Here is God

Dear Patient,

Yesterday was the end of an era at my clinic: the last day of work for one of our receptionists. She’s been with us for nearly eight years, through so many highs and lows, and now life is taking her on a new career path. I’m so happy for her, and I’ll miss her terribly. If you’ve ever visited my clinic, you’ll know that our receptionists are so much more than people who answer the phones and take payments. They’re community builders, and she was one of the best.

If you remember the Note “You Are Here and Here Is Good”—well, she’s the one who picked out that pillow. After I wrote that Note months ago, one reader, who’s also a patient, responded and said the first time he saw the pillow, he thought it said “Here is God.” What a lovely misreading: the idea that here, within you, is God, the Divine, Unconditional Love—or whatever your notion of a higher power is.

Even under the best of circumstances, goodbyes are painful. But endings are beginnings. Yin transforms into Yang. All the while you are here, and within you is something so much more than you.

Yesterday I gave the pillow to my receptionist and friend as a farewell gift. I hope it’s a reminder of how much she’s loved and missed, what a difference she’s made in so many lives, and that always, within each of us, is something sacred.

Love and gratitude,

Your Acupuncturist