Welcome back to LifeThemes2012 — a new blog series celebrating the 2-year anniversary of SunnyRoomStudio. As you know, this series is based on the wonderful quote by Rilke: “The only journey is the journey within.” And to facilitate our journey within, we’re looking at life themes … unearthing them for greater self and universal awareness. I appreciate all of your wonderful comments last week and can see that you are intrigued by this topic, as well.
We come spinning out of nothingness, scattering stars like dust. ~Rumi
Last week I shared a primary theme in my life: nature. When I try to identify a life theme, I look for something that has been present in my life for as long as I can remember … maybe showing up in various guises, but still there … when I peer closely.
- Another theme for me is spirituality … seeing life as a journey within … as a wonderful mystery.
This orientation was nurtured in me as a young girl by my grandmother. A devout woman of the prairie, Anna was a wonderful influence in my life … gently pointing to our mortal journey as something more. She didn’t lecture me on the subject; she lived her spirituality. And my curious girlhood nature didn’t miss a beat.
- I’ve never met a more peaceful person.
Never rattled or short on patience, never bored or malcontent, never finding anything to complain about.
Anna was all about love. That’s how my young heart perceived her.
She basically lived this quote by Lao Tzu …
Be content with what you have; rejoice in the way things are. When you realize there is nothing lacking, the world belongs to you.
It’s an amazing experience to be around someone who personifies contentment. And somehow, even as a young girl, I sensed it … knew that she’d found that wonderful place within that asks for nothing more. Of course I couldn’t articulate these things until I was much older, but what a gift … being around someone like her during those impressionable early years.
- If she’d figured out some things in life, so could I.
A lifestyle so simple … a presence so peaceful … a smile so real.
As I matured, and during times of decision or enormous personal challenge, I’ve always returned to my spirituality — somehow knowing her memory would guide me. Encourage me. To dig a little deeper, refusing to live on the surface of life … never having the courage to look within or to grow.
- For me, Anna is only a whisper away.
Turning to Rilke again …
The future enters into us, in order to transform itself in us, long before it happens.
~ Rainer Maria Rilke
What early encounters did you have that evolved into something more, into a life theme — into a profound and lasting experience? Are the blossoms of your youth becoming apparent only now? What happened along the way to confirm your earliest impressions?
Has spirituality been a life theme for you? How so?
Sometimes we just have to look a little closer at our lives to find what seems hidden from us. We have to embark on the journey within. Here’s a bit more encouragement from the author of Conversations with God …
By providing the kingdom of heaven to others.
By being the kingdom of heaven, in which others may find refuge and strength.
By bringing the kingdom of heaven, and all its blessings,
to all those whose lives you touch.
For what you give, you become.
~Neale Donald Walsch
