The Word must be heard in the silence of the heart, the place in which it can be welcomed and given space so that it may become creative. From earliest times the advice given to those who wanted to learn the monastic way was always "to return to your own heart." This is the interior space for which there are so many different concepts: the inner cloister, the poustinia, the cave of the heart. It is simply "the place of God in us" which each of us will understand in a unique and mysterious way.
There is a way to smile through your eyes: to see the beauty behind the appearance of things.Imagine looking at a person who is forlorn and broken and has a bad self-image, and seeing the hidden beauty in that person.When you smile, that person sees their beauty through your eyes.Imagine the gift you are offering that person... A silent, gentle gift of love.