In Charles Dicken’s A Christmas Carol, the ghost of Jacob Marley tells Scrooge that, “I wear the chain I forged in life. I made it link by link, and yard by yard.” Marley’s soul is bound by the actions and intentions of his life.
Each of us is forging a life that binds us to ourselves. We are linking our actions each day to our vision for our lives and to our own core values. Some days, those links are strong and well-made; on other days, the links are more tenuous.
Each time I reflect or act, each time I relate to anyone becomes part of the chain I am making.
Each day is a new beginning. Each day we link to ourselves in new ways.
The links in my chain have gotten much stronger over time. While I cannot go back and re-forge links I made in the past, I have practiced and learned as I have gone on. I am getting better at making and recognizing a strong link. The link I make today may reinforce a weaker link in my past.
It takes time, and I learn from my mistakes.
The chains we are forging are important. They bind us to ourselves, and also to each other.
The entire length and weight of my own chain, on which I work with such painstaking focus and effort, is just one tiny link in the larger chain that binds us together. God gives us the privilege and pleasure of being co-creators of the universe, and the result of all of my creative efforts becomes my link in the great chain.
Our souls are bound together by the intentions and actions of our lives.
What links are you forging in your chain today?
How is your chain linking you to others?
[Image by foxypar4]
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