Marriage Proposal

On Day 1 our group visited the Headwaters at Mt. Shasta City Park.  Crystal clear water flows out of the mountain and becomes the Sacramento River. 

When I drank the water, I felt it drift up to my head in the lightest, brightest way.  Like in “Mary Poppins” when everyone is so happy they start floating up to the ceiling.  I never knew water could be this high-octane!

Smiling, almost giddy, I walked into the woods, brimming over with love and gratitude for the Divine forces that had brought me to this mountain.  I thought of the Sufi idea of the Divine Beloved, and I flashed on words from the great Sufi poet, Rumi:

"Nearness to the Beloved is the splendor

of your life. Marry the Beloved."

I took off my backpack and sat down on a bed of pine needles. About a foot in front of me I spied something shiny in the dirt: a silver-colored ring.  It was a thin, light band, like something a teenaged girl might wear.  I slid it onto my right ring finger, above my late mother’s diamond engagement ring.  A great match and, despite my unusual ring size, a perfect fit.  I was beaming: a wedding ring given to me!  There it remains, next to my mother's ring, a cherished reminder of my marriage to the Beloved that day beneath Mount Shasta.