Heaven

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Seven years ago I was asked by a friend if I was "religious and if I believed in God?" As a (formerly) practicing agnostic I quickly answered:"no." However, I defended myself by explaining that I lived my life according to universal principals of "right and wrong" (as I understood them). Because I believed that our deeds create a lasting effect on the world, I felt confident in my everlasting future. In other words, I wasn't worried about there being a heaven or not. I told my friend that when I die, I am banking on knowing that my impact on the world will be ever lasting. My "heaven" will ultimately be the creation of the the sum total of all my actions.

I will never forget my friend's response: he looked at me with glassy eyes, and told me how deeply spiritual I was. I didn't see it. It took five more years to see what he meant. Such was the inspiration of the following poem I wrote.

Heaven
The pebble is worn smooth
Made small over time
A product of a cataclysmic force of nature
A fragment of mountainous sheets of rock
An accidental offspring of a boulder
But just a very small stone.
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# d! B: W/ g4 J6 Z' Y# B8 w6 M The pebble's place in our world
+ X: j3 W" F9 @6 J$ Y/ k1 X Is neither understood nor appreciated
But when thrown into a glassy calm pond
Its insignificance is transformed
! ^9 T( m  t8 R' R. | Its meaning and purpose is unleashed.
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: u1 J+ |! k/ O/ l% [ The instant the pebble kisses the pond
2 m) c: N( z4 d+ K# U$ |/ I Its signature of concentric ripples
Spiral outwards
Moving far beyond itself.
Gently affecting everything in its wake
3 i$ n$ V# u' R# a7 b" G Forever altering the smooth placid surface.
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The pebble creates its worth and meaning
By unleashing its unimagined power?
& @( T/ g6 y* O6 ~" {; A2 k Into a dueling force of action and reaction
Creating karmic energy
$ R5 G4 O' \; H' Z0 v% J' ? Producing lasting and fluid impressions.
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Aren't we all pebbles?
/ O8 G6 G  f6 i3 y3 B6 v Feeling small and insignificant
But ultimately recognizing
That who we are meant to be
Can never be measured in isolation
on a path into ourselves.

It is true then:
9 z2 E9 u: w$ }. \& Z3 R Our everlasting future
4 p% i2 O; K$ _' |; \0 i0 o0 I Is created by the indiscriminate tossing of pebbles
) `# W( H. Q$ h" j. h- Q% m Into the pond of life
Creating ripples
that leave unique mark on our world
Not because of thoughts
not because of well meaning plans
But because of actions.

$ Z9 @0 y. s) M2 c7 B Our life's prayers our answered
7 |6 X+ d0 d3 h1 ?% v* \2 t; P8 y2 [ Because even the smallest pebble
No matter how seemingly insignificant
3 \+ v3 m- }7 K5 |9 h; H, v Changes the course of the lives
Of those we touch.?

  e3 Z9 U5 e# w/ q1 v9 Z% d4 u And when the icy winds of death
beckon our lasting attention
, i/ n9 m5 F2 r" _# D We will gently leave this life
) _6 c+ q0 ~" m0 s/ ?+ x With the knowledge that
8 n+ q( X2 Q7 g5 y  D because of that one pebble
5 |/ x* w* G) b* s The world will never be the same.
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And then we have heaven …
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% w: i% i4 G' S5 n& e Ross Rosenberg
( s5 z$ Z& F! s6 ` 8/18/03