Blessings

"Bless a thing and it will bless you."

-- Emmet Fox

The dictionary tells us that bless means "to consecrate, sanctify or make holy." But how do you make something holy? Simple: Give it your undivided and loving attention. That's it. No special ritual or training is needed. You don't have to speak Latin, Sanskrit, or Mumbo Jumbo. Simply gaze upon an object, open to it, and let it open to you. If words come to mind, speak them if you want to, but no words are necessary in the sanctification process. Blessing is really just acknowledging the sacred nature of a thing.

"Saying grace" before a meal is sometimes called "blessing the food." It doesn't change the molecular nature of the food, but it does change our relationship to it. It helps us honor and value the bounty we have before us, even if that bounty is just a cup of Ramen noodles.

But how does a thing bless you back? The Ramen is not sitting there in the cup looking up at me and saying "Bless you, too, Dave." The "thing," as far as we know, has no volition. What happens, though, is that in our blessing a thing, we reveal its' sacred nature. In so doing our own sacred nature, and the sacred nature of All, is reflected back to us. And by that we are blessed.

So, just for today, be a lean, mean, blessing machine! Bless your car, your toaster, your TV and your toilet. Bless the whole blessed mess that you call your life. And feel the blessings in return.