Perhaps they are not stars, but rather openings in heaven where the love of our lost ones pours through and shines down upon us to let us know they are happy.
Once we begin to see our lives within our own families as opportunities for spiritual
development, the possibility of inner growth is unlimited. Home is no longer just a
place to eat and sleep, but a school for our souls and spirits. Each day yields its
lesson, and our children and partners become our teachers. We find our rhythm and
learn to harmonize. We learn how to cherish and care for one another and how to
care for our own souls as well. We learn to dance together, how to lead and when
to follow. In so doing, we bring about changes both large and small, for our
children, nurtured by rhythm, may ultimately heal and restore the rhythm of the
world.
When someone deeply listens to you
it is like holding out a dented cup
you've had since childhood
and watching it fill up with
cold, fresh water.
When it balances on top of the brim,
you are understood.
When it overflows and touches your skin,
You are loved...
When someone deeply listens to you,
your bare feet are on the earth
and a beloved land that seemed distant
is now at home within you.
Because this bird is singing to me,
I belong to the wide wind,
The people far away who share
The air and the clouds.
Together we are looking up
Into all we do not own
And we are listening.
~ by Naomi Shihab Nye from "Messages from Everywhere"
This is the bright home
In which I live,
This is where
I ask
My friends
To come,
This is where I want to love all the things
It has taken me so long
To learn to love.
The same stream of life that runs through the world runs through my veins night and day and dances in rhythmic measure. It is the same life that shoots in joy through the dust of the Earth into the numberless blades of grass and breaks into tumultuous waves of flowers.
