Sunday, November 11, 2007

The Salt Monument: A Global Symbol of Humanity


Have you seen this?


I May Never Know You

I may never know you,
But I know you live somewhere,
Waking and sleeping each day,
Sustained by the great wave of breath
Breathing in and out of you
As it breathes in and out of me.

I may never know your name,
But I do not need to, to know
How your heart treasures the calling of your name
By someone who loves you.
I know this,
For I know this of me.
I may never look into your eyes,
But I know you search for meaning and hope
And answers to the why and how of life
As I do.

I may never touch your hand,
But I know you have a living body
Which needs nourishment and water,
Safety and touch,
As I do.

I may never know you,
But I know you cherish and yearn
For freedom and dignity
And the chance to make your dreams come true,
As I do.

I may never know you,
And yet I do.


The Salt Monument

From the welcome page: “Imagine if there was a place where every single person alive today, without exception, was actually represented and recognized both as a unique individual and as a member of the human family. Imagine too, if every day there was a welcome to greet each individual infant in the world on the day of their birth, and a way to say goodbye to each person in the world who died that day. When calamity or tragedy struck anywhere in the world, there would be a way to express our grief and caring together. When there were joyful victories for humanity, there would be a place to join in celebration. It would be a place where we could experience the reality of our world village.

Such a place exists. It is the Salt Monument. The Salt Monument is not just an idea or an ideal, it is an actual physical Monument and daily observance that has existed now for over ten years. In its stark simplicity, the Monument wordlessly conveys unfathomable truths about life, compassion, the inherent right to dignity of each person, our relative insignificance within the temporal and planetary context, and the present reality of our world. It is an invitation to contemplation and a plea to bring our shared humanity into vivid, penetrating focus.

The experience of the Salt Monument is inexplicable and ineffable. Some of those who have experienced it know how even a single encounter with the Monument can provoke irrevocable realizations about being human. For those who have not, there is no amount of words or description that can convey its utterly unique and unexpected impact. The Salt Monument is a place where we meet soul to soul, human to human, as one grain of salt to another in the symbolic presence of all humankind as our witness.

This website serves as a glimpse, a hint, of this unprecedented Monument.”

See also a beautiful blog post written about one's experience of the Monument.

What a beautiful concept and so full of the spirit of generosity! So happy to share with you this bright and sunny November Sunday morning.

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2 Comments:

Blogger Kara Chipoletti Jones of GriefAndCreativity dot com said...

Cool cool cool sharing -- their site is so interesting. I love the Salt Monument. What a perfect physical vision of how complex and layered everyday life is. Its always been a mystery to me, that after a death happens, everyone wants the bereaved people to get better or back to normal, especially around holiday times. But the more likely reality is that the bereaved person will *both* feel sad and have moments of blessing during holidays. And so why wouldn't that be the norm instead of "closure" or "recovery". And the Salt Monument seems to mirror that idea of it all happening at the same time, *both* life and death, both grief and celebration. Really interesting. Again, thanks for posting this!!
miracles,
k-

8:28 AM  
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