Tomorrow is the last day of this stormy June. Stormy weather and stormy politics form the collective backdrop of America as we enter July and its upcoming Independence Day, July 4th, 2025. On Friday, America will be 249 years old. Right now, the banner of "Independence" seems full of contradictions. My intent is to help you navigate this week, and this time of history in general, by supporting your spiritual life. I offer you a reminder: A part of you belongs to the collective backdrop, but the depth of your unique being is centered in God, and blooms from the core of Life.
Spirituality is not about independence from that Center, that Core; it is about being a unique expression of the Center, the Core. But, because you arise from the Core (another way of naming God), you are inevitably in relationship with all other expressions of that Core. Spiritually, you are essential, a unique aspect of Life, woven and inter-connected to the infinite forms Life expresses, including other people. You matter. Your awareness matters. Understanding the weaving of Life is not a simple thing. We can't hold the mystery and understand it with the degree of clarity we use in our daily activities and choices. We inevitably have to bridge our understanding with Faith. We trust the spiritual aspect of our awareness enough to affirm that we are Spiritually and Intelligently directed, that we are guided in a path of Good, even when events darken our light. Even as the faith of others and their understanding may exclude and condemn our personal spiritual path, Faith allows for a higher aspect of Intelligence that ultimately reconciles the Whole.
Realistically, multiple "storms" in the social order, disrupt our lives and Faith. (One can argue that is the subversive, misguided intent behind social disruption.) We get worn down and our thoughts and perceptions hover on the negative, the frightening, the insult, the loss. When life is weighted toward fear and and despair, we lose our way. The more we look with dark thoughts, the more we find the gloom. But, there is a saying, "if you can't find God (the Good) who moved?"
If your Faith falters, look for the Good. In the pile of upheaval, the forgotten, the trespasses, the mistakes--yours and others--shift your focus to daily positive events. I guarantee you, positive events are happening in your life right now. That is not an affirmation of social disruption. It is an assurance and a practice to spark your awareness of the positive, expressing Good, right now. Writing a quick list of 3 or 4 positive events in your life each day, resets and balances awareness. Consider a daily chart for July. Name the concrete good as it happens, write it as a reminder, feel it as a tangible expression of Good. And "Gratitude, seals the deal". (Susan Nettleton)
for poetry: https://www.pinterest.com/pin/dont-believe-your-thoughts--582442164341533699/https://wordsfortheyear.com/2016/06/17/this-much-i-do-remember-by-billy-collins/ https://www.poetry-chaikhana.com/Poets/L/LevertovDeni/OnlyOnce/index.html https://leonarddurso.com/2014/04/21/life-by-juan-ramon-jimenez/