Connection

Shadow and Light

To know what’s behind the shadow
I must stand in the light.
It may be uncomfortable
It may be out of my comfort zone.

It may feel out of sorts and confusing.
Only the light illuminates.
The truth can be too much,
Like too much sunlight without a shady spot.

The shadow is not always a scary corner.
A dark place can be healing.
A cozy cave, a reprieve from the spotlight.
A space to regain and meet myself again.

In the beginning, the womb was dark and was all I knew.
Then there was a bright light.
The world was born as I knew it.

Spring is nature’s green light.
A signal that we can go if we want.
We can emerge from the shadow into the light.

The days march on, allowing in that knowing sun.
The butterfly emerges from the chrysalis
Transformed in a safe cocoon
And the world was reborn into flight.

My feet touch the newly green grass
That has grown in that warm sunshine
And takes reprieve in the shadow of night
Knowing that the light will greet it once more.
And the greenery will grow
more lush and fresh
All due to the bright rays above.

Connection

“There is no way to happiness. Happiness is the way” Thich Nhat Hanh

If happiness had a clear, unambiguous course of travel,
Would you follow it to the T?
Would you not get distracted by what lies before you
On the path as you travel to get there?

Would you go by car?  Perhaps that pace is too fast
And one sideways glance away, you might miss
The next mark on the road.

I’d choose to go by foot.  I imagine that happiness is like
A hiking trail with blue square postmarks.
Some are new and bright blue.
They are easy to decipher.

Along the more difficult terrain,
The marks may be dull and faded.
Can we trust that we are being led to happiness?

What means happiness to me
May not be happiness to you.
So we must have a clear definition of what is happiness
Before we embark on this journey.

Or perhaps it is the course of travel itself
That illuminates the path to joy.

Is happiness the end point?