Sign of the Times

When I acquired a QR code recently, my dear friend asked why I was interested in one. It's a nifty shortcut, sort of a graphic signature that manages to send a message.

I love the idea of that. Communication is fascinating, isn't it? Canadian folk-singer Ferron (one of my favorite musicians) has a song titled "Signals and Messages", which is a wonderfully complex shorthand for the ways in which we reach out to each other.

Reaching out to each other is the whole point, really. It's what we're meant to be doing on this rock we call a planet. However many billions of humans there are now, we are all one spirit occupying different bodies. It's easy to forget that we are already connected on a deeper level, especially when our lives are spinning into a whole new vortex of busy-ness.

We have cell phones, pagers, players, and all kinds of electronic devices that beep, trill, and chortle at all hours of the night--is there any place where we are not available, these days? Despite all of these ways to create the illusion of connection, so many of us are still suffering from loneliness and malcontent. (Could we call our Facebook "friends" when we need emotional support? What about the people who follow us on Twitter? Are they available to us in the dark hours, when our spirits cry out?)

We are fast sinking into the season of limited light. When I met a friend for brunch a few days ago, he told me about the different brands of light boxes that are available at Amazon now. For some of us, an external light may be enough to bring us back from the abyss of sinking moods.

For the rest of us, the dark months are a time to focus on our inner light. When we are willing to focus on it, we can allow that inner light to grow, healing our spirits and allowing us to be at peace with ourselves. That inner peace can help us to accept our own selves, to embrace the dark places where we are fractured; to begin to make ourselves whole.

Part of that process of healing lies in the reaching out we do to share ourselves with other people. We don't have to wait until our lives are perfect, or until we think we are in perfect balance, or at peace. All we have to do is share ourselves--right now, right where we are.

If we intend to invest in the process of our healing, then we can begin by seeking the silence. Yoga, massage, meditation, and Reiki healing are just some of the ways that we can build a bridge to our powerfully silent inner selves.

Instead of wondering when or how, perhaps now is the right time to start. After all: Who knows what gifts that silence has to offer?