THE INNER WIND

THE INNER WIND 

The heart is fragile like a flower in a wind storm. The petals of a flower scatter about the ground: unseen, uncared for. The frailty of the heart is an undercurrent of turbulence—twisting and turning in deliberation of ongoing circumstances. Who can know what life brings: crisis or heartbreak, torment or happiness? So alone are some in pain of emptiness—the winds of the heart sifting its contents to unravel a predicament, a hurt, a prejudice, a loss. The vulnerability of the heart is an engine of churning unrest, a chamber of emotions, probing the complexity of desperation—like the flower: shaking in the wind, in fear of loosing its petals, not knowing where the wind will take them. 

Likewise the inner winds are influences, forces from the outside, propelling the mind and heart to conflict. The harmonies of the inner self are jolted, and the body reacts in anger, indecision, hostility, anxiety, hatred; or peace, contentment, joy, love, compassion. Life’s journey is an inward balance of conscience, heart and soul—inhaling the actions of others, and exhaling our actions towards them. This constant struggle can be constructive or destructive, and from how we react inside ourselves derives our peace of heart or depressed state of mind. 

Surely you think, if you take away the wind, all will be well. Not so! The flower without water will wilt, and the petals will fall to the ground. So too, with the inner wind of the heart—without continuous spiritual nourishment, the heart is restless and empty. Only with spiritual insight and prayer can the wind remain calm, and the storm be repressed. 

It is with prayer, the heart begins to soften—melting away hardness and molding a foundation of compassion. Prayer with compassion brings a contrite heart and the inner wind becomes the breath of the Holy Spirit. It is in this manner the heart is manifested into a tranquil presence of peace; for the heart is the door to the soul, and one must be in peace, to be able to open it. Entering the soul is reverent—for this is where your God lives within you. Have you entered this realm of presence, this chamber of great sense of solace? Has prayer been a gift to you, to quiet the wind; or are you prayer-less—lost in a wind storm? 

What is your inner wind of turbulence that spins you in circles, getting you nowhere? Why walk into the wind without protection—like the flower: exposed, unprotected, cast about into the unknown? The inner wind of the heart needs to be mellowed, to separate the clouds from the rain, and the wind from the storm. Inner peace is a treasure; it is a gift; it is from God. 

Are you sensitive to this inner wind—this calling to reach out to another, to touch a heart, to free them of their misery? Are you the someone who understands the silence of the heart, to share a tear, and embrace a sorrow? Are you being called, to comfort, to soothe a nightmare, a fear, or unloosen a grip of hell? Does not the heart have sorrow and tears, anguish and uncertainty? Does not the heart wait in limbo, searching for something or for someone to turn the tide? Is this someone, you? Let this gentle inner wind of yourself bring hope and encouragement, tenderness and compassion to a broken heart or soul—a flower, which has lost its petals.

Robert J. Varrick

rjvarrick@gmail.com