Small Graces
Pequeñas Gracias
--por Kent Neburn
La noche se acerca. Es hora de dormir.
He recorrido un camino tranquilo hoy. No he hecho un gran bien ni un gran daño. Podía haber deseado más, alguna ocurrencia dramática, algo memorable. Pero no hubo más. Este fue el día en que me fue dado, y he tratado de recibirlo con un corazón humilde.
Qué poco parece. Buscamos la perfección en nuestros días, siempre queriendo más para nosotros y nuestras vidas, y luchando por metas inalcanzables. Vivimos entre los vastos infinitos del pasado y el futuro en el delgado rayo de luz que llamamos "hoy". Y sin embargo, hoy nunca es suficiente.
¿De dónde viene este extraño impulso humano insaciable de "más" que es a la vez nuestra bendición y nuestra maldición? Nos ha llevado a levantar los ojos al cielo y a unir piezas del universo hasta que hemos podido vislumbrar una sombra de la creación divina. Sin embargo, para obtener este conocimiento, a veces hemos perdido el misterio de una nube, la belleza de un jardín, la alegría de un solo paso.
Debemos aprender a valorar tanto lo pequeño como lo grande. [...]
"Confucio les dijo a sus seguidores: 'Traed paz al viejo, tened confianza en vuestros amigos y amad a los jóvenes'.
"¿Realmente necesitamos mucho más que esto? Honrar el amanecer, visitar un jardín, hablar con un/a amig@, contemplar una nube, apreciar una comida, inclinar la cabeza ante el misterio del día. ¿No es esto suficiente?
El mundo que moldeamos es el mundo que tocamos- con nuestras manos, nuestras acciones, nuestros sueños.
Si tuviéramos la suerte de tocar la vida de muchos, que así sea. Pero si nuestro destino no es más que poner una mesa, o el cuidado de un jardín, o mostrar a un niño un camino en un bosque, nuestras vidas no son menos dignas.
Me acuesto en mi cama, siento el calorcito de las sábanas, escucho los ritmos tranquilos de la suave respiración de mi esposa.
Fuera, el viento sopla suavemente, haciendo rozar una rama del abedul contra la casa.
Hacer justicia. Amar la piedad. Caminar humildemente con nuestro Dios.
Trae paz al viejo, tener confianza en nuestr@s amig@s y amar a l@s jóvenes.
A veces, parece, pedimos demasiado. A veces olvidamos que las pequeñas gracias son suficientes.
Preguntas semilla para la reflexión: ¿Qué significan las pequeñas gracias para ti? ¿Puedes compartir una historia personal de una vez que te sentiste complet@ con las pequeñas gracias en tu vida? ¿Qué te ayuda a valorar lo pequeño así como lo grande?
Extraído del libro de Kent Neburn, Small Graces.
Excerpted from Kent Neburn's book, Small Graces.
SEED QUESTIONS FOR REFLECTION: What do small graces mean to you? Can you share a personal story of a time you felt complete with the small graces in your life? What helps you value the small just as well as the great?
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16 Past Reflections
On Dec 18, 2017 Barbara wrote :
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On Dec 5, 2017 sakthi wrote :
Wonderful and my deep gratitude for this gift in the emai box.
Reminds me of a scene in Gandhi movie …the whole leadership will be assembled in the ashram to talk about the next steps etc and Gandhi will excuse them to take care of answering a small kid in nursing a wounded goat. A balanced mind of not losing the small while in the big and living in the moment !!!!! Thank You
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On Dec 5, 2017 Manuel Castrillo wrote :
Every day I wake up giving thanks for waking up. I have learned to accept things as they come, not question but confront, with faith and patience, with courage and hope. And also to enjoy and be happy with the little things, with the "Instants" that we sometimes go unnoticed! The day is full of those moments, moments that can take us through infinite paths of well-being and Light.
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On Dec 5, 2017 Mish wrote :
If my words or actions in a day enabled one person to smile , that's enough for me.
1 reply: Me | Post Your Reply
On Dec 5, 2017 Deepak wrote :
Small graces means to do mundane things in life , like picking up trash from the foot path and throwing it in the garbage bin , hearing the birds singing as I go for my morning walk in the early hours of the dawn and connect with my inner self . Small graces mean visiting my ex wife's mother who was sick in the hospital as I wanted to connect with her and find out how she was . Small graces means being and doing things for others however trival it may be which would bring a smile on their faces and would make me happy .
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On Dec 4, 2017 Amy wrote :
Less is more in my little world. I am gifted the grace (by God) to love and serve my husband, parents, mother in law, aunt, grandson, immediate family and whom ever else I come in contact with (having a need). I do NOT strive for perfection...(I simply cling to His). I find myself "wanting" less (STUFF) ... Rather, wanting more and more "special moments". (Like this evening, I observed the moon, rapid movement of clouds, the wind, rain and the sound of a train outside my open window. Later ... Hanging out with my husband and then, going on a "silent retreat", walking my dog by the light of the moon, wind whipping around us ... And a slight baptism from Heaven in the form of precipitation). Full of Grace (Jesus) are these moments. There is ALOT of GREAT in the small! BIG is just an illusion.
1 reply: Meeran | Post Your Reply
On Dec 3, 2017 Kristin Pedemonti wrote :
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On Dec 3, 2017 david doane wrote :
All that is, living and not living, is God incarnate, and is a gift and a grace. The gifts or graces are everything, including this day, my every breath, my every heart beat, my hand, the ability to move and think and feel, the ability to see, hear, taste, smell, and touch, other people, a glass of water, a butterfly, my cat, a tree, a rock, a lifetime, the entire world in which I live. It is difficult for me to differentiate between small and great graces. I think all graces are both small and great. What helps me value and treasure the graces in my life is knowing how precarious and temporary they are and how little control I have. What helps me feel complete with the graces in my life is being aware of and grateful for them.
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On Dec 2, 2017 Jagdish P Dave wrote :
1 reply: Amy | Post Your Reply