On the way in to work today, I listened to an interview with Irish poet and philosopher John O'Donohue who authored the blessing I used to practice calligraphy (sample posted on flickr). The interview was by Krista Tippet, the host of public radio's Speaking of Faith. O'Donohue spoke of the inner landscape and quoted Neslon Mandela as saying "What we're afraid of is not so much our limitations but the infinite within us."
There is a lot for me to chew on from that interview. A short poem of blessing read by O'Donohue can be found on YouTube.
Beannacht — A Blessing — by John O’Donohue
On the day when the weight deadens on your shoulders and you stumble,
May the clay dance to balance you.
And when your eyes freeze behind the gray window
and the ghost of lost gets into you,
May a flock of colors indigo, red, green, and azure blue come to awaken in you a meadow of delight.
When the canvas frays in the curach of thought and the stain of ocean blackens beneath you may there come across the waters a path of yellow moonlight to bring you safely home.
May the nourishment of the Earth be yours.
May the clarity of light be yours.
May the fluency of the ocean be yours.
May the protection of the ancestors be yours.
And so may a slow wind work these words of love around you an invisible cloak to mind your life.
See another mention of this poem on a different blog.
Also:
John O'Donohue Home Page
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