Eyes to See, Ears to Hear

Most people haven't really been watching or listening, have they? And why should they? The people they've been trafficking with probably haven't prepared them for it. They've had no expectation that the One who calls us may be trying to get their attention: waving His arms at them in the press of daily relationships and responsibilities, flashing His light in the soft, smiling eyes that pause and pass by, speaking in the voices of those who love and care, whispering to the heart that sighs, stirring in their very soul. They have not heard Him calling from all creation, the cycles of birth and death, change and renewal, nudging them to the questions of what is passing, what transcends, and what endures.

We are challenged with notions of humility and transcendence, challenged to understand ourselves as a passing experience, identity and consciousness which is somehow part of a greater Purpose and existence that endures. This understanding and peace, ever incomplete but continually unfolding, seems more often extended by invitation and accepted than pursued. And it appears that the more attentive we are to the unfolding, the more often we accept the invitations, the deeper, more intimate the journey becomes.

Is this something to be proved or even pursued in a certain way? No; it's a matter of personal journey and experience, and very personal to each of us. Can I logically explain it to you? In part, perhaps, but not completely—and probably not satisfactorily. Is it all part of our purpose in life? Yes, it seems to be, although we can find many reasons to treat it as though it is not or try to ignore it altogether. Do we play a role with each other in this process? Yes, and a very important one. But sometimes we may only touch a responsive chord with others—and sometimes only inadvertently—and provide a sense of invitation or permission to listen and seek some understanding of that voice or apprehension. Beyond that, if asked, we can only share our own experiences and understandings, which are unlikely to be altogether the same as someone else's. That's the way it seems to me to be.