  Spiritual
This week: Life is Short - So LIVE It! Edited by: Sophy New Year  
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Hi, I'm Sophy New Year ~ your editor for this edition of the Spiritual Newsletter.
The Rev. Scotty McLennan, author of the book Finding Your Religion, compares humanity's innate need for spiritual searching to climbing a mountain. In his view, we are all endeavoring to climb the same figurative mountain in our search for the divine, we just may take different ways to get there. In other words, there is one "God," but many paths. I honor whatever path or paths you have chosen to climb that mountain in your quest for the Sacred.  |
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Life is Short - so LIVE it!
“The mass of men lead lives of quiet desperation. What is called resignation is confirmed desperation. From the desperate city you go into the desperate country, and have to console yourself with the bravery of minks and muskrats. A stereotyped but unconscious despair is concealed even under what are called the games and amusements of mankind. There is no play in them, for this comes after work. But it is a characteristic of wisdom not to do desperate things.” (Henry David Thoreau, Walden)
“God gave us the gift of life. It is up to us to give ourselves the gift of living well.” (Voltaire)
“Get busy living or get busy dying." (Red - The Shawshank Redemption)
Left to its own inclinations, the mind is prone to sloppy habits that don’t serve us well – feeling sorry for oneself, obsessing about the undesirable behavior of others, casting oneself in an unrealistically flattering light, feeling entitled to a better version of reality than the one we’re in. Among the disadvantages of letting one’s mind wander into those dingy corners of the mind is to miss realities that are actually happening – many of them beautiful and fleeting.
All of this occurs to me anew as I think about the limited span of my life as I approach another birthday. Perhaps it’s one the side effects of aging, but my mortality occurs to me somewhat more regularly now. It isn’t morbid – I don’t dread death and I’m not fascinated by it. I’m just matter-of-factly aware that my lifespan is limited. I have some finite number of days ahead and it would be good to make the best of them. I don’t want to waste time being distracted by the unrealistic or the unimportant.
Among the realizations that come is that there may come a day – depending on how my life ends – when I’ll think back to the present moment and appreciate it more deeply as time grows obviously short, valuing the moment better than I did as I actually lived it. Maybe we could think of this as preemptive regret or preemptive grief, which is to say that whatever aggravations or deprivations I’m prone to nurturing, someday as my hourglass is running out I might well long for the chance to have another day like this one.
That act of imaginary nostalgia prompts me to be grateful for some really beautiful aspects the day I can easily take for granted if I’m not paying attention to what’s important. What’s that quip about being on one’s deathbed and realizing, “Gee I wish I’d spent more time at the office.” How might you fill in the blank with your own version? “When I get to the end of my life, I’m not likely to say, ‘Gee I wish I ‘d gone to more committee meetings.’ Or 'Wow, I’m glad for all that time I spent arguing with people on Facebook or Twitter.'"
For my part, I’ll tell you that as I began to consider what I might say in this newsletter, my dog Daisy wandered into the room and sat down next to me, yawned, and looked up at me with her exquisite brown eyes asking me as clearly as if she were speaking English, “Can we please do something?” My first instinct was to sigh in mild annoyance. “Not now Daisy, I’m writing about the meaning of life – you wouldn’t understand.”  Daisy smiled at me, the way dogs do, and put her cold nose on my wrist, nudging it away from the computer. I sighed another annoyed sigh, as the thought began to take shape in my head, “I have work to do!" And then just as immediately, the thought popped into my head that someday as life runs short, I might look back on a moment when my dog asked me happily for some playtime together. Either I’ll regret that I let the moment pass, or I’ll rejoice that I had the presence of mind to set aside work that could be set aside to go and enjoy some time with her.
Here's a writing exercise I find helpful. On one side of a piece of paper, I write - “Life’s too short…” and on the other side I write “Life’s too short not to…” Write your answers and share them with me as a comment as you listen to Neil Diamond's "Done Too Soon."
And each one there has one thing shared.....they have sweated beneath the same sun, looked up in wonder at the same moon, and wept when it was all done, for being done too soon ....
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Here are responses to my last newsletter "Spiritual Newsletter (May 30, 2018)" about Religious Pluralism:
From Quick-Quill 
I do not believe in one true RELIGION. Religion is the belief in and worship of a superhuman controlling power, especially a personal God or gods. It includes a particular system of faith and worship. I believe in one true God. I believe similar to what you were brought up to believe. Traditions within most "religions" vary. Walking that close walk may mean different things to different groups. Traditions change just as clothing, economics and culture change. The Bible does not change. The words in RED are still recognized as the words of Christ. Other religions have their own rhetoric. While I accept the choices people make as their own, I remain true to my doctrine. I feel if one is searching for the truth they will find it.
Thank you for sharing, and doing so with such respect.
      
From Prosperous Snow celebrating 
How has your spiritual journey been enhanced by exploring a tradition outside of your own? It revealed to me that there is only one God, and religion, as reveal through His messengers, is a gift to humanity. I was raised in a Southern Baptist family in northern Oklahoma. My search, my spiritual journey, began at a young age due to two dreams, and questions my Sunday school teacher couldn't answer. It took a while for me to find the meaning of the dream, and get the answers to the questions. I found those answers when I discovered Baha'u'llah and the sacred scriptures He revealed.
I accept the validity of the messages and Holy Books brought by Abraham, Christ, Muhammad, Krishna, Moses, Zoroaster, Buddha, the Bab, and Baha'u'llah. There are probably other messengers I have not mentioned because God has been sending His messengers to humanity for as long as humanity has existed. My appreciation of the Holy Books is further enhanced by the devotional service I attend once a month. The devotional service is held at the Baha'i Center in Las Vegas. At the spiritual portion of the service the sacred scriptures from various religious traditions are read. At the social portion refreshments are served and the attendees greet each other and talk.
Thank you so much for sharing from your tradition.
From mbennight
Very nice article. I am Christian, and while living in Japan I loved visiting Shinto Shrines and Buddhist temples, especially small local ones off the beaten path (as opposed to large famous ones with lots of tourists, though I visited quite a few of those as well). They were always peaceful and quiet, and I would often say a little prayer and leave an offering, because I believe that these places are sacred and that I can feel God's presence there, even if the traditions are different from my own.
Beautiful, thank you so much!
From: Moona 
Dear Sophie,
Thank you for sharing your story about Samhain. It sounds like a perfect ritual to deal with the passing of a beloved elder.
I was brought up Lutheran, but was soon drawn towards the Buddha's teaching. They offer an experiential path to enlightenment and satisfy a curious mind. The practise of meditation has taught me that true spirituality can be experienced in many traditions.
Amen - thank you!
Please keep your comments and suggestions coming! Until next time! Sophy New Year |
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Spiritual: June 27, 2018 Issue [#8970]
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