The Empty Room by Peter Ragnar

“Sitting in this empty room, I’m filled. Waiting for a sound, I realize that without silence no note could be struck, no bird could sing, no thunder roar, no whisper of love be uttered.

‘The room isn’t without anything: it’s actually packed full of nothingness.’

Without this void, there would be no walls, no windows, no trees and meadows beyond where flowers bloom and deer recline. So, I thank the void, for it is the inkwell of my heart. It spills upon the page from that eternal nowhere.

Qigong at dawn, moving like an air-fish swimming in the sea of emptiness; ripples reverberate in tones of an unknown music. My spirit sings as an unknown melody moves my limbs. The usefulness of appearing useless, the wisdom of playing the fool, knowing this comes when knowledge is surrendered, much like the empty room.

As the great sage said, the wheel has value only because of the empty hub. Could it be we discover our real value when we become like the empty room?

Reflections from Turtle Lake, Peter Ragnar ”

And so it is that it’s not the quantity but quality of the space within our homes, schools, offices, health facilities and hospices that is most important.