“Listening”
“The Kabbalah teaches that the Holy may speak to you from its many hidden places at any time. The world may whisper in your ear, or the spark of God in you may whisper in your heart. My grandfather showed me how to listen.”
How wonderful it was that the little girl Rachel had her grandfather to teach her how to listen. Having him present at such a young age helped prevent her from having to undo so many beliefs that many of us develop as we grow, beliefs that cause us to move away from trusting, or even understanding, the sacred part of ourselves. Rachel had the benefit of growing up with a refined ear, making it so she not only learned how to listen, she didn’t have to unlearn how not to hear.
So let’s use our time together in this class to help each other listen. In doing so, we’ll honor the “god spark” in each of us. To start, work to define how you can “show your presence” in this class. In a virtual setting such as this, posting to the website and reading what others have written are how we do this.
That being said, please give yourself permission to be human. Begin by honoring your own “god spark” which means being kind to yourself. As those of you who have ever been involved in my “Practice of Kindness” class know, being kind to yourself is the basic premise of the class. Each week simply refines that premise, expanding the concept of what is your “self” outward. So read what you can. Post when you can. Understand that doing either helps each of us get more from this class.
With that in mind, I’d like to us to consider that we are a single entity, like each finger is part of something greater called a hand. Individually we are students. Together we are a class. Just like a finger can act independently, so can each of us. But each independent finger, regardless of what it does, is part of the hand. Connected by this class, we are one.
Link to Book: “My Grandfather’s Blessings”
Kind Living 
When I read this statement about being part of the whole, that everything each finger does is also a part of the hand, my initial feeling was that of dread. The amount of responsibility towards the group and the concern that I would not be able to be supportive. Then I realized that, not only was I only focusing on my responsibility of being there for the group, but not even allowing myself to depend on the group, let the group be there for me. The thought of that is almost terrifying. Gives one pause; not sure of where to go next in reflection but definitely needs to be looked at within.
Dear Carrie,
You have given me so much already by sharing your concerns. I am here for others in the group and what they can give me as much as I am here for myself. You looked deep within and gave us your trust. What a precious gift to us.
Hi Carrie – In making the point about each of us being part of something greater than ourselves I was hoping to provide a sense of camaraderie and cohesion. It’s not about any one of us being able to “let down” the group, something I don’t believe is possible. I am reminded of how both a bee and a flower need each other to exist. As such, maybe they are part of the same being, each with its own job to perform. But as part of the same being, neither can disappoint the other, just like my heart can’t disappoint my lungs. Maybe that helps? –A
I look forward to getting to know the group members who choose to share, as we go along. I enjoyed that greatly in the kindness class. I too appreciate your honesty in sharing your first reaction to the post, Carrie. The way I see it is that we can allow ourselves to be supported and strengthened by one another and to do that for others or we can improve quietly through our individual work. It is lovely to think of the possibility of amplifying one another’s actions with our own, but I don’t see any of us subtracting from the other group members’ experience. Whether you are an outgoing or quiet member, we are glad you are part of the hand and part of the group.
Linda, Andy and Brooke,
Thank you so much for your reflections and incites. It is a matter of trust and faith: trusting that we are all on the journey, that we will travel at times together and at times alone and having faith that the path will be under our feet with every step. And – that we all will come from a place of caring. On reflecting, all of your words are my first blessing of the day, as I realize that trust is an issue for me and this seems to be a caring and supportive place. Feeling very blessed today 🙂
Your response is a blessing to the start of my day.