COSMIC DANCE

Chinese Dancer, Millenium Park, Chicago, IL

Life may not be the party we hoped for, but while we're here we should dance....

“We clasp the hands of those that go before us,
and the hands of those who come after us.
We enter the little circle of each other’s arms
and the larger circle of lovers,
whose hands are joined in a dance,
and the larger circle of all creatures,
passing in and out of life,
who move also in a dance,
to music so subtle and vast
that no one hears it except in fragments.”
--“The Larger Circle”, by Wendell Berry

Seeing God and our world with the “eyes of our heart” recognizes the sacred and interconnected creation that lies beyond the thin veil between the material and spiritual cosmic dance. While we move about in our daily routines, spirits rise and their dance is all around us. The entire cosmos circles in a vibrantly delicate balance at both the micro and macro levels.
The biblical heart of scripture is not the vital organ which helps sustain our bodies. It would seem to be part of the overall mystery of those indistinguishable attributes of mind, heart, soul and spirit which somehow reside within us and define us, more so than the external, visual, temporal body they occupy until our dance of life here on earth has run its course. We are all participants in the larger circle of the dance of life, and most of our movements seem to be unconsciously played out like Shakespeare’s poor player who struts and frets his hour upon the stage and is heard no more. Our earthly dance cards are not stamped with a “Guaranteed Tomorrow” rain check while we move about in the dance. And faith is an attitude of the heart to trust in the mystery of the dance and our creator God.