Reflection

What Night Reveals…

Heading steadily toward the longest night (or the shortest day) in the Northern Hemisphere, I am struck by the way this time of year brings with it not only a greater period of darkness in the sky, but also greater opportunities to see and experience things that might otherwise seem minuscule or entirely escape our attention.  Every year when the light of day starts to take its leave at times earlier and earlier in the day, and we move closer toward the Winter Solstice, there is a period of adjustment, and perhaps, even a decrease in the amount of time spent venturing out and operating at “day time” speed.

When day light and the business that accompanies it begin to fade away, it can seem like time is running out. In the midst of the challenges that may come with that, the darkness also tends to bring with it the perfect backdrop. It can seem like there is less time to accomplish the things we need to do. However, these days of darkness can actually help to create more time for things of greater importance… for that which is truly beneficial to us, and the world around us.

“If a man wishes to be sure of the road he’s traveling on, then he must close his eyes and travel in the dark.” – St. John of the Cross

Night and darkness, in a sense, slow time down, providing space and calling us into the quiet. Deep within this space, there awaits a gift to be seen or sensed.  Grace waits to show us the way. It is of no coincidence that it seems the stars shine their brightest during the shortest days of the year.  Gently, they remind us, that even in the darkest hours, “The Lord will be your light forever” (Isaiah 60).

Moon

Something to Chew on…

These days so much in life can be rather easily accomplished “on the go,” or with a simple click, press, or swipe. Convenience and moving from one thing to the next without skipping a beat, at times almost mindlessly, or without taking a breath, is more commonplace than not. One can only wonder, how much is missed or falls through the cracks along this way? Or, perhaps an even better question, how is the time saved by all that serves to make life convenient being spent? Which path am I following? And society?

We have been blessed into creation with the capacity to decipher that which is of true benefit… that which is authentic. Not only that, but we have also been graced with a deep-seated desire to be connected to and guided by Wisdom… Love… Justice as we navigate our environment. Sometimes, with convenience, we somehow become busier—having less time to breathe properly when by all accounts it seems there should be more time. It can be easy to slip away from taking the time not only to discover and recognize what we are really consuming, but also to be filled by God with all that we need to speak up, making clear what is unacceptable, refusing to look or walk the other way… refusing to support or consume garbage.

Jesus tells us to know what we are eating. In order to take and eat of the goodness of God, we must take the time to chew before we swallow. It is in the chewing, that we come to see the Truth, and through the Truth that we find the courage and wherewithal to remain firm, resolved to being faithful to God, standing up in the face of all that would serve to strike down that which is good and honorable in and through each other.

Whoever eats my flesh and drinks my blood
remains in me and I in him, says the Lord. – John 6:56

The Great Wide Open…

In passing by and at times being surrounded by farmland over the past few months, the beauty and vastness of the countryside has been striking. Against the occasional backdrop of mountains and the many fields of crops and shades of green, there has been much to take in and a great sense of freedom and openness to be felt. There have also been the more confining structures one would expect to see, such as barns, fences and silos. These structures serve to protect what is within and in doing so they create boundaries and barriers. Of them, perhaps the silo, into which one cannot readily see, is the most compelling.

FarmSilos

A farm silo functions as a holding place for storing grains. It is a strong, tall, rounded container with generally no openings for the elements, including light, to penetrate. Its purpose is to prevent the grain inside from becoming compromised or spoiled. A silo does a great job of protecting grain and is both necessary and good. However, personally or in an organization… figuratively, a silo is bad news. It seeks to control the environment in ways that both compromise and spoil forward progress. It also holds back the spirit of integrity and ingenuity necessary to flourish and genuinely thrive.

As we go through life, we all come across situations, organizations and/or people through whom we experience a silo effect—having helpful information withheld, being undermined, being shut out, pushed away or alienated. Often we can easily point to or name such cases. However, it can be more difficult to see or name the instances where we may be helping to foster that experience or effect… allowing it to continue… perhaps even creating or contributing to the creation of even more silos.

The way of the world puts emphasis on acquiring and storing up things, status, reputation, chips on one’s shoulders, etc. Ultimately, they can, and often do, bring us down or cause us to be less than what we truly are. It can be difficult to recognize, yet alone to resist being swept up or carried away by this mentality, or even fighting against it. It can keep us from doing and from being… from living out our deepest, purest desires in a way that is encouraging and uplifting to others as well as ourselves. We can be led astray, fooled, or lulled over time by that which masquerades around providing a false sense of reality as well as security. We can be lured and led away from being a place of growth and harvest to a place of storage.

“You are confined only by the walls you build yourself.” – Andrew Murphy

From time to time, it is important to pause, to let the Light not only in but also to fully penetrate one’s soul, and to ask, am I a vessel or have I become a silo?

StoreHouses