Laughing All the Way Home

In a moment when I am focused on inner work and immersed in outer life, when so many of the structures around us are crumbling and we are searching for a clear path, poetry holds not only the promise of possible futures, but also a way to travel. When our minds are muddled with thought, poetry gives shape to the truths buried beneath layers of doubt, fear, jealousy, rage, despair...we all have our patterns of unconscious thinking and automatic reactions. And like a daily practice of movement, breath, and stillness, a regular dose of poetry can bring us back to the place of remembering what we have already always known, that we are not our thoughts, our stories, or our bodies. We will all have a different word to signify our true nature...God, Love, Divine Consciousness, Oneness, Spirit...but they all point in the same direction. Whether we follow the path or not is our choice, and so often it's not even clear which way we are headed. For so long, I measured my progress on the path against an image of stoic perfection. But lately, it's laughter that has let me know whether I am trapped in an illusion or emerging into insight. And then, I found this poem from Hafiz. May it give you a sense of direction and shape, and also, a smile. 
TWO GIANT FAT PEOPLE 
God
​and I have become 
like two giant fat people living 
in a tiny 
boat. 
We
keep bumping into 
each other 
and 
l
a
u
g
h
i
n
g
.