Third Series – Issue 4
A Love Letter from Sage-ing International
Era of Awakening
The Spiritual Path of Self-inquiry
The Executive Circle of Sage-ing International sends our deepest gratitude to our beloved community for all the ways our constituents have contributed to imperative social cooperation these past critical months during the pandemic. Indeed, we are moved to sincere thankfulness in that Sage-ing International and SI leaders continue to thrive in carrying forward the mission that Rabbi Zalman Schachter-Shalomi envisioned—transforming the current paradigm of aging to “sage-ing” through learning, community building and service. As we connect with you once again via A Love Letter, we trust that during these unprecedented months there have been extraordinary experiences that positively changed the landscape of your life in the midst of obvious— and sometimes not so obvious—challenges. Our hope is that you have continued to discover renewed purpose, novel and life-affirming ideas, and deepening connections with others.
 
We have arrived at summer 2021—eighteen months after the world became acutely aware of the COVIC-19 virus. Daily, we have had chances to learn from this crisis—individually and collectively, and take action to positively influence the future. The Chinese word for crisis comes to mind: 危機. It is comprised of two Chinese characters; the first character represents “danger.” Although the second character has been perceived as representing “opportunity,” Sinologist Victor H. Mair of the University of Pennsylvania says it is more representative of “change point.” It is powerful to apply the concept of “change point” to our pandemic experiences. Change points require both backsight and foresight. Wisely looking forward, how will we identify our own change points that can lead us in significant ways?
 
Practice Self inquiry. Self-inquiry is one of the most powerful tools of spiritual practice and personal development. Through self-inquiry, we have the opportunity to experience change points as we assess our beliefs, examine our actions, and answer questions that guide us to deeper truths. Victor Parachin, a protestant minister and Buddhist meditation teacher, identified seven habits of people who awaken (Spirituality & Health May/June 2021). Interestingly, the first habit is inquiry. He states that people who evolve engage in inquiry, which serves to guide life toward greater meaning and fulfillment. Parachin quoted Ajahn Summano who maintains, “We would be arrogant to believe that we can proceed far without pondering the important questions life asks of us.”
 
Identify Change Points. Now that there is light at the end of a very long tunnel, what has changed for you? What brought you light, joy and clarity over past months? What helped you strengthen during adversity? Are there “things” that you want to shed or leave behind as you move forward? Are there practices, ideas, routines and ways of being that you definitely want to continue? What are your hopes as you move into the future? Perhaps, there are other specific questions you are pondering. Imagine that life is asking you these and other new questions that you haven’t before thought about. Your reflections and answers will likely advise you of potent change points that may influence a more authentic future.
Imagine that there will never be an ordinary day in your life again. What does this mean? How would you now describe a new “normal day?” Mary Jean Irion artfully imagined in her following poem:
 
Normal day,
let me be aware of the treasure you are.
Let me learn from you,
love you,
savor you,
bless you before you depart.
Let me not pass you by in quest
of some rare and perfect tomorrow.
Let me hold you while I may,
for it may not always be so.
One day I shall dig my nails into the earth,
or bury my face in the pillow,
or stretch myself taut,
or raise my hands to the sky,
and want more than all the world,
your return.
Create New Life. As you begin creating a new way of life, you may wonder who you now are in that you have been gifted life throughout this precarious time. One of our SI leaders frequently says to her family and friends, “I would like to introduce myself since I was a different person yesterday.” As you emerge from stillness and/or isolation, you may recognize how you are different, that your intentions have shifted in this new dimension, and that a renewed purpose is influencing your contributions in creating a better world. Perhaps, you will listen to the voices of children in more thoughtful ways, perceive your home as a sanctuary, cherish a phone call or make one that means the world to someone else. Perhaps you will take risks to act and speak on behalf of those less fortunate, or those whose lives have been impacted in challenging ways. When you listen to the teapot whistle in the morning or smell the coffee, for what or who will you now say prayers of gratitude? Exactly, what is it that you have been awakened to?
 
As we move forward, let us not continue in habit but look for what lies just beneath the surface—precious, as sparkling diamonds in our path. To begin, it is well to remember Mary Oliver’s eloquent poem:
My work is loving the world.
Here the sunflowers, there the hummingbird – 
equal seekers of sweetness.
Here the quickening yeast; there the blue plums.
Here the clam deep in the speckled sand.
Are my boots old? Is my coat torn?
Am I no longer young and still not half-perfect? Let me
keep my mind on what matters,
which is my work,
which is mostly standing still and learning to be astonished.
The phoebe, the delphinium.
The sheep in the pasture, and the pasture.
Which is mostly rejoicing, since all ingredients are here,
Which is gratitude, to be given a mind and a heart
and these body-clothes,
a mouth with which to give shouts of joy
to the moth and the wren, to the sleepy dug-up clam,
telling them all, over and over, how it is
that we live forever.
 
Welcome Answers. Recently, Rabbi Rami Shapiro was asked two compelling questions. The first was relative to what he thought was learned from the COVID-19 pandemic. The second question was regarding what lessons he wished people had learned. Most interesting was Rabbi Shapiro’s answer to what he wished we would learn: emotional skills to strengthen our capacity for compassion and justice, the intellectual skills to disrupt irrational thinking, and the spiritual skills to see the interdependence of person and planet. His answers are worthy of our respect in that we have the power to effect change with the greatest worldwide problem of our time as a remarkable change point.
 
Richard Bach stated, “There is no such thing as a problem without a gift for you in its hands.” Let us be mindful while answering our own evocative questions. As we attentively identify change points, may we trust they will provide fertile ground for each of us to live a life we could not have before now imagined.
 
In closing, please take a moment to light a candle—behold the light from its flame as a symbol of the wisdom within you, and the wisdom within all of us in the Sage-ing International community. May we hold our lights high—honoring what has changed in our lives, and recognizing it is time to step into a promising and thriving future. May we keep keen to the spiritual practice of inquiry and may our answers make remarkable differences—not only individually, but cooperatively. 
 
Please enjoy our gift to you, an inspiring instrumental piece celebrating a new day. Imagine your new day. Start now with three precious breaths. Then, listen to Luke Faulkner’s beautiful “New Beginning.” CLICK HERE
 
With love—The Executive Circle of Sage-ing International
Marilyn Loy Every, Co-Chair
Katia Petersen, Co-Chair
Nancy Gray-Hemstock, Secretary
Cindy Siemers, Treasurer
Randy Morris, Member-at-Large
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Note:
Sage-ing International COVID-19 Resources: https://www.sage-ing.org
Sage-ing International Education Updates: https://www.sage-ing.org
Sage-ing International | www.sage-ing.org