Seeing What Is Sacred Becoming More Spiritually Sensitive to the Everyday Moments of Life

Introduction ; Ah done pass'a missa lye. ; Ah know'n missa law. ; Ma' lilten kine a'fu wi'enja. ; Inna tye'a shie done come Tizrah. ;Inna tye'a feliss, done come feliss. ; The cryptic words come from the movie Nell, whose central ; character is played by Jodie Foster. After her mother dies, ; Nell grows up alone in the forest, where she knows little of the ;world's influences and none of its conveniences. ; She knows nothing of electricity or plumbing or refrigerators, ; nothing of television or radio or films, nothing of wars or politics, ;sports or fashions, nothing of the world beyond the forest. ; But then the world beyond the forest discovers her. She is ; befriended and studied, and at last taken out of the forest by ; well-meaning authorities who feel she should catch up with the ; rest of the world so she can lead a fuller and richer life. Her fate ; finally falls into the hands of twelve jurors. After the lawyers on ; both sides finish their closing arguments, Nell gets up to speak ; for herself, addressing the jury in the primitive speech she ;learned as a young child. ; ; " Yo' ha' erna lay -," she says. ;" You have big things," another woman translates. ;" Yo know'n erna lay -" ;" You know big things-" ; ; Nell leans toward the jury, gripping the rail that separates ;them. ; ; " Ma' you' nay seen inna alo'sees -" ;"But you don't look into each other's eyes." ; ; The intensity of her voice rises. ; ; " An yo' aken of 'a lilta-lilt. " ;"And you're hungry for quietness." ; ; The indictment registers on the faces of the jurors. Nell ;takes a breath as she searches for the right words. ; ; " Ah done pass'a ; missa lye -" ;"I've lived a small life-" ;" Ah know'n missa law. " ;"And I know small things." ; ; Nell turns from the jury, looking into the eyes of the judge, ; then into the eyes of those in the courtroom, desperately trying ;to get them to understand. ; ; " Ma' lilten kine a'fu wi'enja -" ;"But the quiet forest is full of angels-" ;" Inna tye'a shie done come Tizrah -" ;"In the daytime there comes beauty-" ;" Inna tye'a feliss, done come feliss ." ;"In the nighttime, there comes happiness." ; ; Every eye in the courtroom is riveted on her as she pauses, ;gathering her words like eggs from a nest. ; ; " Nay tata fo' Nell ." ;"Don't be afraid for Nell." ;" Nay kee fo' Nell ." ;"Don't weep for Nell." ;" Ah hai' nay erna keena'n you ." ;"I have no greater sorrows than yours." ; ; In the backwoods with her bare feet and broken speech, ; Nell lived a small life, knowing only small things. She knew ; nothing of stock prices or cellular phones, nothing of the state ; of the union or the scandals of its leaders, nothing of the mysteries ; of the universeGire, Ken is the author of 'Seeing What Is Sacred Becoming More Spiritually Sensitive to the Everyday Moments of Life', published 2006 under ISBN 9780849912689 and ISBN 0849912687.