It looks as if it might rain
And sounds like it’s already begun –
Given the wind moving through the treetops.
It’s getting dark, and then, even darker –
Chilly, and after a while, chillier –
It’s the kind of peaceful dark damp day
Comfortable
For staying inside.
I propose founding a new religion – for the “Nones” –
One that believes in “Nothing but God”
And has the kind of spiritual freedom people need –
That is, it’ll be democratic – without any prescribed theology –
Each person having an equal right to love God in their own way.
It’ll work best in cultures that value freedom –
And which have done the necessary work to root out social structures inhibiting it.
Today, however, there are many societies that “talk” about freedom
But which, from their beginnings, were structured to take it away –
So, I believe that everything related to freedom – especially in America –
Needs to be thought through again – “from scratch.”
Without freedom, a religion’s “God,” of necessity, ends up deformed –
Unfortunately, along with its followers.
To be clear, I’m not talking about the kind of freedom that can be used to undermine God –
I’m talking about the freedom to be a “child of God.”
Historically, there’s been a lot of good work accomplished on freedom –
It’s just that too many contemporary religions and secular institutions,
Visibly and invisibly,
Are still abrogating it – taking it away by force or trickery.
We need to be much clearer in our hearts and heads
To become more conscious about what truly helps us be free and what doesn’t –
From top to bottom –
We need a life of spiritual freedom –
The kind that, for now, pretty much only God enjoys!
God is invisibly visible –
Like a leaf from yesterday’s tree
Or tomorrow’s –
There no longer,
And, also, not yet.
It’s the same with our love –
Which gets strengthened both by distance
And absence –
Coming towards you when you’re no longer there –
And, sometimes, arriving before you’ve even come.
God is visibly invisible –
Like a momentary personal “joy,” and, yes, even the primeval “Big Bang”
When everything in the universe that now exists instantly burst out of nothing –
In some sense, aren’t they the same – both an absolute surprise?
It’s the same with how I love you –
Invisible, but more real than anything else in the world.
Running along through innumerable sunny days –
Suddenly, I wake up, next to you.
This is all I want in life –
To be invisibly visible –
Next to you.
On the porch
The blue water glass sitting on the table appears bluer
Against the outside green trees.
The blue glass is plastic – but appears luminous –
(Filled with light) –
Against that background of intense green leaves.
Our mind resembles a tumbling-down mountain stream –
So all we’re able to think about are interior “rushing sounds.”
How do we stop a tumbling-down mind long enough
To notice the shadows of leaves moving in the wind –
How “wake up” inside such an interior “commotion”?
We need to step back away from our rushing minds –
From these cinematic “selves” –
To rest a while in a country of peace –
Where “true reality” abides.
It’s difficult for us to experience love in a rushing-by life –
And almost impossible to enjoy peace when agitated –
We know it would be a surprise to discover God alive in our hearts during such times –
Since the only place God can ever truly “come alive” – is inside us.
For individuals, the heart is the equivalent of the solar system’s sun
Acting to center our lives – from beginning to end –
After all, isn’t “Love” what we like to call God when we finally understand
How truly “alive” God is!
Law and the Political
BUILDING ALTERNATIVES FOR PEOPLE AND PLANET: News and reports from the grassroots on worker and community coops, land trusts, participatory bufgeting and other explorations in mutual aid
Diner Mystic 