Journal of Sacred Work

Caregivers have superpowers! Radical Loving Care illuminates the divine truth that caregiving is not just a job. It is Sacred Work.

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Former President & CEO of multiple hospital systems and founding president & CEO of 20-hospital OhioHealth, best selling author, film artist, ordained minister, composer, published poet, syndicated T.V. host, trial attorney, federal prosecutor and Municipal Court Judge. Erie is internationally known as the founder of the Radical Loving Care(R)movement. He also heads Erie Chapman Foundation, Dane Dakota Productions, LLC, and Chapman Health International, Inc.

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Days 166-167 – Everywhere We Were, We Are – Our Spiritual Footprints

June 16, 2011

I look at the 1981 image of myself, below, and then at the one on this weblog (above right) and wonder. What happened to that thirty-seven year old man?

Have we left our spiritual footprints in every place we have ever been? If so, everywhere we were, some essence of us remains.

A friend asked me if I thought that the more present we are, the greater the impact we make on the energy around us. If we have truly been present to another in their time of need, that presence of ours continues far beyond the passing of that moment.

This kind of thinking can bring comfort. As I mourn the vanished days of my children's childhood, it is good to imagine that some part of them, and me, remains in the home where they grew up. As I think of happier times in mid-career, I like knowing that, perhaps, the the air holds some kind of good energy my presence may have contributed.

The poet Collette Inez evokes the poignancy of our imminent disappearence from the world: "Before you read the farthest wave,/ before our shadows disappear/ in a starry blur, call out your name/ to say where we are."

But, perhaps we truly are everyplace we have ever been.

Does the window remember when you looked through his clear eye waiting for your once-small child to come home? Does the steering wheel remember the way your hands wrapped themselves around it on the way to work and how tired those same hands were on the way home? Does your bed remember your times of sleep and love and dreams amid her sheets?

These notions may sound strange and even foolish. Yet, I believe we, through the quality of our presence, leave a greater legacy than we may imagine.

God's Love holds for us the memory of every time and place we have been present.

This world is so hard for so many. Can we find a way to honor our life here in the way that Adam Zagajewski once urged: "…Praise the mutilated world/ and the gray feather a thrush lost,/ and the gentle light that strays and vanishes/ and returns.

-Erie Chapman

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8 responses to “Days 166-167 – Everywhere We Were, We Are – Our Spiritual Footprints”

candace nagle

June 16, 2011

Yes. “…we, through the quality of our presence, leave a greater legacy than we may imagine.” This post is very comforting. It is the love that is immortal…all of our great and small acts of caring, compassionate listening, and passionate loving change the world…maybe even keep it turning on its axis. I hope this great power of love can restore our health care culture. Sometimes it feels to me that we are battling a force that is trying to diminish and control our opportunities to offer compassion in our work. It seems the threats of litigation and the waning economic resources narrow our playing field…a fear driven scenario. But no system can control our essential natures and love will find a way if we keep our hearts and minds dedicated. To stay present and awake when there is this other force telling us to be less than we are, is much easier to do when you feel part of a community of hope and love. Your post, Erie, is comforting because it is a reminder that love is the greater, eternal force and that our touch on the world lives on even when we cannot see how this power manifests. Today, as I work, I will remember to touch my coworkers and patients with loving care.

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~liz Wessel

June 16, 2011

How wondrous a thought, our spiritual footprint, our essence, and to consider that “we are truly every place we have ever been.” Simply expressed; yet your marvelous contemplation becomes a cherished gift.
Although, I seem to understand the intricate connectedness of all of life, I’ve not reflected much on the true implications of this. I appreciate your premise, Erie that the impact of our Love is far beyond what we could ever imagine. I believe it shapes the trajectory of our evolving universe. How we choose to live and love touches all of creation. Erie, your meditation offers a fresh perspective, for often our lives can feel so small and insignificant yet “ through the quality of our presence”… yes, we begin to see. Thank you!

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candace nagle

June 17, 2011

I needed to come back today to reread your message again. It is such a powerful and comforting way of seeing ourselves belonging to the world. I felt the truth of your words as I traveled through yesterday and this will be true for today too. Thanks again Erie. There is such love in this post.

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ann kaiser

June 17, 2011

“Yes we are every place we have ever been.” What a wonderful reflection to realize the footprints we have left behind us. Just of those of God’s footprints in the sand as he has carried us in times of trouble.Have your footprints carried someone else burden for a time? Reflect and remember the impact a touch or a look or a step into someone’s life can make a difference. May we always step first with Love. Close your eyes and remember that energy!
Thank you Erie for this very blessed reflection today!

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Dea DeWitt

June 17, 2011

Lots of comments left. But this week all I can say is…wow…

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Maria Doglio

June 17, 2011

We are so much more than we think we are!

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Marily

June 20, 2011

Only God’s Love holds for us the memory of every time and place we have been present. Timelessness eases the nostalgic breeze that blows by … only in LOVE we are held in communion with each other, in Him and by Him.

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Karen York

June 20, 2011

I need more time to absorb the depth and beauty of this essay, but wanted to say that you are just as dashing today as you were in 1981! You are “lookin’ good!”

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