Grand is the Seen By Walt Whitman (1819 - 1892) Grand is the seen, the light, to me – grand are the sky and stars, Grand is the earth, and grand are lasting time and space, And grand their laws, so multiform, puzzling, evolutionary; But grander far the unseen soul of me, comprehending, endowing all those, Lighting the light, the sky and stars, delving the earth, sailing the sea, (What were all those, indeed, without thee, unseen soul? of what amount without thee?) More evolutionary, vast, puzzling, O my soul! More multiform far -- more lasting thou than they. I just returned from two weeks unplugged from my ministry (mostly two weeks, since I did stop by the hospital once, and I did check work email a couple of times during my first few days of detox). Time away was spent at a cabin home in the Pocono Mountains, a healing place where my family has often retreated for the past 12 years. Days spent surrounded by tall trees, waterfalls, hiking trails, good books, and great food gave my soul the time it needed to breathe. When I returned yesterday to a very-full email box, this poem by Walt Whitman was waiting for me. I took it as a reminder that for all I experienced of the grandeur of nature, there is an even grander expanse of soul-space within me. As Whitman suggests, the external and internal universe are exquisitely intertwined. I know I touched on this idea while immersed in the beauty of the Poconos. I hope all of us find time and space to consider both the inner and the outer experiences of life, and to make sure we attend to the connections between them. Peace
Posted on: Tue, 10 Sep 2013 12:55:41 +0000
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