I was totally focused on harvesting the tomatoes, sorting through the crop, deciding which vegetation to remove. It was stifling hot. The air was so thick that I felt as if I was moving in a dense liquid. Suddenly, the heavy silence was interrupted by the voice of my fellow gardener. “Look up!” Thinking I could ignore the directive, I lowered my head closer to the earth. “Look up!” came the persistent call. Obeying the command, despite my desire to quickly finish my task so I could escape the heat, I looked up and there above my head was the most glorious sunflower I had ever seen.
“The second half of my life will be ice breaking up on the river, rain soaking the fields, a hand held out, a fire, and smoke going upward, always up.”
I begin this reflection on second half of life spirituality with an excerpt from Joyce Sutpen’s poem “Crossroads.” With so many poems on the topic from which to choose, I picked Sutpen’s for its evocative imagery and its outright acknowledgement that we can choose to thrive in the second half of our lives. In just a few lines, the poet describes some of the beautiful gifts we can anticipate.
Keeping a nature journal is a quest to find, through art and nature, a kinship with the universal and the Divine. When sitting quietly in the woods, I am learning to discover all the mysteries and lessons nature has to teach. I am finding my place in the universe and recognizing universal principles and patterns of life. My observations help me to come to terms with life and death. They help me find meaning.
Many of you who come to Mercy by the Sea see us as a unique, contemplative, restorative and transformative resource that helps you along your spiritual journey. But there are many other spiritual resources that can inspire you in between your visits. Here is a list of old favorites, like The Sun and Tikkun, and some valuable new finds like Anchor magazine and Relief. Check them out and see which one or ones speak to your heart.
