Spy Story
11-5-03
Last night I had a long and elaborate dream in which I was a spy. I was in a big city and saw a tall man in a trenchcoat, and I realized this was the person I was supposed to follow. I followed him past big buildings and then down a promenade full of colorful shops, with outdoor cafes offering me free food -- I tasted a unique confection that was delicious (if only I had awakened with the recipe!). I kept following the man in the trenchcoat through a big museum with an exhibit of elaborate sculptured environments and visually arresting photographs. It was about the most interesting art museum I've ever seen.
When I woke up, I realized that every piece of that art had been conjured in my mind. I had conjured the taste of that unusual dessert. The dream impressed on me that my creativity is more a function of my ability to "spy" than my ability to "make" or "do". If I can "spy" - if I can put effort into seeing - I can appreciate the creativity of others around me, appreciate the creativity of God, and find the inspiration to create beauty myself.
In the dream, I had no idea where I was going or what I would see next. My job was to stay completely open to wherever the man in the trenchcoat might lead me, and to observe carefully everything he observed. Perhaps the man in the trenchcoat was the Christ -- the One who observes human life, observes God's creation. The One who sees, and invites us to see. The one who tastes, and invites us to follow and taste. The Christ is the spy upon whom we are to spy! My dream was a wonderful metaphor for the practice of meditative prayer, in which we observe with care what is happening in our minds, bodies, and hearts, letting nothing be hid from the Dear One who lives at the center of our being.
Sausalito is such a dreamlike place that here the boundaries between sleep and wakefulness are blurred, like the fog that turns the San Francisco skyline into an airbrushed painting hanging across the water. Sausalito is a good place to see! A good place to see people seeing -- every day it is crowded with folks who have come to look around. Our church is part of the scenery. Its lovely architecture makes it a sight to behold! But even more, it is a site from which to behold. It is a place where we can learn to see as the Christ leads us to see, to create and to serve as the Christ inspires us.
"Follow me." -- John 1: 43
"Come and see." -- John 1: 46
"Taste and see that the Lord is good!" -- Psalm 34: 8
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