THE SILVER LINK, THE SILKEN TIE (Sir Walter Scott)

I BRING NOTHING OF MY OWN EXCEPT THE THREAD THAT TIES THEM TOGETHER.* AND EVEN THAT IS NOT MY OWN.

We cannot live without it. It shapes the human heart and directs the whole of everyone's life. There is something deep within which compels us to look for meaning and purpose in life.

A faithful thread runs through each of our lives, a spun silver link, sometimes golden, that connects all the different, and at times disparate, fragments of our windings, our restings and our searchings. The events, through which this thread courses, not only give meaning to our lives, but hopefully embrace the purpose of God.

For some people, this strong and silken thread involves the hunger for intimacy, or simply the continual quest for meaning. For others, the thread runs through the ache for harmony and unity within and without. Sometimes, the slender thread winds in and out of the different aspects of beauty or the commitment to integrity and personal holiness of life.

As one ponders such a mystery, one is prompted to ask, "What is the slender thread that runs through my life?" Maybe, we only recognize the nature of this thread as we look back over the patterns of peace and happiness. Is there a continuity? Is there a pattern in how God leads me? Where do I usually find happiness?

Although this thread is silken and, oh so fine, it is not at all fragile or highly vulnerable. It is most stalwart. It never gives up, and it keeps reappearing. It is as trustworthy as the color of my eyes or the coming of the morning.

This slender thread is a vital part of our own personal myth. If we honor it, eventually it will lead us into the path of mysticism and ultimately into the Heart of God.

Michel de Montaigne

The above reflection By Sr. Mary Jo Loebig was inspired by Balancing Heaven and Earth by Robert A. Johnson.