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nembutsu.info
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Poets Corner
The Hopi people of the southwest region of North America taught that important decisions should not be made without first considering the impact of those decisions on the next seven generations. With an eye to the seven generations hence...
There is this flame.
Steady and sure,
it has been passed to us,
each of us and all of us in turn.
And we pass it on---
this is the way it works.
This flame is a gift
but one so close
we often fail to see it
as it really is,
so often mistake it
for that which cloaks
and smothers its brilliance.
The flame is first,
before the dance,
first before the music.
You can see it in others,
feel it in yourself.
It dances in the young,
sparkles and shines
like sun on the ocean,
music and movement
resonant
in the mutual embrace of trust:
the gate of light
pierces the veil,
spans the chasms
of fear;
the glow of elders
caught up and fanned
by the rhythms of living
heat in the heart,
warmth through limbs,
finger tips burning.
Of the may things you will hear,
this is the one we wish most
for you to remember.
The flame is first.
When you lose your way,
when voices press around you
and your very own life
seems as a stranger,
step carefully,
hold still.
If let be,
it will recognize itself.
In it we will never lose one another.
( Copyright © Jerry Bolick, 28 January 2003 )