Becca Sheffler-Crafting a Rule-Bonus Thought:)

[Becca Sheffler]

I read the following this morning in relation to beginning the day with Vigils. It was so lovely, I just wanted to share:

“We are such efficiency experts that we think there’s no room for the superfluous; whatever is extra should be cut out. And yet it is superfluity, overflow in the word’s literal sense, that gives spark and glory to our lives. Affluence is exactly the opposite. The word affluence suggests that whatever flows in never comes out. Our affluent society stays affluent by making the containers bigger when they are just about to overflow, like a fountain with it’s lovely veils of water spilling over. The economics of affluence demand that things that were special for us last year must now be taken for granted; so the container gets bigger, and the joy of overflowing, gratefulness, is taken away from us. But if we make the vessel smaller and smaller by reducing our needs, then the overflowing comes sooner and with it the joy of gratefulness. It’s the overflow that sparkles in the sun.” —David Steindl-Rast, OSB

[Margaret Hoggard]

What a beautiful quote! As a global thinker, I am often struggling to contain and organize overflowing thoughts, influences, information, emotions, and experiences. David Steindl-Rast’s quote provides a perspective about the benefits of just releasing these elements that definitely bears further reflection. Thank you for posting it!

Blessings,
Maggie Hoggard

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