corimagua

The Invitation
by Oriahe Mountain Dreamer

It doesn’t interest me what you do for a living.  I want to know what you ache for and if you dare to dream of meeting your heart’s longing.It doesn’t interest me how old you are.  I want to know if you will risk looking like a fool for love, for your dream, for the adventure of being alive. It doesn’t interest me what planets are squaring the moon.  I want to know if you have touched the center of your sorrow, have been opened by life’s betrayals or have become shriveled and closed for fear of further pain. I want to know if you can sit with pain, mine or your own, without moving to hide it or fade it or fix it.  I want to know if you can be with joy, mine or your own, if you can dance with wildness and let the ecstasy fill you to the tips of your fingers and toes without cautioning us to be careful, to be realistic, or to remember the limitations of being human. It doesn’t interest me if the story you are telling me is true. I want to know if you can disappoint another to be true to yourself, if you can bear accusation of betrayal and not betray your own soul. I want to know if you can be faithful and therefore be trustworthy. I want to know if you can see beauty even when it is not pretty everyday, and if you can source your life from it’s presence. I want to know if you can live with failure, yours and mine, and still stand on the edge of a lake and shout to the silver of the full moon…YES! It doesn’t interest me to know where you live or how much money you have.  I want to know if you can get up after a night of grief and despair, weary and bruised to the bone and do what needs to be done for the children. It doesn’t interest me who you are or how you came to be here.  I want to know if you can stand in the center of the fire with me and not shrink back. It doesn’t interest me what or where or with whom you have studied.  I want to know what sustains you from the inside when all else falls away. I want to know if you can be alone with yourself and if you truly like the company you keep in empty moments.

Author Unknown

An elderly carpenter was ready to retire. He told his employer-contractor of his plans to leave the house building business and live a more leisurely life with his wife enjoying his extended family.

He would miss the paycheck, but he needed to retire. They could get by. The contractor was sorry to see his good worker go and asked if he could build just one more house as a personal favor.

The carpenter said yes, but in time it was easy to see that his heart was not in his work. He resorted to shoddy workmanship and used inferior materials. It was an unfortunate way to end his career.

When the carpenter finished his work and the builder came to inspect the house, the contractor handed the front-door key to the carpenter. “This is your house,” he said, “my gift to you.”

What a shock! What a shame! If he had only known he was building his own house, he would have done it all so differently. Now he had to live in the home he had built none too well.

So it is with us. We build our lives in a distracted way, reacting rather than acting, willing to put up less than the best. At important points we do not give the job our best effort. Then with a shock we look at the situation we have created and find that we are now living in the house we have built.

If we had realized that we would have done it differently. 

Think of yourself as the carpenter. Think about your house. Each day you hammer a nail, place a board, or erect a wall. Build wisely. It is the only life you will ever build. Even if you live it for only one day more, that day deserves to be lived graciously and with dignity. The plaque on the wall says, “Life is a do-it-yourself project.” Your life tomorrow will be the result of your attitudes and the choices you make today

Poem by Uruguayan journalist, novelist, and poet Mario Benedetti. Translated into english by me. Again, i hope nothing form this wonderful poem is lost in translation.

Don’t Give Up 

Don’t give up, there is still time,
to reach and start anew,
accept your shadows,
burry your fears,
free yourself from the weight
and continue the flight.

Don’t give up because that’s what life is,
continuing the journey,
chasing your dreams,
unlocking time,
removing the ruble,
uncovering the sky.

Don’t give up, please, don’t yield,
even if the cold burns,
even if the fear bites,
even if the sun hides,
and the wind quiets,
there is still fire in your soul,
there is still life in your dreams.

Because life is yours and yours also the desire
because you care for it and because I care for you.
Because wine and love exist, it’s true
Because there are no wounds that time can’t heal.

Open the doors,
remove the locks,
abandon the walls that protected you,
live life and accept the challenge,
recover laughter,
practice singing,
drop your guard and extend your hands
unfold your wings
and try again,
celebrate life and return to the skies.

Don’t give up, please, don’t yield,
even if the cold burns,
even if the fear bites,
even if the sun hides,
and the wind quiets,
there is still fire in your soul,
there is still life in your dreams.

Because every day is a new start,
because this is the hour and the best moment.
Because you are not alone, because I care for you.

-MARIO BENEDETTI

Original

NO TE RINDAS

No te rindas, aún estás a tiempo,
de alcanzar y comenzar de nuevo,
aceptar tus sombras,
enterrar tus miedos,
liberar el lastre,
retomar el vuelo.

No te rindas que la vida es eso,
continuar el viaje,
perseguir tus sueños,
destrabar el tiempo,
correr los escombros,
y destapar el cielo.

No te rindas, por favor, no cedas,
aunque el frío queme,
aunque el miedo muerda,
aunque el sol se esconda,
y se calle el viento,
aún hay fuego en tu alma,
aún hay vida en tus sueños.

Porque la vida es tuya y tuyo también el deseo
porque lo has querido y porque te quiero
porque existe el vino y el amor, es cierto
porque no hay heridas que no cure el tiempo.

Abrir las puertas,
quitar los cerrojos,
abandonar las murallas que te protegieron,
vivir la vida y aceptar el reto,
recuperar la risa,
ensayar un canto,
bajar la guardia y extender las manos
desplegar las alas
e intentar de nuevo,
celebrar la vida y retomar los cielos.

No te rindas, por favor, no cedas,
aunque el frío queme,
aunque el miedo muerda,
aunque el sol se ponga y se calle el viento,
aún hay fuego en tu alma,
aún hay vida en tus sueños.

Porque cada día es un comienzo nuevo,
porque esta es la hora y el mejor momento.
Porque no estás solo (a), porque yo te quiero.

-MARIO BENEDETTI

“Do more than belong: participate. Do more than care: help. Do more than believe: practice. Do more than be fair: be kind. Do more than forgive: forget. Do more than dream: work.”

— William Arthur Ward