~ awake in this moment, at home in the world ~

A Blessing From Beyond

May 22, 2017

My amazingly loving, fierce and tender friend Martha Marcom died in 2017. She was one of the "shining ones," as the Buddha would say, who lights the way for others. When I close my eyes, grow still, and listen for her within, this Blessing from Beyond is what I hear.

I.
Actually, it's lovely here.
The light is astonishingly soft and bright.
There's plenty of room to stretch out, at last,
and the views are beyond spectacular.

There is nothing to be afraid of here.
There is no worry, no pain, no regret.
There is no such thing as loneliness, and
in fact, no separation from anything at all.

In some ways, even, this place does offer
the deep relief you always thought it might,
the ultimate in letting go, the endless space - lots -
a final consummation of unity and freedom.

No more shopping for shoes, no glasses to lose.
No endless worry after the fate of the greater world.
No bones, no blood, no thoughts, no fury.
No running out of time - in fact, no time at all.

II.
After all that we've been through,
all the discomfort of having a life
(much as I did love it while I could),
I have found a new and holy peace.

Because bits of me have become the trees,
which are now greening up with spring.
And pieces of me have become the
hawks that soar across the clean blue sky.

I have become raindrops and stars
and the dark and silent indigo of night.
Occasionally I even ride across the sky
as dazzling bolts of lightning from afar.

I have become mountains and oceans.
And I am at home with the sun.
And, oh, can you imagine how vast
and holy it feels to be a cloud?

My light has become the light, and
I am now all that has ever been, and
I am you, and me, and all who will ever be.
I have become the love that knows no bounds.

III.
Every once in a while, when the air is thin and
your mind grows still, do you sense that I am near?
Do you feel my smile, my warmth, my everlasting love?
In this space, you have found the resonance of me.

Please trust that in this way I'll visit now and then,
when I'm not delighting in myself as beams of light.
I'll whisper in your ear and remind you all is well.
I’ll offer up a taste of all that shines beyond.

And on those days when I feel far away, do not be afraid.
Do not linger long in sorrow or regret. Live boldly while
you can. Savor your earthly delights. Practice always.
And don't waste a single breath on anything but love.

One day, as I promised, I will greet you here with open arms.
Until then, my dear, remember that while I may have left you
in the obvious sense, infinitesimal pieces of me, even now,
are nestling into your heart, into the very fabric of your being.

I am here. I am now. I am light. I am love. I am everything,
at last. And still I am with you, always and forever.

๑๑๑