The Most Important Thing

Linda Heron Wind

The sun was setting through the trees still bare from winter and a heron flew low across the crimson sky. Jonika sat in silence with Grandfather waiting for him to speak. The sky was nearly dark when he finally shifted his body and looked directly at Jonika.

"I can see that you have learned to be still on the outside, waiting patiently for something that you do not yet know. Your inside is teaming with questions. What is it that you desire to know this evening?" said Grandfather.

Jonika paused, wondering how Grandfather always seemed to see his insides. "I want to know what the most important thing is to know," Jonika replied.

Grandfather looked long at this boy who was becoming a man, considering what he was ready to know. The mind is always so naïve when it comes to asking questions. "That is an interesting question, Jonika," he responded. "What part of you wants to know that?"

The young man was caught off guard by this question. "What do you mean what part of me? It is I, Jonika, who asks the question."
"Perhaps we need to speak first about where questions come from when they rise up within us," said Grandfather gently. "Many questions come from the mind. The mind always wants very clear answers to everything, correct answers. But the mind is limited in its ability to ask, as it only can see a small part of the picture. The heart also asks questions and the answers it seeks often cannot even be put into words. Yet the heart has a connection to everything so its questions are much deeper. Do you think your question comes from your mind or your heart?"

In the silence that followed, Jonika considered the question. Was it his mind or heart? How would he know? "How do you know if your mind or heart is asking the question?" he finally asked.

"Ah, good question!" Grandfather replied. "The mind's questions often have a selfish motivation behind them. For example, your mind might want to know the most important thing so that you would feel important or be better than someone else. The heart would want to know the most important thing so that it can better serve others and the world. The mind would want to tell everyone while the heart would simply live the knowing. Does that answer your question?"

"Perhaps it is both my mind and heart that want to know then. Is that possible?" said Jonika thinking maybe he could avoid looking deeper.

"Yes, both could want to know the same question but the answer would be different depending on which one is asking. The mind would never be satisfied with the answer the heart is seeking and an answer that would meet the mind's needs would not touch the heart." Grandfather smiled as he spoke, obviously enjoying this conversation much more than Jonika was.

"Ok, then, my heart alone asks the question - what is the most important thing to know?" Jonika said with a sigh, sensing that this was going to be more complicated than he had originally anticipated. Why can't the old man ever just give a simple answer to a question?

"In order to answer that, I would like you to close your eyes. I am taking your hand and I want you to focus on what you feel in your heart," Grandfather instructed.

Jonika sat quietly, waiting. He could feel Grandfather's hand around his own, warm and rough. The wind was singing in the pines behind him and he could also hear the brook flowing by. He waited for the answer, thinking maybe there was something that he was suppose to see or hear.

"Just feel what is in your heart."

Grandfather seemed to read his mind. Could he read his heart too? Jonika focused on his breathing trying to still his mind. Then very slowly he began to feel something and as he did, the wind touched his face and he smelled the fragrance of the pines. It was as if everything around him was reaching out to touch him in some way. The earth beneath him, the trees, brook, wind, and ……and, of course, there was Grandfather's hand that now seemed like his own.

"Feel the answer in your heart, Jonika. Feel it now," Grandfather said softly.

Suddenly he knew. He understood the feeling. Jonika was smiling now, eyes still closed but seeing clearer than he ever had before. Slowly he opened his eyes. The two men sat for a long time listening to the sounds of the night, seeing though their heart and knowing what was the most important thing.

I'm in love with life
Its beauty and harmony
And surprises too!

If you have comments on this newsletter or ideas for future topics, call Linda Heron Wind at (585) 924-5620 or send e-mail to LHWind@aol.com.

Page last modified April 2009 by RMC