Entering the circle

A quote that a participant read in the closing circle of the OS i opened yesterday:

We clasp the hands of those who go before us,
And the hands of those who come after us;
We enter the little circle of each other's arms,
And the larger circle of lovers
Whose hands are joined in a dance,
And the larger circle of all creatures
Passing in and out of life,
Who move also in a dance,
To a music so subtle and vast
That no one hears it except in fragments.

--Wendell Berry

The closing circle was very moving. The group had grown smaller over the day and everyone pulled their chairs in really tight. I walked around slowly telling the story of the gift of the talking stick and then put the 'stick', a purple marker, in the centre. I moved back outside of the circle--it just seemed like the right thing to do. The first person got up and spoke right from her heart. Then person after person did the same. They all spoke. And as they spoke, Spirit flowed into the room so strongly. Such a beautiful close feeling of community and care was generated. It was an honour and privilege to be able to share in it.

The poem inspired in me the thought that not only are we linked in ever widening circles of care and love, but that these circles extend beyond the present moment and connect us to that vast and timeless open space wherein dwell the ancestors and the unborn--and even perhaps, our past and future selves.