.
In 12 step programs, there is a saying, "Keep your side of the street clean." Life easily becomes messy and unmanageable when we begin to shift our focus to monitoring and managing others' lives before giving attention to our own, and in the complexity of modern life, it isn't always obvious where the boundaries lay. Reflecting on "my side of the street" is one way to recalibrate responsibility and clarify our choices. Our actions and non-actions impact others in the great scheme of life. Human beings are not perfect--none of us. But we are capable of positive choices, of learning, of adapting and forgiving. Self-forgiveness and self-acceptance of imperfection, open the door to Grace and transformative healing. (Susan Nettleton)
Ring the bells that still can ring. Forget your perfect offering. There Is a Crack in Everything, That’s How the Light Gets In
(by Leonard Cohen)
November 28, 2021
As Thanksgiving weekend comes to a close, Hanukkah 2021--the 8 day Jewish Festival of Light--begins. Both holidays and the ones that follow, are powerful traditions that have evolved and adapted to changing cultures, social orders, and outer conditions, still celebrated as supplies were disrupted (or just not there) and grave dangers hovered. The spirit of celebration and remembrance continues, always retaining the spiritual essence of it's origin--even in the face of secularization. Human beings are rooted by tradition. Yet we continue to adapt. As the poem linked below expresses, we make and unmake ourselves individually and collectively over and over again, as does all of Nature. The microbial world too is the changing unseen face of Nature. We are now facing yet another mutation of Covid-19--the Omicron variant.
This morning, I listened to an Omicron update by Dr. Fauci, announcing that it would likely be another 2 weeks for research to determine how effective the current vaccines are against Omicron, even as new and updated vaccines are already in the early stages of development. He advised a basic rule: as we wait, prepare for the worst--not expect the worst, not that it will be "the worst", but prepare. There are some indications that although highly transmissible, the Omicron variant may not be as dangerous as we fear. We are in a waiting window, where we simply must be clear-headed. Everyday for the next few weeks will bring new information and, unfortunately, exploitative misinformation. For me, this means staying flexible, grounded in faith that includes the inner spiritual directive, prayer, peace, and intelligent practice--spiritual practice and public health practice in 6 steps: (summed up by epidemiologist Katelyn Jetelina)
Ventilate spaces. Use masks. Test if you have symptoms. Isolate if positive. Get vaccinated. Get boosted.
For many, myself included, this Thanksgiving marked a great step forward, past the isolation of the Pandemic with a chance to gather with others in shared traditions. I felt deep gratitude for that opportunity and for all who have made the vaccines and boosters possible and available. I am sure the Hanukkah celebrations that are planned for the week ahead bring that same excitement and hope of Thanksgiving, even though new uncertainty surrounds us once again. As Rabbi Joshua M. Davidson wrote this morning (online CNN), "The message of this season is the potential of the smallest bit of light to push back the darkness." All the more reason to light our candles, physically and metaphorically. (Susan Nettleton)
For a lighthearted, incisive poem on the great mix of life and adaptation from contemporary Korean-American poet, Suji Kwok Kim, follow the link:
December 5, 2021
This week I came across a copy of Rev. Hugh Prather's ( 1938-2010) best selling book from the 1970's , "Notes to Myself: My Struggle to Become a Person." Prather and his wife Gayle were co-founders of the "Dispensable Church" in Santa Fe, NM and later moved to Arizona. The book is an honest examination and probing of himself, particularly in relationships, and circles around and around his self preoccupation, along with his drive to come to some truth in his connection with others.
Prather wrote: "I learn most about myself by observing myself in relation to others. When I examine myself by myself, I am actually examining the results of a previous encounter." Further probing brings new insight: "Perceptions are not of things but of relationships. Nothing, including me, exists by itself--this is an illusion of words. I am a relationship, ever-changing".
As we now enter the Christmas season, we enter it with both Delta and a quickly spreading Omicron--variants of Covid-19. Health authorities caution that it will take a few weeks to have the answers to the question of how this variant will impact American attempts at returning to normalcy and basically, how great a threat we face. We are advised to continue safe practices which includes of course vaccines. Meanwhile scientists, governments and health care officials across the globe are sifting through data and case reports. The sudden emergence of Omicron and the rapid response around the globe is another reminder of the interdependence of life.
