Anamchara - Meeting With The Master

His name sounds as Finn. He has beautiful blue eyes and the blondest of blond hair. He shares his name with Fionn Mac Cumhail. This is frequently anglicised as Finn Mac Cool. Finn Mac Cool is one of the most celebrated heroes in Irish myth.

Little Finn will be tall and beautiful. Now he is small and beautiful. He is learning to talk. He is learning to put distance between his immediacy. There will be a time when he thinks about his life rather than allow it to flow. He will learn to dance rather than be the dance.

Being around children reminds me that they feel their experience moment to moment. When they look they see what is before them. They do not judge their experience. They are their experience. This is why they are so delightful even if sometimes they behave as if this world belonged to them and them alone. They know this world belongs to them until they are told differently. This is their real understanding of this world. It is we who have forgotten. They are there to help us remember.

I am standing at the edge of Lough Allen. I have come to visit Corry Strand.

This is where I meet this giant among toddlers. My partner Barbara has met this child before. His Mum had come to hear a concert or play at the Glen Centre in Manorhamilton. While Mum watched the play Barbara minded child. When he became fractious and upset she walked him down the main street. She held him close in her arms and sang Gershwin. He settled at the sound of this melody sang softly into his shell like ear.

He quickly learned my name. He quickly gave me the gift of his trusting heart. It came as a delightful surprise to find him placing his little hand in mine. He had decided he and I would take a stroll along the sand. We walked and came to sit by the remains of a campfire. He told me stories. These were one-word stories.

These were one word stories facilitated by finger pointing. He reminded me of the old Zen Master who tells his student "I am only the finger pointing at the moon." Here is my little Zen master teaching me the simplicity of seeing.

One story is "stone." The other story is "dog." Each is direct and immediate. There is no sense of fear. There is only the continued pointing of the finger. He makes the stones come alive. He sees them before ever they have labels.

Too soon there will come a time when he lives in labels. Too soon he will think he knows what a "stone" is. Soon he will forget how he once saw the wonder of that "stone" and that "dog." He will swap wonder for knowledge. He will swap what is partial for what is holy. He will become a rational person rather than the mysterious little being he is.

He reminds me of Yoda in Star Wars. The force is with him. He is a wise little being with a hand that shows art in every gesture. He shows me the gladness of the ever-present moment. He is selfish as all children are. This is their world. However, they love to share it with you. This world is their playground and they want you to play here too.

On this shore of Lough Allen he reminds me of that other shore. This is the one we seekers long to sail for. It takes us to that timeless shore where we are forever young. My work is to do what Finn does best. I spend time patiently allowing myself to enter this mystery of life. He is still held within it. I am the amateur and he is the pro-fessional of presence.

He is a fount of wisdom. He does not have the words. He only has his finger. He uses this to conduct dialogues with this mystery of life. He allows the music of life to play through his little body. I am only a part of the orchestra and too often I feel apart from the music. He plays all parts expertly and is the music.

Time will be when he will forget he is the play of God. Time will wrap around him and he will be taught to "do life." He will be taught that life has to be earned. He will be advised that it is more important to earn a living rather than be alive to love. He will be taught his creativity does not fit with economics. He will become productive and competitive rather than celebratory and abundant. He will give up his wondrousness for acceptance.

He will forget that he is forever enough. If he is lucky he will meet with other wise men and women who will tell him to "risk all for love." He will forget that love is all he needs. He will turn from love in action to love of activity. His is the fall from the grace of being to the non-grace of persona. We are all destined to fall from this grace. He will be loved but he will feel separate from all that is.

When he is older he will, I hope, take another hand. He will stand on another shore. He will remember to look at the beauty of what is without labels. He will no longer see it the way that we lost in social consciousness see it. He will, I hope, one day see again via his heart. The way he sees now. When this happens he will be a giant among men. He will be Finn. He will be fair of face and fair of hair.

