… another kind of walking - through life - with the same walking partner, but on a break from this symbolic gesture, this pilgrimage/ NOBO walk.
Wow … big changes in me… a week or two ago a mentor died (of asbestosis) at 87yrs. And in celebrating, & recalling his life (including difficulties in my relationship with him, some of which I could see were needed for me to connect more deeply with creative love myself) I was challenged to see how I was living in line with creative love, rather than simply taking the path of least resistance, or choosing ways of relating to others that made me feel less uncomfortable.
It was awful then, during this last week, on holidays with friends at the beach, to realise (at the cost of self-disclosure and vulnerability of someone-else), that I was parting company with creative love in my reactions to people who had proved to be very good friends, simply because they had similar weaknesses to me, and I didn't want to be reminded of (& encouraged in) my weaknesses. Instead of waging war determinedly and strongly on those uncreative, unloving habits of mine, I had pushed away some good friends.
I chose to admit what I came to see as my self-preserving, pushing away of good friends; and asked my friends for their forgiveness. They smiled, and gladly forgave me. I knew creative love was wanting to push on deeper in this inward (& outward) journey or pilgrimage.
On Friday, I shared a coffee and some stories of our recent holidays with a mate at Bunnings. Later, after sharing time with my Good Woman at the hospital, getting her surgical wound redressed, I walked around our community with another dear friend. We popped in to see one of his neighbours who has just been in hospital. No response at the door. We walked down to a local shop, bought a cold drink and sat on a park bench at a busy roundabout and talked about what we’re reading and thinking about, and watched the cars and kids on scooters going by, then walked to one of my neighbours’ place and had some interesting tea with him while we talked, at his request, about what things made us really happy, and helped with balance in our lives. A walk of rich sharing in life. Then a coffee with another dear friend who has been a speaker at a religious retreat last week, helping people respond to the spirit of creative love. Then dinner prepared by a loving daughter, with my Good Woman, my son-in-law and 2 small grandchildren, and after the kids were in bed, listening to a fantacy-sci-fi audio-book together over hot cuppas in the lounge. What a rich day.
Saturday - we’ll see, then tomorrow I plan to have a cuppa in a local park with friends, then drive (with my wife & some friends) to Bendigo in Victoria for a celebration of my friend and mentor’s life.
Oh, I want to keep on, in this journey with creative love through the middle of all of this. The walk continues. Now, I don't want it to ever end, even while I am back in my home-town and my trolley waits in Cairns or the Atherton table-land.
May I become like the 7th descendant in the line of Adam’s sons, Enoch, who instead of hiding & covering shame, went on that long slow walk with the creative love behind, and throughout, the Whole Universe, for the rest of his life…
… another kind of walking - through life - with the same walking partner, but on a break from this symbolic gesture, this pilgrimage/ NOBO walk.
Wow … big changes in me… a week or two ago a mentor died (of asbestosis) at 87yrs. And in celebrating, & recalling his life (including difficulties in my relationship with him, some of which I could see were needed for me to connect more deeply with creative love myself) I was challenged to see how I was living in line with creative love, rather than simply taking the path of least resistance, or choosing ways of relating to others that made me feel less uncomfortable.
It was awful then, during this last week, on holidays with friends at the beach, to realise (at the cost of self-disclosure and vulnerability of someone-else), that I was parting company with creative love in my reactions to people who had proved to be very good friends, simply because they had similar weaknesses to me, and I didn't want to be reminded of (& encouraged in) my weaknesses. Instead of waging war determinedly and strongly on those uncreative, unloving habits of mine, I had pushed away some good friends.
I chose to admit what I came to see as my self-preserving, pushing away of good friends; and asked my friends for their forgiveness. They smiled, and gladly forgave me. I knew creative love was wanting to push on deeper in this inward (& outward) journey or pilgrimage.
On Friday, I shared a coffee and some stories of our recent holidays with a mate at Bunnings. Later, after sharing time with my Good Woman at the hospital, getting her surgical wound redressed, I walked around our community with another dear friend. We popped in to see one of his neighbours who has just been in hospital. No response at the door. We walked down to a local shop, bought a cold drink and sat on a park bench at a busy roundabout and talked about what we’re reading and thinking about, and watched the cars and kids on scooters going by, then walked to one of my neighbours’ place and had some interesting tea with him while we talked, at his request, about what things made us really happy, and helped with balance in our lives. A walk of rich sharing in life. Then a coffee with another dear friend who has been a speaker at a religious retreat last week, helping people respond to the spirit of creative love. Then dinner prepared by a loving daughter, with my Good Woman, my son-in-law and 2 small grandchildren, and after the kids were in bed, listening to a fantacy-sci-fi audio-book together over hot cuppas in the lounge. What a rich day.
Saturday - we’ll see, then tomorrow I plan to have a cuppa in a local park with friends, then drive (with my wife & some friends) to Bendigo in Victoria for a celebration of my friend and mentor’s life.
Oh, I want to keep on, in this journey with creative love through the middle of all of this. The walk continues. Now, I don't want it to ever end, even while I am back in my home-town and my trolley waits in Cairns or the Atherton table-land.
May I become like in that old story of the 7th descendant in the line of Adam & his sons, Enoch, who instead of hiding & trying to cover shame, went on that long slow walk with the creative love behind, and throughout, the Whole Universe, for the rest of his life…
