There seems to be spontaneous, helpful guidance that comes from goodness knows where to show us again and again that there is a way to view this world and the things that happen in it as nothing but spiritual encounters.
Sometimes, when I am checking out from a store, I look around and instead of shoppers, all I see are beings – all the souls who agreed to meet me here. When I fly on an airplane, I can feel like I am measuring the volume of soul weight all around my seat. Even if I am home alone, I feel like I have a preordained date to meet some other part of me.
Early to class one day, I was starting the computer, going over the lesson, getting ready; I was in a get up, drive to school, get to work mode; I was not in a spiritual mindset. I was just going to teach a lesson to people in seats. I stopped getting ready with all the stuff of 3D life and looked around.
As I focused on each empty desk, I could see the student in his or her usual appearance who usually sat there, and I nodded to him or her in my mind, one by one, recognizing the agreement we had, to meet here in this classroom, to learn a particular subject, yes, but more than that, I could see that we had a larger interaction.
A vision came where I saw myself growing outside my boundaries with each student, one at a time. We expanded out; we were so large that our heads were meeting above the atmosphere of earth. There we were, large Sumo babies, beyond words, exchanging our agreement together in the mystery of space.
This strange exercise took me out of the planning mind and into an awareness of my spiritual agreement to each student. As I can see that we meet here person to person in the classroom, I am also helped to recognize each student’s larger being which helps me to see innate value in each one. We have agreed together to do work that may resemble an English course, but in reality, we are doing spiritual work together.
This ongoing vision or space travel helps me also to see our equality. We are students and a teacher playing roles, but I can see that we are, each one of us, student and teacher both, on equal footing, overall, tourists together on this planet, signing on for experiences.
Now, when I get lost in the minutia of lessons or caught in the frustration of inattention, I try to jump to the vision of who we really are; sometimes I can shift my perspective to the stratosphere and return again with a new, spiritual lens prescription.
Yes, you have a comma splice here, but wow, just look what a powerful being you are; look at what potential lies within you; try using a semicolon and breathing in some space dust.
Life as Improv 
Wow Marga, this is so timely for me, I love the image of the Sumo babies in the sky remembering our agreements to meet in this atmosphere floating in our shared dream in equal measure. Returning to visit you in the stratosphere with new and bigger baby eyes. 🙂 E
E – so so nice to see you again; I’m loving the new baby eyes! You gift me with a warmth in my belly to know I can write such strangeness and be understood! xo! m
OMG Marga there are some very very blessed students out there to have you as their teacher.
A deep bow to you.
Alison ❤
I always hesitate to write about the classroom because, I don’t know, it sounds like a plea for a pat on the back or something. It can be a strange dynamic, the “teaching” role, when identity starts strutting about – but for me, this job helps take me out of my bubble; I’m forced to engage – and play – and figure out the deeper thread – with others when I am often not compelled to do that, otherwise. I bow to you, photographer, writer, journeyer, soul sista 🙂 xo! m
This is such a touching and very beautiful article Marga; truly it is. I think I recognise what it is you are writing about here, and is it not in fact a very deep sense of loving communality in which we feel a gratitude and respect for one another? Perhaps it is true that for the most part, this expansive feeling remains otherwise absent; and yet when it presents the contrast in perception is so striking that it can literally move one to tears.
If I am on the right track here, then it reminds me of one of the first occasions this experience came to me. It was in The Dolphin Shopping Centre in Slough, England [home of Ricky Gervais’ fictional ‘Office’ in the TV series and the subject of John Betjeman’s eponymous poem] and which is probably the most uninspiring and possibly depressing places on God’s Earth.
And yet still, it was in this dreariest of all locations that I felt such a deep and loving connection with all the shoppers as collectively we wandered around grasping visually at all the tat that was up for sale. I had made no effort to think in a particular way, and my mood upon entering the Mall had been, as far as I can recall, deeply indifferent to the anticipated experience!
You sound very skilled in inducing this kind of openness of feeling Marga; so good for you – we need more of your kind walking amongst us.
With much gratitude and thanks for this inspiring article.
Hariod. ❤
You gift me today, Hariod, with your attention. I see how you do this for others as well. So powerful is your gift for giving attention – weaving in your own journey and wit – how wonderful. Your attention holds a mirror to my words and helps me see more clearly my own experience. I am struck by the description and fleshing out of Slough; what a perfect name for what this place seems to have become. The poem and Office connection – brilliant – and already I am forming ideas for a sharing in my poetry unit. Won’t it be fun to show a segment of The Office with the poem? The poem captures so much of the modern flow in America – tinned milk, tinned meat, tinned minds, tinned breath – yet as Tupac’s poetry reminds – a rose grows up through concrete. By open to flow, we can see past the surface, not with mind but some other eyes. My words fall in to trite phrasing with “spirituality” but what is it ? – our humanness sitting there mixed with some inexplicable beauty, ever still, some dare say, divinity. But then I must lighten up again and Our special noodleishiousness, right?
