"A wall standing alone is useless, but put three or four walls together, and they’ll support a roof and keep the grain dry and safe. When inks joins with a pen, then the blank paper can say something. Rushes and reeds must be woven to be useful as a mat. If they weren’t interlaced, the wind would blow them away. Like that, God paired up creatures, and gave them friendship."  Rumi

A toddler’s mantra is "Me do it!" When the experience of independence begins to dawn on us we have the need to push away from the help of a parent’s hand, a care giver’s guidance. There are other times in life when the need to assert our separateness guides our actions. We may all remember those times with fondness or with some pain. It is a natural part of becoming who we are meant to be.

But the living out of the wholeness, and the holiness, of our lives comes in the way we are in relationship with one another. The scriptures are filled with these stories, in fact begin with the very ways in which we are created to be connected with one another, Creation, the Holy. Those ways in which we seek out the wisdom of others, are nurtured by the care of others, are held in love by others, creates the soil in which we plant ourselves. Whether it is the relationship of family, which we do not choose, or friendships, which we do, our lives are lived out in and through interconnectedness. Separateness is illusion.This web is mirrored throughout all creation and out into the universe.

This reality is something to ponder as we wake up each day. It is something to hold onto as we make our way through the work and play of our days. It is something to give thanks for as we say our prayers before bedtime.

As walls hold up the roof, as ink and pen and paper create the poem, as the rushes and reeds form the mat for our rest, we are held together by all the pairings of our lives. Blessed be!