The Tale of Three Sisters

Let me tell you about a FAMILY I know…literally beyond
description, and leaving a legacy with three sisters to share
with the world…
The experience of all three sisters has been out of this world. They love their
Family, they believe the Family is Life itself, and they want to share the values
and meaning of their Family with the world. They do so in very different ways.
The oldest sister seems stern and traditional to the core. Her
wrinkled face, white hair pulled tightly from her face, and worn
spectacles express outwardly the wisdom and inheritance she
carries within. She dresses in very old clothing, aware of each
stitch, and keeps a very ornate and stately home, preserving each
heirloom, and every possession with the utmost reverence and
care. Because each piece preserves a memory of the Family, and
more…each item, each picture is more than a relic, it is a Piece of
the Family itself. Her words are few, but she persistently re-enacts
the traditions she was taught with tremendous responsibility,
devotion, and expectation, knowing that in the practice of these
has always been Life…unexplainable, transforming power of Life.
Deep within these traditions, and the objects she preserves with
such care lies Mystery so profound as to draw some in without
explanation.
The younger two sisters are significantly younger than the first, with such a
wide gap in age that the last two are almost a second Family. As in all families,
birth order has fashioned each one distinctly in the Family.
As every second born, this one
has struggled to identify herself
in the shadow of the first-born
And at times even though she
presents very similar gestures
and mannerisms, she has
enough distinction to present
herself as the true
representative of the Family.
.
The youngest is just that…as
any typical youngest child, a bit
demanding of attention, freespirited,
some would say even a
little wild and stubborn.

But these two together have taken an altogether different approach to keeping the
memory of the Family alive. They were taught from a very young age to figure things
out, to use their brains, and that they did. Much of their growing years was spent
trying to understand and explain the Mystery of the Family in words and proving to
others the sensibility of following the traditions and ways of the Family.
Unfortunately, as is the case with many families, personalities and
misunderstandings over the years caused many riffs in this Family,
to the point where the sisters hardly talk. And curious onlookers
often miss the Family resemblance entirely, seeing only the
differences, and what appears to be scorn for the others…girls can
be so hard on each other! It’s such a shame really. Because to each
one, the Family means everything, and each one, although
fashioned differently by personality, upbringing, and environment
wants to bring the Life of the Family to everyone she knows.
And, like any family that is split by riffs, it
is obvious to anyone who has met all
three that each one truly does reflect the
Family, and each one would benefit from
learning from the others. Because the
eldest remembers things about the family,
the time they spent together, the
traditions they had, the people they knew,
and the precious possessions of the
Family that the second sister has only
vague memory of, and the third almost no
memory at all. She is truly as wise as her
years, and life experience has taught her
to be careful with her words, and to admit
the more she knows, the more she
realizes how little she knows.

And yet, it is precisely in this place of humility that the Mystery of it all, and the
true Spirit of the Family is honoured. She understands that it is the Spirit of the
Family that is able to carry on long after she is gone. And she knows that it is
not her words, but experiencing the Life of the Family that truly explains
everything, and changes people from the inside out.
Because the Spirit of the Family is more than
just the sum of all the sisters’ stories,
traditions, and personalities.
So Much More…
The whole point is to be drawn
into the Family in such a way
that the Family is Known…the
Family resemblance is carried
out in each new life, the ways of
Life engraved in hearts, and the
incredible diversity of the
Family’s Spirit celebrated…
And, not even the riffs of the sisters can stop
that…