Silent Sunday
Letting go
Here in the southern hemisphere it is Autumn, which is a beautiful reminder to learn from nature of letting go. This silent Sunday resource is going to be a bit different, in that I will be using very few words, and rather invite you to reflect deeply on one poem. So join me in praying with the music, poem, quiet prayer and reflection questions around this theme.
Opening music:
Lyrics:
Open my heart,
Open my heart.
Time: 14 minutes
Centering prayer / meditation:
Now I invite you to rest in quiet prayer before reflecting further on the poem using the questions on the website below. (You can choose between a 10 minute timer and a 20 minute timer below, which each have a gong at the beginning and three gongs at the end). If you find your mind wandering, gently let go of your thoughts and return to silence, to being present, to awareness of your breath or your sacred word.
Listen to the following music as an ending to the time of prayer:
Sacred Reading:
Read through the poem again slowly, and listen for any phrase or image that snags at you or shimmers for you. Then work with one or more of the questions that are beneath the poem.
Not a One, by Mark Nepo
A funny thing happened on my way
to being awake. I outgrew all my masks.
Not a one fit. Not the one I called my
past. Not the one I called my dream.
Not the one I wore when sad. Or the
one I wore when trying to be happy.
I saved them all like favorite shirts
I thought would fit when I became
myself again. But that was a mask, too.
Then, just the other day, I was more
present than lost, and had to put down
the mask I called my story.
And today, a gust of light filled my face.
I felt it on my skin and in my soul.
Now, anything is possible.
Questions for reflection
Is there any area of my life where I feel ready to let go, even just for now?
What am I holding onto that keeps me from being free?
What masks, stories, memories or dreams are weighing me down, keeping me from being present to my life as it is?
How can I respond to the invitation right now to be "more present than lost"?
Meditation walk:
Here in the southern hemisphere it is the equinox between summer and winter - and I always find autumn a beautiful reminder to learn from nature of letting go. If this is possible for you, take a walk in nature, and listen deeply to any invitation you hear to let go of anything that is weighing you down, and to become present and open.
Ending Prayer:
The rhythm of life is yours, Creator Beloved,
the changing of the seasons,
the freshness of the morning after the stillness of night,
youth's energy and age's measured pace.
For daylight that follows the hours of darkness,
for the time of awakening to the day, and the time of letting go
for the overlapping of silence and sound,
the seen and the unseen,
heaven and earth,
body and spirit,
rest and dying and new life –
all part of your rhythm, O God, thanks be to you.
Amen.
(Adapted from a Celtic prayer by John Philip Newell)
Ending music:
Lyrics:
Thanks to Thee, O God
That I have risen today
To the rising of this life
It is like Thee
To the rising of Thy glory
O God of every gift
And the glory of my soul
O great God
Aid Thou my soul
With the aiding of Thine own
And Thy mercy
Even as I clothe
My body with wool
Cover Thou my soul
With the shadow of Your wing
Thanks to Thee, O God
That I have risen today
To the rising of this life
And as the mist
Scatters on the crest
Of the hills may each haze
Clear from my soul
Thanks to Thee, O God
That I have risen today
To the rising of this life
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Sharon's book that was previously called "Contemplative Living" has been republished by AnamChara Books under the title "Deeper: Finding the Depth Dimension Beneath the Surface of Life". The Kindle version is available from Amazon, and the hard copy version can be ordered from loot.co.za or Takealot, or from your local bookshop through Ingram Distribution.