“The Cup”
(Coffee and Cigarette Meditation)
Coffee cools
Earthen, bitter, metallic tastes on my tongue
Dark, thick richness lingers on the cup and in the back of my mouth
The last sip awaits its consummation
Now cold, cup’s bottom revealed through the dregs
Still as a stone it rests, awaiting my decision
Cool menthol billows, riding on my breath
Haloed, wreathed, concealed, behind the shifting veil
Seeking stillness, clarity, connection to Creation
Perhaps it lies beneath the bottom of this last bitter business
I would that this cup pass from me
Yet it awaits, growing colder
I am at once judged and instructed
It looms larger
The vessel of my soul one with the cold dross
I would not
Yet nevertheless I will drain this cup of the last grievous drop so that it might be filled again
Filled again with living water
Amen

 

Music – Thievery Corporation – Sleeper Car

I have come face to face with my own cowardice

Stark and real, it has lived for decades hidden at the core of me

The talents and skills I have honed

Now exposed for what they are in the light of what has come

Forever it seems I have developed defenses to hide and secure the Timid Self

In the arena of thought, philosophy, religion, and politics, I am a warrior and champion

But even now I shrink before the powers and principalities of this world

I am exposed, vulnerable, panicked, and yes, afraid

Yet . . .

And yet, even in the midst of the chaos of this crucible there is stillness

A soundless voice whispers . . .

Wait, be still, allow the fire to burn off the dross

Watch and see the path appear before you

It will manifest one halting step at a time

It says to me

Time for believing is done

Now is the season of Knowing

For, without resistance there can be no flight

If there is no obstacle, climbing is impossible

Amidst the fear is where love abides

At the ends of terrible grief, laughter arises

Stillness is learned when anxiety is the guide not the foe

What is Now will reveal what is needed in It’s time

I will ride the waves that come

They will ferry me to the new land which awaits