Dear Friends,

I had a wonderful conversation with a friend this morning; we were enjoying the taste of some freshly brewed coffee while listening to catch the meaning and emotion behind the words.

Communication is like driving down a two lane winding roadway. Our heart's first response is to wait and listen, knowing one cannot pass (speak) while the other is speaking and you must pace yourself by keeping behind the words.

Our minds first reaction is like that of a racehorse biting it's bit at the opening gate. It is as if the words in the story turned into a horn, and our mind takes off because we have run this course before.

How then can we engage the wisdom of our heart to listen and the wisdom of our mind to keep us detached from the story?

John Maxwell Taylor says in his book, "The Power of I Am" to practice Body Centered Spirituality. One way to remember yourself is to place your attention in your toes, feet, arms and legs and then move it upwards, centering behind the navel.. Then, if and when we do respond, the words travel up through your body and have a rich resonance.

This is also called "Listening Lowly," and allows the depth of the meaning to reveal itself at the very moment we taste the sweet underlying tones of the hazelnut in the coffee.

Communication moves from being a quick fix to tasting a full bodied, aromatic and delicious cup of communion.

With this Cup, I am
Rev Janice