The Restory Retreat Centre

Elders (Part 2) The Conversation Elements From The Conversation "I hope you live without the need to dominate, and without the need to be dominated. I hope you are never victims, but I hope you have no power over other people. And when you fail, and are defeated, and in pain, and in the dark, then I hope you will remember that darkness is your country, where you live, where no wars are fought and no wars are won, but where the future is. Our roots are in the dark; the earth is our country. Why did we look up for blessing — instead of around, and down? What hope we have lies there. Not in the sky full of orbiting spy-eyes and weaponry, but in the earth we have looked down upon. Not from above, but from below. Not in the light that blinds, but in the dark that nourishes, where human beings grow human souls."  - Ursula K. Le Guin                  ~ ❖ ~ In last week's conversation, we looked at 4 things that can help one to age wisely. This ...

  Elders "The real elder is like a tree: the older it gets, the more shade it provides."  Sufi saying                    The Conversation Elements From The Conversation In this conversation, we addressed the following issues that can help one age wisely:  A regular faith practice The gradual abandonment of the priorities of the "first half of life"  The formative influence of hardship, failure, and the inability to answer all of life's questions  Letting go of the grip of absolute control Music "Wiegala" is a lullaby composed by the Jewish poet and composer Ilse Weber. She wrote it while she was a prisoner in the Theresienstadt concentration camp during World War II. At the camp, she worked as a nurse and used her music to comfort the children in her care. When the children she cared for were sent to the Auschwitz extermination camp, she chose to go with them. "Wiegala" is believed to have been the last song she ...