Grace

 by Norma Gentile

I have been thinking about Grace. I wrote to a friend over the American Thanksgiving weekend and referred to it as “Dias de Gracias.” Then I realized that there is this obvious connection between the time of reflection we have during the shorter days of winter and the movement of Grace in our lives.

What is Grace? Here is my list so far:

Grace is an act that appears out of stillness.

Grace is a kindness provided, but not expected.

Grace happens when the heart asks, rather than the mind.

Grace is more gentle than a feather, more potent than the most powerful elixir and simpler than a child’s coloring book.

Grace is our ability to bless each other.

Did you know the word “grace” in English comes from the Latin words “thank you” and “gratitude?” Think of the Italian, “grazie” or Spanish word “gracias.” Both reflect a sense of thanksgiving and gratitude. Both are connected to the English word, “grace.”

I love how languages tell us about the origins of ideas and cultural concepts. In English the words “grace” and “gratitude” retain enough similarity that you can understand how they are related. But “thank you” appears to be derived more from our Germanic roots (danke) and so can easily be overlooked as being related to the word “grace.”

Grace is our ability to bless each other. In giving a blessing to another, the very act implies your gratitude for that person. You are in a state of grace because of your feelings of gratitude for someone. As you bless them, you are “thanks-giving” to them. Grace is also our ability to feel gratitude towards others.

There are moments when I feel connected to all that is around me. It is as if the waves of energy lying between the atoms dance in my awareness. I am in a state of gratitude. I see the spark of life within people’s eyes, under their stern or hurried gaze. I know that the grey stems of flowers caught in the cold northern wind contain within them the greening life of springtime. The promise of that springtime to me is an act of grace. We do not need to earn or work for springtime, for the season will come to us. Likewise, we need not work in order to receive grace. We are the children of grace.

In the dancing waves of life between the atoms lies the promise of grace. The shared unconsciousness, the field of awareness which binds all form to other form, contains the blueprint for grace. Inside each of us lies this blueprint. We open ourselves to experiencing it through gratitude and thanks giving.

Our hearts are the doorway.

Silence of mind, the means to open the door.

Stillness in time, our ability to know grace.

Peace, as we are embraced into her arms.

May peace, grace and love be with you in this time of reflection

Sound Shaman, singer and healer, Norma Gentile offers concerts, workshops and healings in many cities. Her newest recording of healing chants, “Songs of Spirit: Live Sound Healings” is now available at iTunes, along with her podcasts. Visit www.healingchants.com.