“There is a calmness to a life lived in Gratitude, a quiet joy.”: — Melody Beattie
Everything is Waiting for You
by David Whyte
“Your great mistake is to act the drama
as if you were alone. As if life
were a progressive and cunning crime
with no witness to the tiny hidden
transgressions. To feel abandoned is to deny
the intimacy of your surroundings. Surely,
even you, at times, have felt the grand array;
the swelling presence, and the chorus, crowding
out your solo voice. You must note
the way the soap dish enables you,
or the window latch grants you freedom.
Alertness is the hidden discipline of familiarity.
The stairs are your mentor of things
to come, the doors have always been there
to frighten you and invite you,
and the tiny speaker in the phone
is your dream-ladder to divinity.
Put down the weight of your aloneness and ease into the
conversation. The kettle is singing
even as it pours you a drink, the cooking pots
have left their arrogant aloofness and
seen the good in you at last. All the birds
and creatures of the world are unutterably
themselves. Everything is waiting for you.”
Alertness
Attention
Awakening
Fresh eyes
New day
Brimming with possibilities
Woven in the ordinary
At our feet, in arms reach
Waiting for our participation
To not be lulled into complacency, counting, comparison
Grateful for this day
With things unfinished, cracked, imperfect
And so many good things too
Swelling presence
Easing into conversation with this day.
“The real gift of gratitude is that the more grateful you are, the more present you become.”: — Melody Beattie