Just recently, I went for my much-needed annual retreat. I call this my ALL-ONE time with God. To be able to retreat from the busyness of life into a quiet seven day of just letting be is a blessing and a gift. Yet after being active and just on the go for the last couple of months quieting down is not that easy. Letting things be and pausing is quite a task. So, this is how my retreat started and slowly unfolded.
O Silence where art thou ?
I long to see thee in the busy streets of life
I yearn to hear thee in the buzz of everyday
I ache to touch thee as each moment passes by
O Silence where art thou?
I wander into the corners of the path
The opens before me as I seek
To meet you around each bend.
Tired and exhausted
I closed my eyes
And as I dozed into a nap
I heard a whisper ever so faint
I am here
I am here within the pulsing of life
I am here in the ticking of time
I am here in every path you take
With you in every step.
Know and be
With all that flows
Silence rests in thee.
As I came close to the end of my retreat the last two stanzas came. I felt comforted in knowing that as I sought to rest in silence, all the while, silence was resting in me. A reassuring invitation to continue finding space and time to simply allow life to flow in, with and through my being contributing and participating in the much needed silence that gives life wherever it flows.
Title Image ©Weeyaa Villanueva. All rights reserved worldwide.
I love this reflection, Weeyaa–silence as alive and mysterious; a mystery out of which life flows…a wonderful experience for you! Fr. Thomas Keating always spoke of silence as God’s first language; everything else is a translation. Thanks for sharing this aspect of your retreat.
What a beautiful image to go with your powerful writing, colour, silence, centering and light…”I sought to rest in silence and all the while, silence was resting in me.” The beauty of your writing touches me deeply since I too just completed my retreat last week.