Thank you Finn for your instruction. I am blessed to have shared your wisdom. You are already a giant among men. You are a child of the Universe. Never forget little one. May the force be forever with you and may you stay forever young in that little heart that you are so ready to share.

© Tony Cuckson 2004

Tony Cuckson is an Anam Cara. This Celtic term means "Soul Friend." He specializes in providing insight for the spiritual journey, Blessings for YOU, words of wisdom and finding inner peace. Visitors to Irish Blessings Matter website and Tony's Blog get the opportunity to develop a purpose driven life through articles, newsletters and other programs.

Get your free report called "7 ways to it's a wonderful life" at http://www.irishblessingsmatter.com/, or go to Tony`s Blog at http://www.irishblessingsmatter.info/ for YOU Blog, where you will find links to information related to spiritual parenting, spiritual coaching and spirit in business.

In The News:


pen paper and inkwell


cat break through


Connect With the Moon Phases to Manifest Your Desires

Connecting with the Moon phases, the Full and New Moon... Read More

Enthusiam And The Spirit

In this article, I would like deal with one specific... Read More

Working With The Light

I do not want curiosity seekers, who come for a... Read More

What Makes You A Saint

Don't be confused that a saint is a religious leader... Read More

Getting the Feel of Your Faith

Whether we admit it or not, we operate by emotion.... Read More

The Emptiness That Binds The Universe

What is the opportunity here? What is the benefit of... Read More

Youre Standing Between Two Clouds

On one side there is a dark cloud. It is... Read More

Love vs. Fear - Volume 18

Breaking with tradition, today's article comes from the 9-23-04 edition... Read More

Origin of Certain Thoughts (Part II)

Continued from "Origin of Certain Thoughts, Part I"If you haven't... Read More

100 Steps To Eternity

There is a chronology of events from creation to the... Read More

The Wisdom of the River: Lessons Learned

Over the past few years I have watched the popularity... Read More

When Bad Things Happen (Part 2)

The good that Paul writes about is a commitment of... Read More

How To Make Your Dreams Come True

You will become as great as your dominant aspiration...If you... Read More

Instructions... Guess Work or Gods Work?

I can't boast about my culinary skill, because I just... Read More

When I Lived in a Haunted House

Now, I will recount in full what happened to me... Read More

Smoke

I always thought Ecclesiastes was like Proverbs. That's probably because... Read More

Change Your Beliefs -- Change Your Health

To many people in the Western world Metaphysical Healing is... Read More

The Subconscious Mind: A Tool For Success

As a Coach and Psychotherapist I have found that the... Read More

How to Forgive Someone

We've all heard the saying, "You have to forgive, but... Read More

Being

Being"You have taken yourself to be something that you are... Read More

Natural Talent

Before Donna was born she took with her a dollar,... Read More

White Sun - Who Are We?

Human beings originally have three forms of existence. The first... Read More

Language of Dreams

Dreams take us not into ourselves, but out of ourselves.... Read More

Integrity and Spirituality

The concept of integrity has arisen often in discussions of... Read More

All One; All Different -- Addressing Spiritual Reductionism

"We're one, but we are not the same."-Bono, U2Once I... Read More

Master of Horoscope - Walter Mercado

Celebrities and common people all over the world are known... Read More

The Role of the Spiritual Warrior

What power do we hold individually in the midst of... Read More

The True Self as the Hidden Man of the Heart

The Apocalypse, or unveilling, is the name given to the... Read More

Developing Your Intuition: Conscious Construction Using Cosmic 2 x 4?s

What's a cosmic 2 x 4 you ask? It's actually... Read More

Honoring the Sacred in Everyday Life

How many of us rush blindly through our days, fall... Read More

Humanity Needs Islam

The human nature means the soul and the body. A... Read More

Geralds Story - A Tribute to Valor

John 15:13 Greater love hath no man than this, that... Read More

The Big Choice

"Here I am! I stand at the door and knock.... Read More