A Journey Can Become a Sacred Thing...

A Journey Can Become a Sacred Thing…

Posted May 24, 2022

A journey can become a sacred thing:
Make sure, before you go,
To take the time
To bless your going forth,
To free your heart of ballast
So that the compass of your soul
Might direct you toward
The territories of spirit
Where you will discover
More of your hidden life,
And the urgencies
That deserve to claim you.

― John O’Donohue, excerpt from For The Traveler

Over the past few weeks, I’ve heard about many travel plans, as many are venturing out to experience travel rescheduled from the past two years or to take trips they’ve always dreamed of.

We invite you to make the most of any journey this summer with a few minutes spent in contemplation of the gifts that await you.

The power of travel to open our heart, mind, and spirit to new ways of being is such that the late John O’Donohue wrote a blessing specifically for the traveler in his book, To Bless the Space Between Us. And it’s no accident this blessing is found in the section labelled “Thresholds”.

“May you travel in an awakened way,
Gathered wisely into your inner ground;
That you may not waste the invitations
Which wait along the way to transform you.” ― John O’Donohue, from For the Traveler

Whether you are off this summer on a grand adventure or staying home, how might you invite the possible gifts available to the traveler into your life this summer?

May you seek out new experiences this summer that open you to joyful transformation. And may you express no judgment for self or others if your new experience needs to be a virtual trip or a visit to a new grocery store. It’s all about how you approach the journey…

Become Friends

“Perhaps travel cannot prevent bigotry, but by demonstrating that all peoples cry, laugh, eat, worry, and die, it can introduce the idea that if we try and understand each other, we may even become friends.”

― Maya Angelou

Go Someplace

“Once a year, go someplace you’ve never been before.”

― Dalai Lama

For The Traveler (excerpt)

When you travel,
A new silence
Goes with you,
And if you listen,
You will hear
What your heart would
Love to say.

May you travel in an awakened way,
Gathered wisely into your inner ground;
That you may not waste the invitations
Which wait along the way to transform you.

May you travel safely, arrive refreshed,
And live your time away to its fullest;
Return home more enriched, and free
To balance the gift of days which call you.”

― John O’Donohue, last four stanzas of For A Traveler from To Bless the Space Between Us.

The entire blessing can be found HERE.