Open to Small Graces

Nov 23, 2015

Earlier this week, I was fortunate to again get to co-lead a Virtual Retreat with Gratitude as the theme. This was the fourth year I’ve done this with my friend and colleague, Coach Mary Olk. It’s one of my favorite retreats because in the space of a mere two hours, we become fully present to the richness to life, the sacred in the here and now. Thanksgiving or not, gratitude is a portal to so much more….acceptance, connection, reverence, peace, intimacy and of course, love.

There’s a gem of a book that I come back to over and over again for its simplicity and wisdom. Here’s an excerpt from the Introduction of “Small Graces: The Quiet Gifts of Everyday Life” by Kent Nerburn that for me, serves as a reminder of the sacred act of being grateful.

    “We must learn to see with new eyes. The world contains many paths, some exalted, some mundane. It is not our task to judge the worthiness of our path; it is our task to walk our path with worthiness. We have been blinded by the bright light of heroes and saints. We must learn to trust the small light we are given, and to value the light that we can shed into the lives of those around us.
       We must never forget that the mindful practice of daily affairs is also a path into the realm of spirit. The Japanese have long known this, and hallowed the ordinary moments of life by elevating them into art. The Native Americans have also understood this, and consecrated everyday actions by surrounding them with ceremony and prayer.
    But ours is a transient life, lived on the run, with an endless sense of process, of movement, of chasing the future. We seldom pause to shine a light upon the ordinary moments, to hallow them with our own attentiveness, to honor them with gentle caring. They pass unnoticed, lost in the ongoing rush of time.
    Yet it is just such a hallowing that our lives require. We need to find ways to lift the moments of our daily lives—to celebrate and consecrate the ordinary, to allow the light of spiritual awareness to illuminate our days.
    For though we may not live a holy life, we live in a world alive with holy moments. We need only take the time to bring these moments into the light.”

Indeed. We live in a world alive with holy moments. Be alert to the small graces.  Happy Thanksgiving.