The Irish have a term, which I really like, to describe a place or an event where one feels a reverential wholeness or holiness..........a stepping into a heightened awareness where our senses are boosted in a way that makes one feel lighter than the gravitational pull of the ordinary life. They call them "thin places....." It is a spot where one's faith is affirmed as it collides where hope and possibility dwell. It is a place where you feel that perhaps your prayer can slip through and be heard.
Personally, I think I have small moments when I've experienced this sensation and in the larger context of life, they seem to be fleeting moments. I guess it doesnt matter how transitory they were because the lasting feelings are grand in their impact. Most are connected to nature....a glorious sunset caught on a day when a sense of beauty is needed the most........a quiet evening in front of the fireplace on a cold winter night, with the snow falling outside......the first glimpse of a blue glistening lake from the end of a dock on a summer's day.....the moment where the sun seems to be captured on the boughs of a tall pine........
Thin places catch you when you feel a sense of integration, mind, body and soul. The moment when my daughter was placed in my arms for the first time and i knew she was healthy and perfect.....it was a thin place moment I shared only with my husband who was right there looking down on us. It felt like we were safely ensconsed, away from the hustle and bustle of the rest of the world, centred in a miracle.
They may be fleeting, but the sense of wonder capture in the realm of thin nestles deep into our hearts where they glisten like prayerful gems which reflect a dawning comprehension that we have been touched by grace. We need to seek out those thin places, and be receptive to the feelings they bring because I think these may be our best attempts at understanding the mystery.
8 comments:
I have had a lot of thin moments lately where I have felt cocooned in a place of blissful contentment and happiness. Can I just mention how good it feels?
It must be nearly time for your trip Dana. I bet you are looking forward to that.
what a wonderful reflection... I think you may be right too - thin places are important and can't be created, you find them, or they find you....
Moments where grace comes out and shows herself instead of hiding in corners and in the shadows...as a reminder of who she really is, so we stand more chance of recognising her elsewhere perhaps..
A thin place for me is when I let myself fall into (or is it out of)wherever I am at that time; sitting, standing or walking - stepping into somewhere a little different, where the unexpected can happen.
If this doesn't make sense, don't worry, it will someday.
Brother David........it makes perfect sense....but then again, i'm left handed which makes my thinking very right brained. :) the way i interpret your description is a sense of suspension/meditation. It's how I envision a holy space....a step away from earth.
thank you for this.
I love this Celtic idea of thin places.God is supposed to always be present, but there are places where I am more present to God than others. There are also "thin people" for me---no, not anorexic Hollywood stars---but people who just have this tranquil, serene peace that just spill over on to me when I am around them. They are rarely professed "holy people", but I find myself drawn closer to God just by being around them. It is the awareness of Divine presence with them more than what they say.
Have you read the Power of Now by Eckhart Tolle? If you haven't think you would enjoy it
gypsy......so pleased you're on a thin places roll right now!
I leave on my trip next Tuesday....can't wait!!
Katie. I hadn't thought about the connection between thin places and grace until i started writing this piece this morning.....funny how that works......
Tim........I have a friend who exudes this too....and love to be around him because of it. Its almost an intangible quality. I know exactly what you mean.
Canary...I havent yet read it, though have talked to many who have. I shied away from it for the time being because it seems to be everywhere......my natural inclination is to avoid those phenoms. However, a good friend of mine has been promoting it for years and i know it was thought altering book for her.
I love this piece - thin moments, thin precious moments, that awaken us to the purpose of our lives.
xx,
JP/deb
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