This is an encore of a piece first published in September 2011. Apropos as I re-visit the well… .
When this blog posts, I will be at the well.
For me, it’s a little place in West Cork perched on a hill overlooking the North Atlantic. There is no TV, no Internet, no cell phone. There is the sound of the sea, and the wind in the trees. Nothing else.
It is the place I go – not often enough – to rest and rejuvenate; to re-create.
All of us have these places – maybe far away – maybe close at hand – always too seldom visited – where we can refresh our spirits.
- a quiet litttle corner in the local library
- the mountain bike trail just outside of town
- a little church on Sunday mornings
- the coffee shop in the village an hour’s drive from here
- the beach side cottage; that little place in the mountains
We avoid these places because
- it fells unproductive
- there’s too much to do
- we don’t have the time right now
- we haven’t done enough to give ourselves a break
- tomorrow will work better than today
And tomorrow stretches into next month. Into not at all.
When I came to the well this time ’round, I slept for two days – a sure sign I had been away too long. And now I sit and soak in the silence – and read and write and run and rest. And yes, still battle the demons within myself: am I wasting time?
A dear friend of mine confessed to me recently that he hadn’t gone to his well in quite awhile because he hadn’t “earned it” – he hadn’t done enough yet to justify going there.
Here’s the paradox of the well: It is the place – the Source – from which we draw our strength, not a just reward.
There is a truism in mountaineering: hydrate or die.
Go to the well. Go there today.
What a beautiful reminder…I’m feeling truly blessed in this moment that my dwelling is also at favorite well, inspiring the flow from my wellspring within. Beauty all around us, yes?