Spiralling deeper

Another week passes, and another turn around the spiral is made. This one is easier, a sense of a worn-down path allows me to travel without thinking so much about my feet. The realization that all things are sacred makes the journey one of constant blessings acknowledged  and constant gratitude offered to the Spirits of the Place. I spend as much time outdoors as I can, slowly adjusting to November’s chill. I followed the beaver dam beyond the side of the pond and realized that in spring, this will be a marsh. I must enjoy this space while the dry autumn permits me to walk there. I am the only one of my family drawn to the marshes. My father preferred the mountains and Mum loved a cliff top walk. 

Sometime about now in the course of every retreat , I find that I am thinking less in words and more in colors and images. I have always said the color was my first language. I find myself less interested in analyzing or using words to describe things and more interesting in seeing and viewing the world in a series of images. It seems more direct and unfiltered.

This mandala was supposed to be a sun symbol. That was how the workshop leader presented it. I am not so sure. My first reaction was that it was a symbol of self. I am the tiny circle at the center. Though it is not a spiral or a labyrinth I see a relationship to both symbols.
Most of all I see ripples on the pond. I am aware of how my tiny actions ripple outward into the community and beyond. This could be a gift when I am my best self and lead by example. I am aware that a beacon of light casts the same pattern in darkness. 
I am also aware that a lighthouse casts a warning of the proximate dangers. Wisdom is found in knowing the difference. Not all light should beckon.

The imperfections of my drawing remind me of fingerprints. Unique. Neither precise nor mechanical. This is a reminder to celebrate what is unique in each being. We all cast our own shadow and make our own ripples. The warning about lighthouses still applies. Does the community benefit or suffer from these ripples?

Draw your own conclusions from this one. Draw your own concentric circles and come to know how you touch the community and the universe beyond.