Friday, June 30, 2006 at 1:01am
Sing your own song
Column: Our Place in the Universe
We learn from our experiences. And the environment that we put ourselves in will shape those experiences. From the tiniest baby being held and nurtured, or abandoned in a trash bin, to the oldest grandmother surrounded by family, or alone in a nursing home, we participate in and help create these life opportunities.
We learn from the experiences of others. We can be shaped by our grandfather who grew up during the Great Depression and learned to appreciate the most menial job because it put food on the table, or by the friend who has everything, and still wants more. More often we are influenced by those whose books we read or those who write movies or for TV.
One of the problems I see in the environment that we grow up in these days is that there is little or no time or place to sing our own song, to march to our own tune. We're so busy being individuals that we all end up looking and acting the same. We let ourselves be led by the environment that proclaims, "I'm lovin' it," or "It's the real thing."
It's interesting, this Religion and Spirituality Forum. I've read quite a few of these articles, and I've enjoyed them all. I remarked to Larry, the editor, that we all seem to be saying much of the same things. His reply was that these ideas are all said from a unique perspective of language, culture and religion. Here you can find one song, with many notes in harmony. I like it!
We learn from our stories, our rituals, and our celebrations. Look at all the Garden of Eden stories, the tales of the fall of man, or the great flood. Joseph Campbell, in his book, "The Hero with a Thousand Faces" writes, "There are of course differences between the numerous mythologies and religions of mankind, but . . . once they [the similarities] are understood the differences will be found to be much less great than is popularly (and politically) supposed."
One Forum writer did a book review for Margaret Wolff's "In Sweet Company". I was so impressed that I immediately bought it from Amazon.com. As I'm writing this column I glanced in the book and these words jumped out, "Living a spiritual life may look different on the outside, but on the inside there are communal threads that weave us together in majestic tapestry."
And it is time. It's time to live a spiritual life. People are yearning to live a spiritual life, to change the way they respond to life. To hear the path we are drawn to, to come to know our own individual spirituality, our own song, it is often necessary to tune out the static interference. Opening to the spirit takes a focus and an intentionality, as well as a faith and an openness that is not encouraged by our present lifestyle.
Gaining this focus and intention is one of the goals of ritual. One example of this is praying the rosary. I had never understood the meaning of saying the rosary as I grew up. One day someone told me that the intention behind the rosary was to meditate on the Mysteries. These joyful, luminous, sorrowful, and glorious mysteries take us on a contemplative journey through the life of Christ. We learn to deal with joy and sorrow in our own life by the example of Jesus.
This focus helps us reconcile and heal.Without moving beyond this environmental static, or the depression that sorrow and grief cause, opening up to be led by the spirit is almost impossible. Without the interconnectivity of the gifts of the spirit of others, reconciliation and healing is also difficult.
In much the same way we realize that the reconciliation and healing of the Earth is dependent on our own awareness and sensitivity to the gifts She offers us, gifts that sustain and nurture our spirit as well as our mind and body. This is the way our individual songs become a part of the whole symphony. When the serendipity of being on the path leads us to an inner change, only then will the outer environment be healed and whole.
That's why we need each other's stories, why we need each other's truths — to have a wider frame of reference, a deeper context with which to hear the music of the spheres and work out our own unique harmony to it. I have found that my own gifts are complete only when they are shared and reflected back.
True spirituality embraces the whole and supports the one. Like the drops of rain that flow in the river, may our own special love and creativity flow in harmony with the All.
— — —
Anne E. Ulvestad is a freelance writer residing in Maryland. She has her masters in earth literacy, and is available for public lectures and group presentations on Spirituality and the Environment. Anne can be reached at {email anne@ourplaceintheuniverse.com}anne@ourplaceintheuniverse.com{/email}. © 2006 by Anne E. Ulvestad.
— — —
UPI Religion & Spirituality Forum is a big tent for all expressions
of faith and spirituality, neither excluding nor favoring any.
All opinions expressed belong to the writer alone, and are
not necessarily shared by UPI Religion & Spirituality Forum.
We learn from the experiences of others. We can be shaped by our grandfather who grew up during the Great Depression and learned to appreciate the most menial job because it put food on the table, or by the friend who has everything, and still wants more. More often we are influenced by those whose books we read or those who write movies or for TV.
One of the problems I see in the environment that we grow up in these days is that there is little or no time or place to sing our own song, to march to our own tune. We're so busy being individuals that we all end up looking and acting the same. We let ourselves be led by the environment that proclaims, "I'm lovin' it," or "It's the real thing."
It's interesting, this Religion and Spirituality Forum. I've read quite a few of these articles, and I've enjoyed them all. I remarked to Larry, the editor, that we all seem to be saying much of the same things. His reply was that these ideas are all said from a unique perspective of language, culture and religion. Here you can find one song, with many notes in harmony. I like it!
We learn from our stories, our rituals, and our celebrations. Look at all the Garden of Eden stories, the tales of the fall of man, or the great flood. Joseph Campbell, in his book, "The Hero with a Thousand Faces" writes, "There are of course differences between the numerous mythologies and religions of mankind, but . . . once they [the similarities] are understood the differences will be found to be much less great than is popularly (and politically) supposed."
One Forum writer did a book review for Margaret Wolff's "In Sweet Company". I was so impressed that I immediately bought it from Amazon.com. As I'm writing this column I glanced in the book and these words jumped out, "Living a spiritual life may look different on the outside, but on the inside there are communal threads that weave us together in majestic tapestry."
And it is time. It's time to live a spiritual life. People are yearning to live a spiritual life, to change the way they respond to life. To hear the path we are drawn to, to come to know our own individual spirituality, our own song, it is often necessary to tune out the static interference. Opening to the spirit takes a focus and an intentionality, as well as a faith and an openness that is not encouraged by our present lifestyle.
Gaining this focus and intention is one of the goals of ritual. One example of this is praying the rosary. I had never understood the meaning of saying the rosary as I grew up. One day someone told me that the intention behind the rosary was to meditate on the Mysteries. These joyful, luminous, sorrowful, and glorious mysteries take us on a contemplative journey through the life of Christ. We learn to deal with joy and sorrow in our own life by the example of Jesus.
This focus helps us reconcile and heal.Without moving beyond this environmental static, or the depression that sorrow and grief cause, opening up to be led by the spirit is almost impossible. Without the interconnectivity of the gifts of the spirit of others, reconciliation and healing is also difficult.
In much the same way we realize that the reconciliation and healing of the Earth is dependent on our own awareness and sensitivity to the gifts She offers us, gifts that sustain and nurture our spirit as well as our mind and body. This is the way our individual songs become a part of the whole symphony. When the serendipity of being on the path leads us to an inner change, only then will the outer environment be healed and whole.
That's why we need each other's stories, why we need each other's truths — to have a wider frame of reference, a deeper context with which to hear the music of the spheres and work out our own unique harmony to it. I have found that my own gifts are complete only when they are shared and reflected back.
True spirituality embraces the whole and supports the one. Like the drops of rain that flow in the river, may our own special love and creativity flow in harmony with the All.
— — —
Anne E. Ulvestad is a freelance writer residing in Maryland. She has her masters in earth literacy, and is available for public lectures and group presentations on Spirituality and the Environment. Anne can be reached at {email anne@ourplaceintheuniverse.com}anne@ourplaceintheuniverse.com{/email}. © 2006 by Anne E. Ulvestad.
UPI Religion & Spirituality Forum is a big tent for all expressions
of faith and spirituality, neither excluding nor favoring any.
All opinions expressed belong to the writer alone, and are
not necessarily shared by UPI Religion & Spirituality Forum.