Friday, February 27, 2015

When Grief Hits Us Unexpectedly!

Well, I just discovered through a mutual friend on Facebook - of all places! - that a part-Japanese friend and artist in Sedona suddenly died. He died in his sleep - a blessing, I'm sure. He left his lovely Buddhist mother who he was caring for.

So, here I am, the "grief counselor" and minister, dealing with my own grief. I can't seem to concentrate on anything this morning. I was going to do some translating work (online), but I seem to be needing to process this grief in me, so I turned to Blogging today instead. I need to be patient with myself today... let me honor my feelings and what I need to do for myself right now.

It's another reminder to me of how fragile life is! I had the privilege of officiating at a service for a young man who died suddenly here in Colorado - just this past Monday. So, signs of life and death are all around me these days. I also just turned 60 years old this week! So what a week it's been, come to think of it ;) Lots of messages about aging, death, and transformation through grief, not to mention the fragility of life.

I guess I don't need to write a lot here today, but I wanted to remind myself and all of us to APPRECIATE the LIFE that we have! We never know what's going to happen, even though we may think we do! Life and death are part of the Beautiful Cycle of Life; and we can welcome the entire cycle as it manifests into our lives.

In closing, I'd like to share a beautiful poem from the first edition my book, The Last Adventure of Life. It's a very comforting piece for those grieving, from the Celtic book, Anam Cara: A Book of Celtic Wisdom.

Beannacht For Josie

On the day when
the weight deadens
on your shoulder
and you stumble,
may the clay dance
to balance you.

And when your eyes
freeze behind
the gray window
and the ghost of loss
gets in to 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 a 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.