Verbs

Take two minutes and write down everything you can think of that you can do with your hands—everything–good or bad, just write for two minutes everything you can think of that you can do with your hands.  When you’re finished, look at what you wrote.  Which items are “helpful?”  Which items are “harmful?”  Are some items violent?  Are some gentle?  Are some creative?  Are some destructive?  Recall after a few moments that your assignment was to write things you can do with your hands.  Reflect on the power of your hands to do both helpful and unhelpful things. 

Verbs are the doing words in our language.  Without them all of our nouns wouldn’t even exist, because existing is doing something.  Being and doing are one in the same.  You aren’t just a person; you are an ever-changing being.  In addition, verbs are the only words in our language that have the magical ability to travel in time.  They have tenses–past, future, present.  Think about that for a few moments.  You’ve always wanted to be a time-traveler, haven’t you?  Verbs give you that chance.

Reflect on what you do today.  And not just with your hands, but with your feet, your eyes, your ears, your mouth.  Where do you direct your feet to carry you?  Are you conscious of going to the computer again and again to check the news?  Are you conscious of you moving towards that ice-cream or that salad?  What do your eyes gravitate towards?  Are you always looking for faults?  Are you lusting?  Are you looking for the good in others? Do you notice the color of the sky? What do you listen for?  Gossip?  Bad news?  Shocking news?  Good news?  Do you listen to positive, uplifting music or head-banging heavy metal?  What words do you speak?  Are they helpful, kind, hurtful, sarcastic, or charitable?

Reflect on the things your body does that you rarely think of—your heart beat, your breathing, your pulse, your digestion.  Think gratitude towards these unsung processes that your body is always doing “behind the scenes.”

Reflect on the things God does in your life and in the universe.  Reflect on the things the various religious texts of the world say that the Divine does.  Reflect on what you do and what you dream of doing.  Make any changes that need be made, because if you do this honestly, you will find new things you need to be doing, and old things that you need to stop doing.

Copyright Joseph Anthony of the Wonder Child Blog