Neighbor

Letter 4506

My neighbor, does he think of me? I think of him.

I worry over his judgment of my grounds.

I think of what he may be doing in the day. What plans does he have?

Why do I not wish for him joy? What stops me? Is it imagined conflict that causes me to dig in my heels?

❖

Let me love my neighbor.

Consider:

Can I live love?

Reading:

❖ “No man is an island, entire of itself; every man is a piece of the continent, a part of the main.” — John Donne, Devotions upon Emergent Occasions

❖ “Love is the active concern for the life and the growth of that which we love.” — Erich Fromm, The Art of Loving

❖ “Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself.” — Mark 12:31 (KJV)

Thank you for reading. If this helped you today, please consider sharing it.

~B.R.

Accident

Letter 4505

The village sits at the confluence of two rivers. Though I visit seldom, I appreciate its bounty. When I need supplies they are ready to hand.

The village exchanges with others far and wide; the goods come in barges and barks. There are people from distant lands to meet.

Some might say, what a stroke of luck for this village, that it sits by two rivers. What a happy accident for you, that your mountain home is nearby.

But the village exists because of the rivers. My home was chosen because of the village.

❖

Today’s comfort exists due to yesterday’s choices. Let today’s choices enable tomorrow’s peace.

Consider:

Can I choose for the future today?

Reading:

❖ “The future is purchased by the present.” — Samuel Johnson, The Rambler

❖ “The best way to predict the future is to invent it.” — Alan Kay

❖ “For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also.” — Matthew 6:21 (KJV)

Thank you for reading. If this helped you today, please consider sharing it.

~B.R.

Rebuilding

Letter 4504

The shed is a fixture. I scarcely recall when I built it. I see it from my kitchen window.

Aged, it is falling apart.

How tempting it is to attempt repair! Perhaps new roof tiles, or a door.

I could still see the shed from my kitchen.

Yet what is needed is to raze the structure and rebuild. Problem has piled on top of problem and half measures will not do.

There will be a time, longer than I would like, where there is no shed to see nor to use.

❖

There will be a time of rebuilding.

Consider:

Can I have the courage to start over?

Reading:

❖ “And the day came when the risk to remain tight in a bud was more painful than the risk it took to blossom.” — Anaïs Nin, A Woman Speaks

❖ “The only way to make sense out of change is to plunge into it, move with it, and join the dance.” — Alan Watts, The Wisdom of Insecurity

❖ “Behold, I make all things new.” — Revelation 21:5 (KJV)

Thank you for reading. If this helped you today, please consider sharing it.

~B.R.

Unseen World

Letter 4503

The grounds around me carry so much beauty, especially on these mornings when mist covers the ground to the horizon. The mountain watches over it all.

The beauty touches my spirit.

Inside, reading, writing, sitting, does my mind go out into the lands? Do I take in the surroundings?

I go inward, seeking you, Lord. There I find reality, even in the face of all that presents itself outside my window. The world is not the world.

The world carries messages to me from you, from your love, from your providence. The rains tell me of challenge. The sunshine tells me of peace.

❖

Let me live in reality, Lord.

Consider:

Can I live in the unseen world?

Reading:

❖ “The universe is full of magical things patiently waiting for our wits to grow sharper.” — Eden Phillpotts, A Shadow Passes

❖ “Love, and so art and morals, is the discovery of reality.” — Iris Murdoch, The Sublime and the Good

❖ “While we look not at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen.” — 2 Corinthians 4:18 (KJV)

Thank you for reading. If this helped you today, please consider sharing it.

~B.R.