The Garden Gate
- paulhawkwood
- Mar 20, 2022
- 1 min read
The Garden Gate
Out of iron a heart becomes
a tree, a shadow, a reminder
of what's inside.
Hummingbirds fly through it
and each day we swing
it open for the mail,
a walk, a trip to
somewhere.
Then, we return
and sit again
in smiling silence.
***********
One thing I appreciate about carrying my iPhone in my pants pocket or shoulder bag is that I always have it with me. Not only does this make it possible for me to take photos wherever I am, it reminds me to view the world through my photography-oriented eyes rather than just ordinary navigational seeing. Doing this helps me be more aware of the many forms of beauty and light wherever I am, and to notice how my heart is awakened by this greater awareness and deeper perception of the world I live in.
I imagine that many of you also carry a cell phone that also has a camera in it. I encourage you to practice seeing the various forms of beauty, light, and shapes in your world, and to explore how you can use your camera to see and share your world more deeply.
What a pleasant surprise it is to see an image and a poem from Paul insinuate itself into my email and into my mind! Apart from the prima facie beauty and eloquence of the image and poem, Paul's comment brings up a critically important aspect of existence that wisemen and saints have been pointing out to us for a long time: we have nothing to attain because we have already have everything; we merely have to realize that we already have everything we need to experience the bliss that that knowledge will impart to us. Paul's suggestion that we use our omnipresent cameras to help us perceive the perfection that already exists is, to me, a perfect reminder of that…