Do you see what I see?

Today was Daniel's last day of school. The entire sixth grade went to see "Prince Caspian." Fun was had by all. After I picked him up at school, we went back to our friends' restaurant for one last lunch. Yummy wraps were had by all.

We were ushered into another beautiful moment of synchronicity: Most of Daniel's teachers converged on the same restaurant for lunch. More hugs, compliments on a year well lived, and fond farewells for my super son. Like any normal sixth grade boy, he was mortified at being hugged by his teachers in public. We all laughed at/with him.

This morning, while Daniel munched on popcorn in the theater, Kristiana and I spent nearly two hours seated in the open grassy space in front of the Mint Museum of Art. I journaled and worked on my computer. She observed flora and fauna for a biology experiment. What a glorious morning it was! Truly magnificent.

While sitting there in the park, I typed this meditation/devotional into my computer. It was copied from Wellsprings: A Book of Spiritual Exercises, written by Anthony DeMello. How perfect that I would "stumble upon it" while sitting outside on this, of all days.

Enjoy!
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The Discovery
By Anthony DeMello

I imagine that I am told that six months hence
I will be blind.
I observe how I react to this.

I make a list of persons… places… things… that I want to see again,
to stamp them on my memory before I lose my sight.
What feelings do I have when I attempt to see them in fantasy now?

I now go through an average day
– rising, traveling, eating, reading –
as a blind person,
observing all my thoughts and feelings.

What does blindness do to my profession, to my relationship with others?

I determine that my life is going to be
as fruitful and as happy as it was
before I lost my sight
and see what this decision does for me.

Blind people often come to see things that they missed when they had sight.
I search for those.

To end this exercise I ponder on the wealth that sight has brought me.

Would I have been the person that I am today
if I had never seen the sunrise or the moon
or the flowers in bloom
or people’s faces?
I let my heart return to scenes of beauty
it has feasted on thanks to my eyes.

If wonder is the heart of contemplation,
how many mystic moments my eyes have given me!
I seek them out.

I return to scenes of
love and tenderness
I would not have got
– or given –
if it were not for my eyes.

I picture what my life would be
without the knowledge and the entertainment
reading gave me.

To end, I ask myself
how I shall use my eyes today.


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How shall I use my eyes, indeed?
What will I read and write and watch on television?

What about you, what are you gonna look at tonight?
Tomorrow?