Monday Meditations - The search for the mystical stone

Arrange your meditative space for your comfort. Focus on the photograph or pick up your favorite crystal or stone and hold it in your hand. Take a deep breath and begin relaxed belly breathing.

Today you are looking for a special stone. A stone that has a hole that goes all the way through from one side to the other.  A stone that when held to the eye can frame the moon, the stars, or anything that one would want to capture for a moment and hold within the stone.

Stones with holes were considered magical.

The day is warm and the morning mist is rising with the rosy glow of the sun. The rocks are abundantly spread over the sand and beneath the surface of the water. You are greeted by the dry muted hues and the wet rich deep reds, blacks, and pinks of speckled granite, basalt, and a wonderful variety of other rocks. Pebbles the size of the tip of your pinky finger occupy the same sand as boulders that would take many people to move them a fraction of an inch. They all sit and wait for inquisitive fingers to trace the worn patterns on their surface or to pry them from the sand or the heavy wet mud.

You zigzag along the shore often stooping or bending to get a closer look at a new treasure. You pick up an oval pebble and a larger egg shaped rock. Both are smooth and worn clean by the tumbling action of the water and the sand. You feel a connection to the stones. Like the stones life has cleaned and smoothed many of your own raw edges. You like the feel and weight of these two stones and tuck them into your pocket. As you walk you feel the differences in the rocks through the bottoms of your shoes. You welcome the comfort and protection they provide. You arrive at an area of warm smooth dry sand bordered on both sides with well worn pebbles and stones. You make yourself comfortable on the sand and begin to run your fingers over the nearest stone offerings.

A darkened spot barely visible set inside the outer edge of a gray stone catches your eye. Most of it is buried in the sand beneath a larger flat white rock. A small oak stick comes in handy to pry it loose from the others. You tap it lightly with the stick and the center releases the gravelly sand. The sand sparkles in the bright golden light as it returns to dust the other stones. You lift the stone to your eye and love how it frames the lake, the sky, and the other countless stones. It is the perfect shape and size. You feel happy and content knowing that you hold a miracle of nature in your hand. It has been worked, molded, and worn by wind, waves, and sand. You feel a sense of wonder and peace as the stone warms in your hands.  You treasure this moment enjoying the sparkling sun on the water, the gentle pine scented breeze, and the sound of gently rippling waves as birds sing to welcome the new day.

Once again you sit rock in hand knowing you may save the memory of this place and continue this journey. Slowly you open your eyes and peacefully return to your own place and time.