Paula D'Arcy is the author of many books including A New Set of Eyes and Gift of the Red Bird. She is an eloquent speaker and retreat leader. In this top-drawer collection of meditative essays, D'Arcy demonstrates her special knack for sharing experiences from her life to reveal marvelous moments of grace, wonder, communion, and meaning. Each of the 31 pieces is based on passages from Scripture and quotations from spiritual classics. She is convinced that the mysterious and the miraculous power of love is at work in our lives every day. We need to stay alert and be open to the many ways in which the Holy One speaks to us and through us, working one wonder after another.
In one essay, D'Arcy's five-year-old daughter says to her, "The whole world is inside of you. And inside me." The author ponders the passage where Jesus talks about little children and the Kingdom of God, and concludes: "It's startling to think that our access to the Kingdom might not be through knowledge, but through imagination. Imagination might be the language our life's events seek to unearth. And the way we perceived life as children can speak to us again, and once more we will see the miracle in all things. What if the child is the one for whom everything is possible,to be a child is to know that nothing is separate from God? To be a child is to see. It is a state of consciousness that allows us to know the world with the eyes of our true self. To be a child is to be led by an inner awareness."
Throughout this inspirational book, D'Arcy shares her ideas about light. She looks at the meaning of walking as "children of light" and reflects on the inner light that oftentimes leads us when we don’t have any idea where we are going or have any clue about what to do. In a heart-affecting passage D'Arcy talks about a special moment of communion she had as a counselor with a woman in prison who had suffered many losses. Another moment of community is experienced during a ritual she designed for an advent retreat where each person passed on to the next the blessing, "I wish you well on your journey." Encountering God's presence today is an adventure that brings us face to face with the many ways in which love leads the way.
