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January-March, 2004

Looking Back with Gratitude

by Rev. Susan Hanshaw, O.M.C.

At the very top of my favorite holiday activities is the ritual of writing cards to friends and family members. I’m blessed with loved ones far and near, and I treasure this annual opportunity to reach out to those I don’t normally connect with throughout the rest of the year.

This year, as I sat down to begin the process for the very first time, it occurred to me what a very special year it has been, and how many new friends I’ve welcomed into my life, with whom I’ve shared on a very deep level.

I look back with deep gratitude at three specific callings I said “yes” to this year whose teachings enriched my life, and the friendships made added lots of love to my heart. First, I became a Chaplain for Unity In Marin, in Northern California. After several half-day Saturday sessions, twenty-five of us went to the mountains for a weekend retreat of heartfelt bonding. It turned out to be one of the most meaningful weekends of my life. I didn’t know any of my co-participants more than casually at first, yet walked away with an understanding of the depths of connection I can feel through sharing from my soul.

The second experience was late in the summer, after Spirit had led me to “stumble” across the web site for Alan Cohen Publications, where I learned about a Mastery Program to be held in Maui. I turned out to be the final registrant, and they didn’t have room for me at the main retreat facility, so I had to be placed a mile away at another, more remote facility. When I arrived, I discovered that my room, with it’s private pond overlooking the ocean, was the most spectacular room of all, and I knew that it was my gift from Spirit to make the experience even more soulful. Once again, I bonded from the heart with 25 strangers from all over the country, feeling the joy of sharing true love in my heart for all of them.

Last, but not least, was the week-long experience I shared with five other ministerial candidates and three facilitators in Kiel, Wisconsin, the week I was to be ordained at Pathways of Light. The days passed quickly, as we sat for hours studying and sharing. There were many, many precious moments, and we felt them at the time, yet for me, one of the most precious gifts is now looking back at the pictures taken, the memories frozen in time, that bring me back to the depths of the open hearts that we were sharing.

As I think about these 60 or so strangers that I came to love deeply over a few days time, I imagine that I will never see many of them again in a physical sense. Even though our physical time together on this planet may only be these few days, these friends will be among my life’s greatest teachers, for they taught me the deep joy of giving and receiving with an open, loving heart, and about how connected we really are on many levels.

© 2004, Pathways of Light. https://www.pathwaysoflight.org
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