The Doors

I was recently given the gift of a beautiful poem that is filled with wisdom. One of the joys of having a blog is that I get to share it with you here.

"Allow

There is no controlling life.

Try corralling a lightning bolt,

containing a tornado. Dam a

stream and it will create a new
channel. Resist, and the tide

will sweep you off your feet.

Allow, and grace will carry

you to higher ground. The only

safety lies in letting it all in --

the wild and the weak; fear,

fantasies, failures and success.

When loss rips off the doors of

the heart, or sadness veils your

vision with despair, practice

becomes simply bearing the truth.

In the choice to let go of your

known way of being, the whole

world is revealed to your new eyes."

- Danna Faulds, from Go In and In

This could be a description of the past four years of my life.

It reminds me of a documentary about the American band of the 1960s, The Doors. (I had a crush on Jim Morrison, back in the day. He was so sadly strung out on drugs, but he had so much raw talent, beauty and sensuality. The fact that he died in his 20s is a tragic waste; I always think of him, Jimi Hendrix and Janis Joplin together, a trio of lost artists of 1968.)

From Wikipedia: "The band [The Doors] took its name from Aldous Huxley's book The Doors of Perception,^[4] the title of which was a reference to a William Blake quotation: 'When the doors of perception are cleansed, things will appear to man as they truly are...' "

I am engaged in a book study with three friends, and the title of the book is "Open the Door - A Journey to the True Self." Doors of perception cleansed, doors of the heart ripped off, doors to true self opened. I'd call this confluence of poetic doors a blessing.

My blogging friend Mary of Landing on My Feet posted another powerful poem by this same author today. Follow the link if you would like to read more.