This has to be one of, if not the most perfect, inspiring works I've read...something very dear to me. I am humbled and touch to my core in its brilliance and in its simplicity....makes you wonder who he was writing to?
AN INVITATION.....by Oriah Mountain Dreamer a native American Elder,
It doesn’t interest me what you do for a living,
I want to know what you ache for,
And if you dare to dream of meeting your heart’s longing.
It doesn’t interest me to know how old you are
I want to know if you will risk looking like a fool for love,
For your dreams, for the adventure of being alive.
It doesn’t interest me what planets are squaring your moon
I want to know if you have touched the center of your own sorrow
If you have been opened by life’s betrayals
Or have been shriveled and closed from fear of further pain.
I want to know if you can sit with pain,
Mine or your own,
Without moving to hide it,fade it or fix it.
I want to know if you can be with joy.
Mine or your own
If you can dance with wildness
And let the ecstasy fill us to the tips of our fingers and toes
Without cautioning us to be careful, be realistic
Or to remember the limitations of being human.
It doesn’t interest me if the story you are telling me is true
I want to know if you can disappoint another to be true to yourself
If you can bear the accusation of betrayal
And not betray your own soul
I want to know if you can be faithful to yourself, and therefore be trustworthy.
I want to know if you can see beauty
Even when it is not pretty every day
And if you can source your life from your spirit’s presence
I want to know if you can live with failure,
Yours and mine
And still stand on the edge of a lake and shout to the silver of the full moon
Yes.
It doesn’t interest me to know where you live or how much money you have
I want to know if you can get up after a night of grief and despair
Weary and bruised to the bone
And do what needs to be done.
It doesn’t interest me where, or what or with whom you have studied,
I want to know what sustains you from the inside,
When all else falls away.
It doesn’t interest me who you are, or how you came to be here,
I want to know if you will stand in the center of the fire with me
And not shrink back.
I want to know if you can be alone with yourself
And if you truly like the company you keep
In the empty moments.
Unknown "Queen" Playful
- 16 years, 8 months, 29 days ago