The 60-Second Sabbath

On Being Selfish

It's not selfish
to live as you want;
it is selfish
to expect others
to live as you want.

Text and image © 2014 by Dirk deVries. All rights reserved.

Mountain, Molehill, Monster, Mouse

Much of the distress we feel
is because we have become alienated from
parts of ourselves that we fear,
that we prefer to pretend don't exist.

These parts are like the headache
we decide is from too much salt
(not a brain tumor)
or the tingling in our feet
we determine is from standing too long at work
(not diabetes),
until it's too late,
and whatever it is
takes over our lives...
or takes life from us.

The path to healing, then,
is to open ourselves
to all the frightening crazies within,
because nothing takes away the crazies
like clearly identifying
and compassionately embracing
each one of them,
one-by-one,
one-by-one-by-one:
the mountain shrinks to a molehill;
the monster morphs to a mouse
(and if you're afraid of mice,
to a Junior Mint).

The challenge
is to sit quietly in the dark,
until you see movement out of the corner of your eye,
and to slowly turn your head
until you face the dark corner
out of which something begins to emerge.
You say:

    "Let me see you as you really are,
    not as I have imagined you to be."

It will step from the shadows,
at which point you will say,

    "Oh, for heaven's sake;
    is that it?"

Text and image © 2014 by Dirk deVries. All rights reserved.

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This I Call Healing

This suddenly hits me--
the hours spent with my therapist
have been among the most creative (like Art!)
and holy (like God!)
of the last eighteen months.

This is where and when
the disparate, broken and wandering
    pieces of myself
come into view,
    are welcomed back
    and join together.

This I call healing.
This I celebrate.

Text and image © 2014 by Dirk deVries. All rights reserved.

 

Paint Chips

Needing a moment
of awe and wonder?
Go into your nearest
hardware, paint or home-improvement store,
find the display of paint chips,
stand in front of it
and look.

Be silent, be still and look...

Hundreds (thousands?) of colors
fill your vision,
    a universe of browns and yellows,
    oranges and blues,
    reds and purples,
    grays and creams...

Marvel at this.

Oh, wait! God speaks:

    BeautyDiversityDepthSubtlety
    RichnessRenewalVisionDreams
    JoyIndividualityPeaceCreativity

Text and image © 2014 by Dirk deVries. All rights reserved.

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Text and image © 2014 by Dirk deVries. All rights reserved.

The Good Little Boy

The nice little boy
    does just as he should.
He follows the rules,
    is patient and good.

He's neat and he's tidy,
    he pleases them all.
He clears up the dishes
    and comes when he's called.

And when he is older,
    and when his is grown,
he never assembles
    a life of his own.

He never finds freedom,
    he never finds joy;
he just keeps on being
    the good little boy.

Text and image © 2014 by Dirk deVries. All rights reserved.

Stripped

Words are like clothing;
    we try them on to see how they fit.
Some suit us, so we wear them again;
    some we try once and abandon.
Some fit and flatter;
    some make us look frumpy and cheap.

Words come and go,
    trendy and smart one month,
    off to ARC the next.

Eventually, we lose the need
    for any words at all.
This we call sacred nakedness,
    and we all get there eventually.

Text and image © 2014 by Dirk deVries. All rights reserved.

Setbacks and Scenery

Setbacks may not be setbacks--
they may be detours on your journey
during which you get to see scenery
you otherwise would have missed--
nice scenery,
lovely scenery,
at times take-your-breath-away scenery,
at times take-your-arrogance-away scenery,
at times take-your-illusions-away scenery.

In any case,
really, really great scenery,
worth the extra time.

Text and image © 2014 by Dirk deVries. All rights reserved.

Perspective

Does the world look good
because you feel good?
Or do you feel good
because the world looks good?

Try other adjectives...

Does the world look bleak
because you feel bleak?
Or do you feel bleak
because the world looks bleak?

Does the world look hopeful
because you feel hopeful?
Or do you feel hopeful
because the world looks hopeful?

In other words...

Does your heart
shape the world?
Or does the world
shape your heart?

Text and image © 2014 by Dirk deVries. All rights reserved.

Sophia on the Way to Work

I backed the car out,
paused to watch the garage door close,
then glanced in the rear-view mirror--
with a start I saw Sophia grinning in the back seat.

"Good morning," she said, cheerfully.

"Ah, yes, morning," I managed.
"How are you?"

"I am well," she said.
"But busy. I don't have much time, today."

"Oh," I said, intending to sound disappointed,
but not doing it convincingly.

She chuckled as I pulled into the street.
"I enjoy seeing you
even if you don't enjoy seeing me...
and I know at times you do."

Which was true;
I could always relax in the knowledge
that no matter the circumstance,
Sophia saw it as it was,
clearly and without judgment.

"So?" I asked. "What is it today?"

"This latest suffering--
don't waste it."

I slowed for an intersection.
Don't waste it?
A new life development,
with grief, physical and emotional pain.
Waste it?
"How would I waste it?" I asked.

"By failing to respect it.
By being so into it
that you blind yourself
to what gifts it might offer you.
Suffering is hard, of course,
and hurts;
don't make it worse
by wasting it."

We drove a few blocks in silence before she said,
"Drop me at the light,
if you would."

I pulled off into a parking lot,
stopped the car,
turned in the seat and looked back at her.
She continued,
"I have been around a long time.
In that time, I've experienced much loss.
At times I wasted it,
not waiting for it,
not allowing it,
not honoring it.
The most painful of experiences
can be the richest."
She stared out the window,
more with herself at the moment than with me.

"I'm sorry," I said.

She put one hand on my arm,
the other on the door handle.
"Just don't waste it," she said
and exited the car.

As I merged back into morning traffic,
I noticed my suffering
sitting beside me in the passenger seat.
"Ah, it's you," I said.
"Fifteen minutes to the office.
Tell me what's on your mind..."

Text and image © 2014 by Dirk deVries. All rights reserved.

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