Tuesday, February 26, 2013

Plainspoken Words

Plainspoken Words By John Bailey -- Author of Already On Holy Ground

Over twenty years ago I got a letter from a friend, a wise one who lived in central Alabama. His name was William Samuel. In his younger days he’d been an army captain who’d led combat infantry troops in some of the most hard-fought battles of the Korean War. But now his army days were behind him. When he wasn’t collecting arrowheads and watching cardinals at the feeder, he wrote and talked to friends about the wonder of presence. The paragraph below captures its essence and stayed with me for years:

It is a moment of relief from the world’s heaviness. It’s an instant of recognition, a weightless surveillance of the scene. It’s a flawless moment that lets us say, ‘Hey, this is a fine moment! I feel alright!’ That’s it. That goodness and lightness is It.

His words showed me what I’d spent so long searching for was much simpler than I thought. Indeed, what he wrote had little to do with dogma, rituals, or blissed-out states. He described something subtle and obvious, yet something I’d sensed—and ignored—for years: the presence that would change the course of my life.

John Bailey

Already On Holy Ground By John Bailey
available on Amazon

If you would like further guidance in understanding any of William Samuel's work based on Self discovery - you are welcome to contact me, Sandy Jones -- samuelandfriends@gmail.com - Ojai, California -