When I came upon this solitary Desert Paintbrush flower growing in a sandstone crack, I noticed immediately that it was just one of about four different shades of red present in the landscape. It reminded me that even though each of us longs passionately for something we feel we DON'T have, in actuality, the longing is simply an aspect of the object longed-for, just as the object is also an aspect of the one who is longing. Thus, for example, we can think of our longing for beauty as the beautiful object's way of knowing IT is lovable and beautiful. Similarly, the beautiful object is simply an external embodiment - a shimmering - of the vastness of OUR internal longing. In other words, we discover that longing is already a part of that for which it longs. Each is an aspect of the other, just as the various shades of red present in the desert are each a variation of one another. It is solitude - especially desert solitude - that makes this Oneness clear.
Photo: Desert Paintbrush growing at the top of Big Spring Canyon; Canyonlands National Park, UT; December 30, 2013
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