This month’s Soul Matters Theme is Joy. Consider the following story for all ages.
The Story the Phoenix Told
Written by April Rosario, inspired by the story of the Phoenix in Greek mythology
Once upon a time, long long ago, it a far away land, there lived a magnificent Phoenix. Her feathers glowed with the colors of the sun, beautiful shades of gold, crimson, and orange. Her feathers were so beautiful that the human beings of the land thought she carried pieces of the sunrise on her wings.
But she was not only known for her beauty but for her wisdom as well.
And it was her wisdom that the people of the land turned to one dreadful year. You see, that was the year, a great storm swept through the land, leaving destruction in its wake.
Full of despair, the people went to the Phoenix seeking her guidance. “Great Phoenix,” they asked, “whatever shall we do? How can we find hope when everything feels lost?”
The Phoenix responded by telling them a story.
“This is the story of how I came to be.” the Phoenix began, “Long ago, in my very first life, I lived in a land of eternal spring. The days were gentle and the nights calm. My feathers were colorful, but not as colorful as they are now. And my strength was less than it is now.
One day, the land was struck by a great fire. Flames consumed everything in their path, including the tree that held my nest. I fought to escape, but the fire was relentless. It consumed me, and in the blaze, I felt the searing pain of being burnt and turned to ash.
Yet, as the fire burned, something extraordinary happened. What I thought was my last breath filled my lungs with a new strength. And with that newly discovered inner strength, from the ashes, I began to stir. Slowly, I emerged, reborn. And as I looked at my feathers, I saw that the fire had not destroyed them but made their color more vibrant than before.
And over the years, this has happened over and over again, with the pain of the fire not destroying me but leaving me stronger and more beautiful than before.
“And so friends,” said the Phoenix, “I ask you this: As you look around at your own destruction, are you sure that rubble is all you see?”
And with the Phoenix’s story and question filling their mind, they looked again at the destruction and rumble around them.
And just as the Phoenix had found new strength in her ashes, the people noticed a new type of power arising among them as they found strength in sharing their burdens and working together.
And just as the Phoenix watched the fire make her feathers even more beautiful, the people slowly noticed a new and more beautiful type of love arise between them as they realized that they didn’t need to heal and recover all on their own.
The people, indeed, were stronger and more beautiful – and even more joyful – than before.
Beloved, as we enter the season of Spring, let us take solice and heart from the season of rebirth. Like the phoenix, as life returns in abundance, may we too find the strength that has kept us alive through the dark and cold, to bring to the world a vision of possibility. Even as we have been threatened by the fires of this era, let us find in those experiences the fortitude to not only survive but thrive. It is in our shared experience of these moments that our common strength emerges and the possibility of life more abundant is made clear. Welcome spring. Welcome joy. Welcome the possibility of new life.
Blessings,
Aaron