‘Tis the gift to be simple, ’tis the gift to be free,

’tis the gift to come down where we ought to be,

And when we find ourselves in the place just right,

’twill be in the valley of love and delight.

When true simplicity is gain’d, to bow and to bend we will not be asham’d,

To turn, turn will be our delight,

’til by turning, turning we come round right.

Simple Gifts, traditional Shaker hymn by Joseph Brackett

I know I’m where I ought to be, on the road that brings me home, but I can’t see past the rise. Whatever is beyond it is hidden, including home. All I can do is keep walking up the road.

The road and the rise – it’s as good an image for the spiritual life as any.

[To hear Simple Gifts, scroll back to the previous two posts.]