Self-Change - Center Point Newsletter

Remember when you saw the mist of morning hovering above a valley, or in the foliage of your own back yard?

Perhaps the image is a true remembrance—or a scene from a painting or a movie.

Remembering that very image and knowing its meaning, a great king is said to have written a book about it.

Ironically, although both the king and his kingdom vanished long ago, the book has lasted thousands of years. Its second verse begins with the well-known words:

It is, of course, the Book of Ecclesiastes, traditionally ascribed to King Solomon. Its wisdom seems immortal and uncannily applicable to any time, including our own. Here's another quote that makes that point:

People around the world are saying much the same thing today—sometimes even in our own homes and in the places where we work.

But, we may ask, is Ecclesiastes equally accurate in claiming that everything we do and strive for is no more than mere vanity, signifying nothing in the end?

The answer is "No!" because that is not the true message of the morning mist. In fact, "vanity" is not the best translation of the Hebrew word "heval" (òáøéú), which actually means "mist" or "vapor."

On that basis we can easily understand that everything we strive to attain, every possession we seek, every material goal we may have in life is destined by its very nature to disappear like mist. It will all be vaporized in the passage of time. No one can escape this truth. What is true of herdsmen is true of kings. And in the meantime, said Solomon, "Time and chance happen to them all."[3]

These inevitable facts of impermanence and vulnerability are obvious and undeniable, for as the American poet Delmore Schwartz wrote: "Time is the fire in which we burn"— just as the morning mist is evaporated by the rising sun.[4]

It would be wrong, however, to think that the author of Ecclesiastes believed that's all there is to life.

The message of the morning mist is that, while it is here, it is beautiful to behold. It is a gift of life to be richly enjoyed. In fact, the full enjoyment of our lives in the time that has been given to us is the true focus of the book.

"To every thing there is a season, and a time to every purpose under the heaven," it sings.[5]

The purpose of the gift of life itself is that it should be lived to the fullest—not wasted in despair over its transience.

The king therefore commends the simple and enduring pleasures of existence: "Eat and drink, and enjoy yourself, for this will go with you through the days of your life."[6]

It is an exhortation to appreciation—and to joy in the midst of the difficulties and uncertainties of life.

Just as the lines about riches lost in a bad venture fit our present reality, so does the theme of the enjoyment of life.

Our time, like all times, is a time to revel in the mist, in its beauty—made all the lovelier by its fleeting nature. It is a time to pursue the joy of right relationships at work and at home and in the world.

It is a time to enjoy ourselves, realizing that we do not really control very much of what happens to us and yet we still have the power to be at peace within.

All we have to do is pause a moment—and in that pause, reflect on the message of the morning mist.

One of its greatest meanings is that like the joys of life, although the mist of morning fades away as a vapor in the wind, it nonetheless returns again.

Take some time each day this November to revisit these ideas from the Book of Ecclesiastes.

It will make a fine preparation for the celebration of Thanksgiving—and you will find the true joys of life repeatedly returning to you, as well.

It is very unlikely that King Solomon of Judah is the actual author of the Book of Ecclesiastes.
The writer referred to himself as Qoholeth or Koholet, the Preacher (one who gathers others
together for instruction). He nonetheless writes from the perspective of someone who
has the world at his beck and call—with all the possessions and powers a mighty
ruler could desire—and yet realizes how fleeting they are. His greatest power
is the understanding that the true riches of this life lie within ourselves.

It's easy. Every Wednesday
for a few minutes between
10:00 and Noon sit down and
turn inward - through prayer,
meditation, self-hypnosis or
any modality you choose -
and send out good thoughts
to everyone else in the circle.

J. Kingston Cowart
619.561.9012
Post Office Box 19005
San Diego CA 92159
jkcowart@self-change.com

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Research Terms: appreciation, chance, despair, difficulty, Ecclesiastes, Delmore Schwartz, hedonism, heval, impermanence, joy, king, Koholet, mist, peace within, pleasure, right relationship, the Preacher, Qoholeth, Solomon, Thanksgiving, time, transience, uncertainty, vanity, vanity of vanities, vapor, vulnerability, wisdom.