Remembrance
Somewhere in the Autumn it occurred to me that the big black space in my consciousness that was devouring my capacity to concentrate for more than a few minutes at a time had to do with the totally unconscious assimilation of thousands of deaths every day.
Photo: Getty Images
They are not my immediate family, nor even colleagues no matter how distantly connected. Yet, their passing calls out for acknowledgement.
Hunkering down, seeing to everyday necessities - my strategies for much of the year - only go so far. They do not meet the need.
Here’s what I wrote to start to acknowledge these fellow beings - to meditate on before going to bed each night.
Heavenly Father,
Thou all being, eternal, creative consciousness,
Thy fullness and wholeness is above and below,
Before and behind - and within
Our one and only life.
This moment brings us word of loss, of grief, and of personal suffering. [Be specific]
In this moment I know that Thou art the ever-living source of all Life.
There is no other Life, no place where Life is less than whole or less than complete.
Thy divine wholeness is this moment my only Life and the only Life of all I know.
I know that every person has Life in Thee and that Life is undying, abiding consciousness.
Knowing this in my consciousness I am empowered to speak it forth in every circumstance.
Thy eternal, abiding wholeness fills every place and every heart.
Knowledge of Thy ever-present Integrity is one and only awareness.
And so it is
It’s a work in progress; I make little changes as I use it. I hope it is helpful to you as a way of acknowledging the scale of what we face these days and of calling on the divine perspective.