Revealing

When I pick up a piece of wood for turning, the obvious usually is not.  The small stuff reveals the real story.  One needs to look for the details beyond the obvious.  The surface gives you clues, but questions remain.  How wet or dry is the wood?  Is the grain tight and straight?  Is the plan to cut across or through the end of the grain?  The questions presume one knows the obvious.  Soft woods behave differently than hard.  Aged wood is very different from fresh, even when it is the same type.  Size makes a difference, especially when it comes to being safe. 
 
If one wants to be safe and creative, knowing the answers, revealing the truth, is important.  It doesn’t make things easier or better if one is ignorant.  It doesn’t help to walk along blind.  The experience of the now provides learning, guidance, and even direction, but only if one is open, listening, and learning.
 
The warning to all is this; I find the process doesn’t come naturally or easily.  In can be difficult.  I can be painful.  It can be a struggle.  Despite the warnings, the alternative isn’t pretty if one looks with open eyes. 
 
Often, it takes the help of others to help us see.  “The prophet Isaiah showed up.  He asked Hezekiah, ‘What were these men up to?  What did they say?  And where did they come from?’
 
Hezekiah said, ‘They came from a long way off, from Babylon.’”  (Isaiah 39.3)
 
The questions should have been the warning, no matter what the answer.  Yet Hezekiah was blind and ignorant. 
 
Divinity often talks to us through the words, arms, and lives of those around us.  At times, the message is a warning.  On other occasions, it is much more subtle.  In each case there was a story filled with truth.  It could, should, and will make a difference if one is listening with an open heart.
 
Today, in a spirit of giving and love, is an opportunity to let Divinity touch one’s soul.  It is a time to receive, and give.