Thought I would get back to more pleasant things. How about meditation?
Now, you might not be surprised to learn that my usual meditation practice consists of sitting in my study with a cup of coffee. When the coffee is gone, I'm done. What I do between the time of getting the coffee and drinking the last drop varies. The only rule is, I have to take off my glasses, and I can't do anything else. Sometimes I just sit there with my eyes closed and savor the flavor. Sometimes I get restless and can't seem to sit still even that long – I catch myself reaching for the glasses or picking up a book (though without the glasses, that's pretty useless).
It's not much, but it's what I've got, and let me tell you, a good cup of coffee in the early morning can give you a lot to meditate about.
But this morning I did something a little different. I sat with my wife for an hour and meditated on what it takes to heal the earth of all the damage humanity has caused it. It was one of those web-generated international pleas that my wife found and thought worthwhile – all it asked was that as many people as possible all meditate or pray for one hour, all at the same time, for the healing of the earth.
What will it achieve? I don't know. I certainly allowed images of the damage we've caused to pass through my mind. There followed pictures of folks doing what they could to heal it, too. No specifics here. All I want to say about the experience is that a) the hour went pretty fast, all things considered (I didn't have my coffee), and b) if you're going to spend time with others in prayer or meditation, pondering how we might be part of the solution to human-induced ecological harm isn't a bad way to go.
The only thing I'll add is, just because the event is over doesn't mean I'll stop praying for the earth – or those of us who occupy it. So, keep praying, keep meditating. And if you can do it without coffee, more power to you.
