Cloud Question

Clouds condense into being,
drift across the landscape,
and melt away like snow.

The shapes they make
and the course they follow
may go by unremarked.

Even so, how could the sky
be the same without them?

Money or Community

Money or community.
Which is more enduring?

Property or people.
Which is more valuable?

Greed or poverty.
Which is more crippling?

Following the Curve

I follow the curve
of the future and wonder
where it will take me.

But there is no destination.
There is only this
eternal moment now.

Seven Mystics

This one sits and discovers Tao.
That one finds the Divine in the stars.
This one awakes to Ultimate Reality.
That one encounters Yahweh in a fire.
This one sees God inside and out.
That one chokes and recites Allah.
This one knows the Universe is listening.

Seven Reasons to Sit

To rest.
To read.
To muse.
To wait.
To watch.
To listen.
To heal.

Three Circles

First is the circle of your voice.
Second is the circle of your fear.
Third is the circle of your mind.

The first offers you healing.
The second offers you insight.
The third offers you wisdom.

Greed and Gratitude

Greed says there's never enough.
Gratitude says there is more than enough.

Greed says I deserve more.
Gratitude says I have everything I need.

Greed says I should have it all.
Gratitude says I already have it all.

Charms and Horrors

We are always traveling
into daylight or into dark.

Both have their charms.
Both have their horrors.

First we learn how
to handle the horrors.

Then we learn how
to handle the charms.

Hidden Eternity

The past exists in time.
The future exists in time.

Only this moment is timeless.
That's where eternity hides.

Two People Inside

We are each
two people inside.

One is the person
we think we are.

The other is
the one we are.

Bringing these
two minds together
is the work of a lifetime.

Attention Span

We all want
to matter.

If you want people
to know who you are,
begin by learning
who they are.

Sin Carving

Sin doesn't separate me from God.
To be separate from God is impossible.

Sin is that place where I fail myself.
Its pain channels me away from suffering.

Tao uses my failings to carve me
into the being I already am.

Preparation

We harvest in fall
to live on in winter.

We water in summer
to grow for harvest.

We plant in spring
to have something to tend.

We live through winter
to plant a garden.

Every season prepares us
for the one to come.

Simple

A simple man lives close to the ground.
He doesn't chase after more and more.
He finds his contentment in his own breath.
He gives himself to everyone he meets.
He sits inside himself and listens.

Hard to Know

Sometimes it's hard to know
where the light comes from.

Sometimes it's hard to know
what is truly dark.

Sometimes it's hard to know
what is inside and what is not.

But it's never hard to know
what we want to believe.

Questions, Questions

A new mystery begins
every time you ask a question.

Ask any question about God,
and the answer comes back with two more.

By these lights we, too, are infinite,
because there is always more to know.

Time and Place

We are each born into
our own time and place,
and we hurry through them
from birth to death.

My time and place
are forever my own.
Your time and place
are forever yours.

Neither of us chose this.
Neither of us knows
what is right for the other.

Mutual kindness costs nothing
and eases the way for both.

Your Imagination

As wide as it is,
the land can't hold 
your imagination.

As deep as it is,
the ocean can't hold
your wisdom.

As open as it is,
sky can't hold
your heart.

What We Reflect

We are only as bright
as the light we reflect.

For Ours

The first reason
we are generous
toward those
who need our help
is not for their sake,
but for ours.

A Different Light

Bone and sinew.
Vein and hair.
Breath and skin.
We are made
of star dust.

But we give off
a different light.

A Door into Tao

Every hurt is a door
into forgiveness.

Forgiveness is a door
into compassion.

Compassion is a door
into Tao.

Surface

A slow one sees
only the surface.

A smart one sees
above and below.

A wise one sees
what is.

Three Lights

First is the light of knowledge.
Second is the light of love.
Third is the light of wisdom.

The first shows us who we are.
The second shows us who God is.
The third shows us who we really are.

Future Dog

The future is forever
running away from us
as if it wants to be
chased like a dog.

When we stay centered
in this moment instead,
it comes back to us
wagging its tail.

Not Yet

Dawn is not yet day.
Dusk is not yet night.

To see beauty in what is not yet
is to see Tao in what is now.

Future Tense

Why hurry to outrun the past?
Better to realize how far I've come.

Why rush to know the future?
Better to do what I can with today.

Walled Off

Every barrier I set up
to protect me from those
I don't want to understand
is another wall against myself.

The Emotional Ones

God is never angry.
Tao is never envious.
Allah is never displeased.

We are the emotional ones.

Hard at Work

The door that leads
us deeper into God
is always open.

The candle that
lights the face of Tao
is always burning.

The doubt that
keeps us from seeing
is always hard at work.

Every Step

Every step
is a new beginning.

Every morning
is another chance.

Every passing year
is a teacher.

Every open mind
is a step in the right direction.