A World Full of Gifts

And in every Gift, a World. A Gift is something that moves freely and comes through no action of our own. It arrives without asking for it. A Gift is not a reward, nor is it anything that can be bought or earned, or even deserved. A Gift just appears. It exists in the expanse of humility and mystery … an intention, a compassion, a friendship … moving and breathing … and altering the trajectory of our Lives. Every Child is a Gift. Every Animal. Every Tree. Every Rock. We have not beckoned them to come to us, but there they are. And here, we are. Our image of them, a Gift, sourced from every moment in the fabric of our Lives. Our every interaction with them, a Gift.

It’s a worldview I share … That we live in a World full of Gifts, so many Gifts, alive and vital, and fundamental to every relationship we have, human and non-human. And what good is a Gift if we do not care for it and share it? A Gift comes with not rights, but responsibilities. And, it is our responsibility to appreciate and recognize a Gift as reciprocal and affectionate. It is our responsibility to honor a Gift, as it is offered to us, without desire to keep it or own it. It is our responsibility to introduce ourselves to a Gift and give it our thanks, be open-eyed and fully present with it. It is our responsibility to take the time, to learn a Gift’s nature, and be graced by its essence. It is our responsibility to notice how a Gift animates and breathes more Life into the World. It is our responsibility to appreciate how a Gift takes care of us so we may take care of it, so we may show respect for its Path, its Way, its Story, its Song. And, it's our responsibility to share what we’ve been gifted with others. Mmmm…. Gifts are beautiful bundles of responsibilities to be treasured.