Broken Open

“I tell you this

to break your heart,

by which I mean only

that it break open and never close again

to the rest of the world.”

― Mary Oliver, New and Selected Poems, Vol. 2

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The Sacred wants to break our hearts

Break them open

With Sacred love

Break them open

So that we might be touched

By all that is around

Only when our hearts are broken

Can we feel the pain and despair

Of the poor,

The homeless, the rejected

The shamed

The oppressed

The minimized

Only when our hearts are broken

Can we be moved to act with compassion

With generosity

Only then will we dare fight against injustice

And reject bigotry

And only when our hearts are broken

Can we find true joy

Only they can we truly love

For only when are hearts are broken

Can they be healed

And only then

Can we be

whole

for when our hearts are broken

all the world

not just its pain but its beauty

all the world

can enter in

and fill that empty longing space

and the Sacred One

too