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O You Who’ve gone on Pilgrimage

Come, Come, Whoever You Are, Come

Ours is not a caravan of despair. 

Ours is a Journey of Hope           

What You Seek Is Seeking You~Rumi

Photo:journeyforwisdom.com

Our expressions are many,

and your beauty is one

And it is to your beauty

that all of them allude.’

Beauty in words, others' and mine

As I was thinking what to say, think or write on this first day of the 2018 , I thought it would be appropriate to offer a couple of reflective, inspiring and timeless pieces of poetic wisdom, as we all embark on our new journeys in this  New Year.

To my mind, there is no doubt that,  we need all the wisdom we can receive, especially in relation to the dark thoughts, the shame and the malice from which no person is immune. We need hope, love, beauty and wisdom to guide us in all we do. We need to be agents of goodness and light, whilst projecting them onto others.

Taking this path, I am sure, in due course,  the world would probably be less fractured and in pain than it is….today.

Roof of the Hafez Tomb, Shiraz, Iran. Photo:bing.com

‘This being human’

This being human is a guest house

Every morning a new arrival.

A joy, a depression, a meanness,

some momentary awareness comes

as an unexpected visitor.

Welcome and entertain them all!

Even if they are a crowd of sorrows,

who violently sweep your house

empty of its furniture,

still treat each guest honorably.

He may be clearing you out for some new delight.

The dark thought, the shame, the malice,

meet them at the door laughing,

and invite them in.

Be grateful for whoever comes,

because each has been sent

as a guide from beyond.-Rumi

The Happy Virus

I caught the happy virus last night

When I was out singing beneath the stars.

It is remarkably contagious -

So kiss me.-Hafez

The Subject Tonight is Love

And for tomorrow night as well,

As a matter of fact

I know of no better topic

For us to discuss

Until we all

Die!-Hafez

To place you in my heart may turn you into thought

I will not do that.

To hold you with my eyes may turn you into thorn.

I will not do that.

I will set you on my breath , so you will become my life.-Rumi

Lovers, Happy new year to you all!

The fragrance of coming new year.

May every single soul of this world

have a very happy new year.

O Earth, O Moon, O Sky:

Happy new year to you

and to the Seven Heavens!

The sign of new year's arrival

has just appeared

in the palms of my hands.

Lovers,

May this new year bring

lots of joy and happiness to you all.

Lovers,

If you're wishing me a happy new year,

then I must also say:

Happy new year to you, to me,

and to all the Lovers out there!- Rumi

(The translated poems above are by Daniel Ladinsky, Coleman Bark and Sologak1).

The Persian poet Rumi

The Persian poet Hafez

Our Journey of Hope to Lucca, Tuscany, 2018

And now it is my pleasure to invite you to join us at Our Journey of Hope, in search of hope, love, beauty and wisdom in all we do, at our 2018 Lucca, Tuscany Conference

Our Journey of Hope is about many things. It is about challenging the norm. It is about  volunteerism and service. It is about serving our communities, our world, and caring for our planet, our home. It is about finding out more about ourselves than we ever imagined possible. It is about having a dream. It is about a mission and our vocation in life. It is about believing in our journey and stories. It is about hope.

‘It is hope that can give meaning to life and which will give us the courage to continue on our way into the future together.’

And this is why our 2018 LUCCA Conference offers a journey of hope to all those  hoping  for a better world, a world of wisdom and beauty, peace and justice, fairness and kindness, caring for our Sacred Earth and Mother Nature. Please consider joining us. Let us march together, taking action in the interest of the common good, to design and construct the better world, we are all yearning for.

For Conference details please see:

The GCGI-SES Lucca Forum: Here's to 2018, Our Journey of Hope, caring for Our Sacred Earth