Like a stone thrown
into the river’s flow,
we are called by the earth
Mother Nature has
no patience
for all that merely
scratches the surface
of things.
Every blossom, every tree,
every rooted thing
knows its place in the field,
knows its being by the way
it reaches always for the center,
never once dreaming
of trading all its rootedness
for an empty freedom.
What makes us determined
to flee from everything
that would love us deeply,
so determined
to be in any other moment
but the one where we are now?
What are you chasing
that is not already
right before you?
What blessing do you seek
that has not already
been given to you
every moment of your life?
Sink down to the river’s bottom.
Plant your seeds in dark soil.
Watch the slow unfolding
of what this earth
intends you to be,
if you would only slow down
long enough
to let yourself grow.
- Matthew Foley