Here is a map of where all we are going in Turkey. We begin in Izmir and work our way northwards to Istanbul (more or less). (FYI- The hotel we are staying in in Istanbul is a good ways away from Taksim Square, where most of the protests are happening).
One of the things I find most interesting about departure is that I always seem to meet with special resistance before I leave. I have a cluster of things to do and stuff to gather. And, of course, there is the ordeal of packing.
The poet Rumi talks about how human beings are a "guest-house" full of emotions. He says:
This human being is a guest house.
Every morning a new arrival.
A joy, a depression, a meanness,
some momentary awareness comes
as an unexpected visitor.
Welcome
and entertain them all!
Even if they’re a crowd of sorrows,
who violently sweep your house
empty of its furniture,
still, treat each guest honorably.
He may be clearing you out
for some new delight.
The dark
thought, the shame, the malice,
meet them at the door laughing,
and invite them in.
Be
grateful for whoever comes,
because each has been sent
as a guide from beyond.
We all have "guests" but I wonder, as we ponder and prepare for departure, what secrets they bring us from "beyond?"
Tim
I love this poem by Rumi. On spiritual journeys things often "bubble up" from our subconscious for us to face and experience. Embrace it all remembering that we do not have to face them alone. Ask to feel the presence of Jesus or the Holy Spirit or the Father when these things happen. God is very interested in our lives and wants to experience it with us. In the presence of God we can face anything. All we have to do is ask...and receive.
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