Mirrored

I love these images of mirroring and reflection. They are from Southern Utah. Photographed in early December. While I was with my 23 year-old son. I love the stillness in them. I love how easy it is to get lost in the reflection off of the lake, in momentary wonder of what is real and what is illusion, what is up and what is down.

Yesterday I was with a group of ten people that I met in 2017 at The Circle Way Practicum. These are all participants from that gathering that I co-convened with Amanda Fenton. They have been meeting regularly for over three years online. First, monthly. Eventually, dropping back to quarterly. I join when I can. To be in company.

Yesterday’s circle on Zoom, was largely about reflecting and mirroring. It was 90 minutes. It was some sweet and beautiful framing offered by two participants, Joy and Joan, including a poem, In Sweet Company, by Margaret Wolff. The line that most moved me, “In sweet company, I am home at last.” And then it was the ten of us speaking a bit of ourselves into the center. In sweetness. In realness. In wonder. Finding ourselves in the story of others. Finding others in our own stories. Finding ourselves in our own story.

And then it was time to check-out. With no more words. Just a gesture. Just some presence. Just some gratitude.

I found myself so animated in something simple, yet so profoundly impactful in circle. Circle welcomes us to find sweet company with others. I would suggest that because of all that mirroring and reflecting we even find sweet company in ourselves, and home at last. Or, as I am so learning, sweet company with mystery, and home at last. Sweet company with life itself, and home at last.

Margaret Wolff’s full poem is here (thanks Joy Onyschak for sharing).

In Sweet Company

We sit together and I tell you things.
Silent, unborn, naked things
that only God has heard me say.

You do not cluck your tongue at me
or roll your eyes,
or split my heart into a thousand pieces
with words that have little to do with me.

You do not turn away because you cannot bear to see
your own unclaimed light shining in my eyes.
You stay with me in the dark.
You urge me into being.
You make room in your heart for my voice.
You rejoice in my Joy.

And through it all, you stand unbound
by everything but the still small voice within you.

I see my future Self in you.
Just enough to risk
moving beyond the familiar.
Just enough to leave the familiar in the past
where it belongs.

I breathe you in and I breathe you out
in one luxurious and contented sigh.

In sweet company I am home at last.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Gifts of Circle - Question Cardsasd
Gifts of Circle is 30 short essays divided into 4 sections: 1) Circle's Bigger Purpose, 2) Circle's Practice, 3) Circle's First Requirements, and 4) Circle's Possibility for Men. From the Introduction: "Circle is what I turn to in the most comprehensive stories I know -- the stories of human beings trying to be kind and aware together, trying to make a difference in varied causes for which we need to go well together. Circle is also what I turn to in the most immediate needs that live right in front of me and in front of most of us -- sharing dreams and difficulties, exploring conflicts and coherences. Circle is what I turn to. Circle is what turns us to each other."

Question Cards is an accompanying tool to Gifts of Circle. Each card (34) offers a quote from the corresponding chapter in the book, followed by sample questions to grow your Circle hosting skills and to create connection, courage, and compassionate action among groups you host in Circle.

This will close in 60 seconds

asd
In My Nature
is a collection of 10 poems. From A Note of Beginning: "This collection of poems arises from the many conversations I've been having about nature. Nature as guide. Nature as wild. Nature as organized. I remain a human being that so appreciates a curious nature in people. That so appreciates questions that pick fruit from inner being, that gather insights and intuitions to a basket, and then brings the to table to be enjoyed and shared over the next week."

This set of Note Cards (8 cards + envelopes)  quotes a few favorite passages from poems in In My Nature. I offer them as inspiration. And leave room for you to write personal notes.

This will close in 60 seconds

asd
Most Mornings is a collection of 37 poems. I loved writing them. From the introduction: "This collection of poems comes from some of my sense-making that so often happens in the morning, nurtured by overnight sleep. The poems sample practices. They sample learnings. They sample insights and discoveries. They sample dilemmas and concerns."

This set of Note Cards (8 cards + envelopes)  quotes a few favorite passages from poems in Most Mornings. I offer them as inspiration. And leave room for you to write personal notes.

This will close in 60 seconds