CONTAGIOUS

Redistributable Under Creative Commons License (CCBY)

Notice: all former postings stored on Asheville Sangha that carry the (C) traditional Copyright notice are now converted to the CCBY license.

Originally posted / Version 1.0  October 21, 2012; Fernandina Beach, FL

Howard McQueen

All to often

I feel that

life

is

overwhelming me,

that my future is so uncertain

that I will become drained

and slip into the joyless void.

When I obsess upon these feelings, I intensify them

and pressure and stress builds,

till I ultimately project my inward stress outward on to those who love me.

FEAR is so very contagious.

…

LOVE is so very contagious.

…

Let fear be heard, and understood

by others and myself.

Let us together absorb these images of irrational fear,

So me, and you need not act upon fear.

I am learning that my home is not a physical house that can be gussied up.

My home is a loving relationship,

first, with my wife,

then extended into communities of others

who are opening their hearts

and working to create

and sustain

a collective environment

of deeply compassionate, loving relationships.

As I shift my emphasis away from the seductive glitz and glitter of material things,

And, with a sense of gratitude,

Release these objects and feel their hold release me,

A lightness

And

A comforting and confident willingness to embrace the unknown is rekindled,

And I set my self free

To more deeply love – again.