You as a relationship is a startling concept that moves beyond just your personal life to the whole of being--beyond people to nature (including microbes and viruses as I have written many times) and beyond that to social structures, and beyond that to abstractions like time, space, location. Here, now, we are presented with yet another global event that can spur tremendous collective cooperation or further isolation and attack It also holds the potential for your own spiritually illuminating discovery: You are a relationship.
Prather leads us to his discovery, even though I am sure he had heard similar words by others, read powerful passages by others. After this inner insight, he could share how it finally came to him: "Love unites the part with the whole. Love unites me with the world and with myself. My life work could well be love. Love is the universe complete...Love shows me where all minds and essences unite." Perhaps today, perhaps this Christmas season of continued Pandemic, is leading you to your own unveiling. (Susan Nettleton)
December 12, 2021
"Life is a spell so exquisite that everything conspires to break it" Emily Dickinson (1830-1886)
Where I sit today, is a gorgeous morning. The air is clean, mildly cool, with cloudless blue sky. There is a grapefruit tree and a tangerine tree, right outside the door, both laden with fruit. The image transports me to a early childhood memory of my grandmother's house in Laredo, Texas where I first saw grapefruits hanging on a tree. My siblings and I would have grapefruit wars, throwing them at each other. Because we were so young, we had no capacity for aiming them so it was all fun and wonder. It was my first awakening to a realization that the fruit we bought at our neighborhood grocery in Houston, actually grew from trees. That is the great Wonder of childhood, where life is fresh with discovery.
The fall season brings the culmination of nature's peak productivity. As we mature, the seasons initiate the awareness of time passing, the cyclical processes of life, and the often harshness of winter. That magical sense of life recedes in a sea of knowledge and experience, tossed up only now and then when a door of awareness briefly opens. What triggers those openings is really a mystery. Most likely, the actual trigger point is unique to each individual psyche, although we have our theories and teachings that give some direction to those moments when we recapture a sense of wonder.
This Sunday, I am reminding you that one of the reasons holiday practices endure is that they offer the space and a bit of magic for our hearts to spark that freshness of life that is young and innocent. Without that spark, especially in times of crisis, whether personal or collective, we cannot move beyond fear, sadness, or a world weary attitude to remember the Truth that life is ever renewing itself in an endless stream of creativity. In the ongoing uncertainty of the Pandemic, our own receptivity to all the ways nature and the human spirit work to sparkle in December, can replenish our Wonder. (Susan Nettleton)
"Find ecstasy in life; the mere sense of living is joy enough.” Emily Dickinson
For Thomas Trahern's (1636–1674) poem of childhood innocence and the hint of it's return, follow the link: https://www.poetryfoundation.org/.../wonder-56d22507c0b42
December 26, 2021
This week in conversation, a phrase floated through my head, "Grace cuts through all interpretation."
This week before New Years Day will be filled with interpretation. The years of the Pandemic have weighted heavily with interpretation. Perhaps this the way of things when human being meet with events that shift the axis of culture and life spills open into a debate of meaning, like the imponderable question, 'what does the Pandemic mean?'
The human mind naturally divides events and things into categories and subcategories in order to gain some control and understanding. So there is a natural movement to divide time and the cycles of the seasons into years, and as a new year is born, to interpret and give meaning and judgement to the issues of the year that is passing. Interpretation is a kind of judgement that assigns meaning. It is an aspect of human intellect that helps us problem solve and learn as we equip ourselves for the future. There is a usefulness in exercising our interpretive faculty; we assess risks, sort through values in order to make decisions, evaluate leaders and sources of information.--all of these skills require interpretive processes.
Yet, when we talk of letting go of the old year, spiritually, we begin by letting go of our personal interpretation. When we forgive the wounds of the old year, we discover they too are interpretations. Our minds have put together all the movements and activity of 2021, the times of emptiness and times of crises, fear and frustration, hope followed by disappointment, solitude and separation, and these have created a field of interpretation, that now is to be forgiven and released to make way for the new. Letting go our our viewpoint is not easy. This process sparked that thought that still circles through me, "Grace cuts through all interpretation".
Grace is unearned Good. Grace is the gift that expresses as healing, as love, as creative possibilities and artful solutions; grace is the sudden awareness of the beauty all around us, and the wonder of the world and the lives that intertwine with ours. It is a truth that hovers beyond our interpretations of life. The unearned, and often unseen, Good. (Susan Nettleton)
"Behold, I make all things new." (Rev 21:5)