Gifted

This week I’ve been quite amused by the appearance of my lifestyle coaching in a seasonal gift guide by http://www.handbag.com/. I must admit to having had a fairly chequered career, but I’ve never been able to whack ‘Christmas present’ on the CV before, so I’m delighted to have officially been declared one. In an absurd way it reminds me of my favourite TV advertisement du jour, where a couple of small children are being asked what they want to be when they grow up. A little boy rather dully admits to an ambition to be a fireman, but then a little girl appears, absolutely bursting with excitement, to announce “I want to be a penguin!”. With my newly-discovered joy at turning into a gift, I can fully empathise with her quirky ambition.

This time of the year always evokes a sense of giftedness for me anyway, because early October brings the feast day of St Francis. When it comes to inspirational figures, he’s right up there with the big guys, not for any particularly religious reason, but because of his extraordinary reverence for all life. He considered all of creation to be his brothers and sisters, from the animating light of the sun to the animals who walked the earth with him. Stories of his miraculous interactions with animals abound and many are found in the Fioretti or Little Flowers of St Francis, a collection of tales about his life. The book includes the story of his sermon to the birds in the forest, where they remained mesmerised by his oration, and the famous tale of the wolf at Gubbio. When he heard that a wolf was terrorising the village, Francis vowed to create peace between the villagers and the beast. He sought out the wolf and spoke to it with deep devotion and respect, asking that it cease its attacks and in return would be fed and cared for by the villagers. The wolf assented by offering its paw in agreement, and went on to live peacefully among the villagers until its death.

The stories of St Francis are magical because they come from a deep honouring of life, not a dry, pious theology. Francis’ mysticism was deeply rooted in recognising the divine on earth and in its creatures. He’s a powerful figure for our times, in an era of ecological crisis, where we’re disconnected from nature and the natural rhythms of life. He’s also a living example of how to look beyond outer appearance to the truth of a being, as he did with the wolf. The story might read like a fairy tale, but it has a compelling truth to it, because it was his absolute reverence for a brother, despite the fact that he was the aggressor, that brought about the peace Francis always sought to create.

His most well-known prayer opens with the lines “Lord, make me an instrument of your peace; where there is hatred, let me sow love”. Francis exemplifies a form of loving kindness and a desire to make his presence a gift to others that is rarely seen in modern life. We’ve been given some small insight into this capacity in the extraordinary way the Amish community is responding with forgiveness to the tragedy they’re living through in the aftermath of the recent shootings. That they can embrace both the killer and his family in their forgiveness is a modern-day miracle that we can only watch in awe and deep reverence ourselves.

For Francis, our lives were the way we were to express our faith and what he called the 'beautiful and wild forces within us' - it was never about simply paying lip service to a few spiritual beliefs and carrying on regardless. As he stressed, "It's no use walking anywhere to preach unless your preaching is your walking". When a person is capable of living at that level of integrity, it's no surprise that we still remember him with immense affection more than eight hundred years later. Spiritually, he was one super-cool dude.

In honour of his graceful soul, let this week be the week that you call upon your very own 'beautiful and wild forces' to remember the beauty within and to make your presence a blessing to others. What small but thoughtful thing could you do for someone this week that could make a world of difference? Is there a compliment you could pay or a kind word that would brighten up someone’s life? Silently bless people with kind thoughts when you see that they’re troubled. Offer some practical help if you can. Remember, it’s the quality of your presence that makes the difference – sometimes even the smallest of gestures can give someone hope or support when they desperately need it. In the words of Lao Tzu, "Kindness in words creates confidence. Kindness in thinking creates profoundness. Kindness in giving creates love."

Lest you think that you’ve somehow entered into a saintly training programme – which, if done fabulous-style, could actually be quite fun – let’s do a little something for you too. Each morning, instead of looking in the mirror and counting wrinkles or whatever horrid little self-destructive habit you’ve developed, try giving yourself a moment of blessing. Take a deep breath, look at yourself with loving eyes, name three things you like about yourself or your life right now that you’re grateful for, and say to yourself "I am truly blessed”. Repeat that mantra whenever you remember it throughout the day and I guarantee you will feel fabulous when you do.

Of course if you want a card-carrying seasonal gift, there’s always me! Here’s the link, if you’re curious:
http://www.handbaggiftguide.com/healthfitness/fitfabulous/lifestylecoach.htm

Have a wonderful, peaceful and gifted week.

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All material © 2006 Alison Porter. No article may be reproduced in full or in part without the express permission of the author. (Originally posted 9 Oct 06)