rain

I am in Thailand, on the island of Koh Phangan, and a heavy tropical shower has just passed: bucket loads of water falling from the sky, drenching everything. And now the rain has eased to a gentle pitter patter, and the trees are looking greener than ever, vibrantly alive. Seeing this, feeling this, the aliveness that has come with this rain, it reminds me how fundamental water is to life, here on Earth.

Such a simple material, water, falling from the sky, who would dream it? And yet without this, there would be no life on land. And of course the oceans, themselves full of life, are formed of that water, once it has run off the land. And this simple sustenance of life, so readily available – here in Thailand especially – it reminds me of the spirit, the source, our essential part. This too is simple, simpler even than water, and more ubiquitous too. And just as water nourishes life, so too does the spirit. It is the foundation of life. It is life, the essence of life. And it is a gift, a gift that we get to enjoy, just as I am enjoying this rain, and the verdant trees that surround me.