Cosmic DanceThe value of keeping a Lenten discipline is not merely that of self-denial. An important aspect is that of noticing, of being more aware than usual. This is really only possible if we make it a point to interrupt our habitual approach to getting through the day:
When we are alone on a starlit night, when by chance we see the migrating birds in autumn descending on a grove of junipers to rest and eat; when we see children in a moment when they are really children, when we know love in our own hearts; or when, like the Japanese poet, Basho, we hear an old frog land in a quiet pond with a solitary splash - at such times the awakening, the turning inside out of all values, the "newness," the emptiness and the purity of vision that make themselves evident, all these provide a glimpse of the cosmic dance.
Thank you for the beautiful Merton quote...I have long loved his writing and even all these years later...he never fails to speak to my heart.
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