Some get the Burning Bush, some the Virgin Mary, some St. Augustine. My visionary message came from the Belfast Cowboy. Yes, that's right, last night, I had a dream where that great Irish mystic, that wide little Leprecaun, Van "the Man" Morrison visited me. Van was in our living room, singing a song, he had an elaborate act, he worked all kinds of tumbles and rolls into his performance. He sang only one word, (it's the title of one of his songs) "ENLIGHTENMENT!"
I woke up thinking enlightenment is not just a moment, it's a process, a way to live. I read an article about the artist Chris Olfili in the Sunday NY Times and he described his daily routine of painting a simple watercolor of a woman (variations on a theme) every morning. There was this line about Zen monks: "They have their routines, because they think that within routine, and only within routine, enlightenment comes."
Message received.