Living with a Wide-Open Heart...


Strength of heart comes from knowing that the pain that we each
must bear is part of the greater pain shared by all that lives.
-Jack Kornfield


morning prayer IV
Not grasping,
but groping,
   I begin my
   morning prayer...
   letting my heart
   break open with
   the pain of the world...
   the pain in which I share...

Holy Mystery, ground of Being,
   I lay myself open,
   offer myself to be guided,
   to be used as an instrument
   in the healing of the world.
          My bit is small- but
          it IS my bit...
          as important as that
             of every other being
          who walks this planet,
                  breathes the air,
                  drinks the water,
                  eats of its bounty.

Do not let the immensity
of the pain overwhelm me-
or the many others who
willingly shoulder this
task of healing...
   enable & enliven us
   with purpose & hope.
As this amazing, fragile planet
struggles to survive,
   let me be consciously
   part of the solution...
   as I myself struggle
   to live with integrity &
                     gratitude &
                     wonder &
                     a deep sense of
                       my connection with
                       all of life.

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