February 26, 2001
One of the sources for awakening my soul has been reading
a variety of books on spirituality, religion, and mysticism.
I tend to be in the process of reading as many as ten books at a time.
This is not because I have a large capacity to retain information and
have a doctorate in speed-reading, but rather it is I want what I read or study
to “speak” to me. That leads to
taking time to pick up books periodically with time for reflection and
comparison.
When a book moves me to reflect
on its content or challenges thoughts I have long held, I believe it is speaking
to me. Becoming disciplined about
the spirituality seems to make us more attuned to everything and everyone we
come in contact with. It is during
these times you may find that even your choice of reading material has somehow
been directed to you. That is when
the words seem to speak to your soul and feel that this book was written just
for you.
Other things seem to follow this
pattern. Take for instance music.
Have you ever listened to music that instantly transported you to another
place that is private and peaceful? Recently
while at Borders I put on a headset and began listening to a CD by Renee Fleming,
an opera star. Although I rarely
listen to opera, I was instantly moved to tears.
As the tingling sensation made its way through my body I was overwhelmed
by feelings of love, peace and God. Borders
made a sale and I have added an opera CD to the collection.
The arts and humanities are all
around us but they are so easy to overlook.
Just like the people we talked about last week we mean to make contact
with but never seem to, we often do the same thing with these gifts of books,
art, music, and theater. These
gifts need to be accepted and experienced regardless of our busy lives if we
want to benefit from the message they have for our soul.
In her book, Living In
Process – Basic Truths For Living The Path Of The Soul, Anne Wilson Schaef
comments, “Spirituality is that movement within ourselves that calls us to
become greater than ourselves. It
is our wholeness that connects us with All That Is”.
The key words in this passage are movement and wholeness.
If we seek spirituality in our everyday lives, then it takes action or
movement on our part to discover it. She
also points out that we need to be whole to be connected.
To become whole we must experience the gifts that contain insight to our
souls from a variety of sources.
Take time this week to reconnect with or find a book or
CD that “speaks” to you in a way that moves your soul. Visit an art museum or gallery and enjoy a work that
transports you to place of calm and serenity.
Go to the theater or see a movie and give your emotions permission to
roam freely. Whatever you choose
may not be something that anyone else can relate to, but that’s fine, because
it is your gift.
Richard