I think ‘noodleishiousness’ would certainly meet with the FSM’s approval Marga. If it’s not inappropriate to continue on this theme of transcendence amidst the banal, then here is David Brent’s heartfelt tribute to Slough:
Hariod. ❤
Can’t wait until Slough Day in the spring! Rich and fun connections. Thank you, Hariod!
This piece reminds me of how much is implied by this word ‘spiritual’ and how much is often lost when it is taken out of the context of a piece such as you have written here and bandied about. It seems to me like the encounter you had with vacant chairs– the realization that what is taking place rides upon the premise of a far more significant and deep commitment– is perfectly natural. It is a deeper way of seeing I think we all sense and possess, though is perhaps marginalized in our world. It is present, but not recognized.
For myself, moments like that remind me of how incredibly valuable and important we are to one another. Not because of this or that talent, skill or willingness. But just our sheer presence. I was working on something the other day and began to explore this feeling slash thought experiment of wondering what if I was utterly alone in the world? What if I had grown up without any other beings around me? Soon I realized how even the tiniest of encounters are profound gifts. The people with whom I’d had the greatest difficulties sparkled in this awareness like brothers and sisters. We are committed to one another at the deepest possible levels, which perhaps allows us to hold all of the rest… How could that be?
What the heck is happening here? We won’t hear it on the nightly news… We hear it when we are willing to discover there is something really happening here… We’re a part of something grander than we had dared to guess. You were crossing boundaries again in this one… Beyond all boundaries, perhaps, is this commitment that we ARE.
Michael
I look back over the word “spirituality” and I wonder – can I imagine into being the word I really mean? I have a hard time describing what happens when we see this wonderful commitment you call out and name. I point at it; I recall writing about the classroom sometime last year and calling it “showing up.” The academic ideas and egoic needs go out the window in this flow; we are jumping on some new wave when we show up – humor comes in – freedom comes in – formulas and format are used as springboards – support is not a burden but a natural exchanging to and from, each way. And most importantly, it is easy. There is some sort of magical key found in the word EASY – saying it to myself relaxes the muscles in my throat. So grateful I am for the generous way you dive in to so many waters and and bob to the surface with handfuls of beautiful seashells and treasures! 🙂
‘Showing up’ – excellent terminology!
H ❤
More sighing here. What a blessing we can be when we see our oneness and our soul pacts. But, hmmm, maybe we’re a blessing when we’re obliviously bumping along also. The Universe uses it all, doesn’t it?
There is a good bit more loveliness in awareness though, isn’t there? How nice it would be to be your student. Ah, but wait, I am!
Yes, Kelly, so important to be see the blessing in it all. I can be surprised sometimes when the heaviness returns, and remembering the wave-like nature of our lives, and the usefulness of it ALL is incredibly helpful. It makes me smile now to think of the way I talk about the classroom because I am as a teacher a mighty goofball, regularly, just so we are clear 🙂 I hope your classes are going well – I am starting on new paths as well. Can our High Five meet somewhere over West Virginia? Much love to you! marga
(i would call it the coolest thing i’ve ever heard a teacher say…)
My goodness Marga. This is my first experience of your writings and what a blessing it is! I almost squealed at the mention of your image of little baby sumo’s. I’ve never met anyone who has those images while they are in the presence of others…and I do it all the time! In the car on the road, grocery shopping, airports etc. I am almost blown away by the amazing connectedness it brings when you pause to inwardly bow to those you are ‘randomly’ sharing space with. Thank you for sharing that. It made me feel a little more seen 🙂 A delicious feeling. (and what a special, undercover secret ‘seeing’ operation you are gifting to your students!)
Amanda,
So funny that you made this comment here because I think you jarred this realization of the way I see these giant babies, all the time, with our conversation about “I love you. I’m sorry. Please forgive me. Thank you.” The motion but not the words were so familiar, and you describing that to me, helped me see my giant babies are a variance on the theme 🙂 Makes me laugh to imagine baby babble of these words – and makes me smile all over to realize someone is kindred here – unthinkable to imagine connecting here to me such a short while ago. (I think this sort of practice starts bringing about bleed through of my interior and the interior’s of others through the loving intention – intense!) Glowy in the sharing. Hope the unschool room is full of constructive deconstruction! xo! m