Turn the World Around

It's warmer this morning when I rise. Four degrees. The sun skims over the horizon just as I begin my T'ai Chi Chih practice. I squeeze into the farthest northeast corner of the living room in order to watch it rise, a blood red diamond flashing through shadowed tree trunks.

As the sun diminishes in color bright pink reflects from the underside of a distant cloud. And then I notice glowing red mirrored on the surface of Lake Superior. Less than an hour later the sky is overcome by thick grey clouds. This morning's brilliant sunrise is now a distant memory.

Yesterday we saw smoke on the water, a heavy cloud of mist caused by the sun's early morning rays striking Lake Superior's chill waters and suctioning up some of its moisture into vastly colder morning air. Today's post-sunrise view is less visually dramatic: white, grey, and dark grey clouds smother the land in dingy dullness.

During this morning's TCC practice I remembered what inspired me to move more softly. It happened almost a year ago when I watched Sr. Antonia, the TCC guide, lead our practices at the TCC Retreat in St. Paul, MN. Again, during the TCC Teachers' Conference in August, I realized that I could deepen my own practice into greater softness.

Sr. Antonia's movements look gentle, peaceful, and easy when I'm in the same room moving with her. But I'm also reminded of the lovely way she moves each time I re-watch the film, On the Road Home: A Spiritual Journey Guided by Remarkable Women. In the film Sr. Antonia leads several different TCC classes and in each instance her soft, flowing movements are beautiful to behold.

Of course, I'm responding to more than the movements. I realized this more clearly when I recently showed this film to a friend who immediately described the energy she sensed when she watched Sr. Antonia move. I'd venture a guess that the energy that underlies Sister's TCC practice is loving compassion (and more).

I'm reminded of another woman healer: Ethel Lombardi. Almost 20 years ago I participated in a workshop Ethel led at a Spiritual Frontiers Fellowship retreat. A Reiki master, Ethel created a healing system called MariEl. MariEl used heart-centered energy and the essence of the feminine, i.e., Mother Mary (along with the goddesses Isis, Quan Yin, and the moon), to unlock negative emotional or physical experiences stored in the body's cells. Ethel simply looked at me and I felt deep love flowing into me. Several decades later I still remember that moment clearly because I felt as if something in that look changed everything....

Yes, we are all powerful and power-filled beings. It's unfortunate that we seldom realize that the smallest effort on our part can have huge and life-changing magnifications. A movement. A look. A word. When we act out of love and compassion, anything is possible.

Live your beliefs and you can turn the world around. -- Henry David Thoreau