Resurrection Pilgrimage

  I have spent many moments along this journey breathless.  At first i wondered if it was nervous energy as I took this new adventure without any safety net - I just took a leap of faith and here I am.  On one of my numerous walking journeys I took a moment to rest along the way and thought hmm… perhaps I am just so out of shape that I am having a hard time catching my breath.  It has also been extremely windy at most of my high peak destinations towering over the ocean deep. And then yesterday it was revealed to my heart as I finished reading Richard Rhor's, Silent Compassion:  Finding God in Contemplation, as again I found myself breathless on the couch, under a fuzzy blanket, and in the lodge where I temporarily call home. I have been, without naming it, practicing spiritual silence that demands a deep presence to oneself in the moment.  This internal silence of my heart and soul gave me the space to be fully open and present to the sacred in all things as I encounter them. As Rhor indicates in his book, I have been drawing from a deeper well and this has left me breathless. The climb to Dun Aonghusa marking each stone that has felt the steps of countless souls for literally thousands of years, to walk through the sacred site to the cliffs edge took my breath away.  Embracing the profound beauty, feeling the power of the ocean below and the might of the wind along the ridge of the Cliffs of Moher took my breath away. Resting my feet along the grass that monks traveled to speak to the angels, touching the ancient stones of their altar, climbing past the round tower that marked the ground of St. Enda's first moninstay on the Aran Islands dating back to 485 AD., and finally making it to the inside of the stone church of St.  Brenan and touching the walls that hold memories since the 11th century took my breath away. Gathering water from a sacred well took my breath away. Taking in the sight, sound and feel of the ocean's life giving force took my breath away. It will take me days, weeks, months, to convey in words all my breathless moments along this pilgrimage. For now I am thankful that I am uncovering words to convey the ways in which I am drawing from a deeper well than I ever have before.  Thanks be to the God of Awe, Wonder, and Mystery.