Moving Parts

When asked to speak about something of which he was certain, Albert Einstein replied,

“Something is moving.”

We're on the road somewhere, at the beginning of a months-long sabbatical, and I'm pondering how fast things change, how everything has been moving and transforming as the last of our bags were packed, the last errands done, neat lists became unreadable, and we've zigzagged in and out of six time zones in the last five days. As I went through the last folders on my desk, Einstein's quote and Anna Akhmatova's poem I Will Not Die an Unlived Life fell into my hands, perfect reflections of what I was feeling amidst the "calm chaos' of dismantling one way of living and stepping into the unknown of another.

Their words are poignant reminders that movement is essential to a life well-lived—a life filled with conflicting emotions and situations, the need for deeper awareness of all things interior and exterior, and the grace of receiving the unlimited possibilities—the gifts—of focused intention.

I will not live in fear of falling or catching fire.

I choose to inhabit my days

To allow my living to open me

To make me less afraid, more accessible.

To loosen my heart

Until it becomes

A wing, a torch, a promise.

To live so that which came to me as seed

Goes to the next as blossom

And that which came to me as blossom

Goes on as fruit.

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Calming Practice: Moving Toward Grace

When life seems to be moving too fast, open your eyes wide.

Be mindful of what is asking to be done by you.

Acknowledge cooperation, collaboration, and unseen helping hands.

Be grateful.

Let go of carrying everything.

Smile and laugh more often than not.

Let grace move in its unfathomable way.

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