Morning Prayer 31/100. Now and then

now and then

now and then

“Now and then” suggests separation and, at the same time, connection. Now: this very moment that is ever changing as the where and when of reality; and then: time gone by and so literally gone, except in the memory.

And there’s the throw-away phrase “now and then” which means “every once in a while, almost without thought, a moment of happenstance.”

Early this week a woman I know made her transition. She and I had cameo roles in each others’ lives some 50 years ago. Her older sister and I went steady through high school. To me she was on the edge of teen-age and usually running from one room to another. To her I was likely just the guy who hung around her sister.  That’s as well as we knew each other.

Every now and then, during the interval years, I’ve revisited many goneby moments still in my memory . Always a sentimental, reminiscent pleasure. Facebook brought this younger sister and me into cyber-contact a couple of years ago, so now and then I have seen what her life 50 years later was like. Her sister, my former girlfriend, and I haven’t communicated in all those years.

Now and then. Her transition this week allows me another perception of “now and then.” Despite the few photos and posts on Facebook, my connection with her was much more tied to then. Her transition brings her into now for me. The separations of space and time and my memory’s limitations vanished in an instant.

Conscious now that she is released from the human costume, the human stage, I enjoy a stronger connection. I recognize and respect the loss felt by her family. I will miss her occasional posts on Facebook. And I am moved to feel that stronger connection.

Amazing, perhaps ironic, that the few things we had in common as human beings distracted me from knowing our spiritual Oneness. The spiritual Oneness every one of us shares with every one of us.

How often, how much does being human get in the way and prevent us from sharing the truth that the Divine in me adores the Divine in you?

Divine Creator,
the blessing of knowing that every one of us
is your child
tells us we are seamlessly united.
The realization of our Oneness beyond our human trappings
frees us to adore the Spirit each of us is.
I affirm the power and the peace
that realization brings.
I affirm the exalting joy
from truly knowing, feeling
‘the Divine in me adores the Divine in you’.
I affirm that feelings of pain and sorrow
from losing a loved one
can allow us to reach for
the unconditional joy of knowing
Oneness in Spirit.
And so it is. Amen.

Love and blessings,

Tim

 

 

08/28/2014