Karen Lynn-Chlup at the Self-Realization Fellowship Shrine

I wrote this poem in mid-May 1977 as I sat on a stone bench at the Self Realization Fellowship Lake Shrine in Pacific Palisades. Fortunately, it survived the fires of January 2025, but back to my story…

Sitting on the shore, I looked into the water of the lake. Closing my eyes, I turned inward. Peace flowed. The quieter I got, the more it flowed. It flowed through my veins, and through my entire body. I felt its natural beauty surrounding me. I asked. And I received. I encompassed my wholeness as a person with a disability. I felt a calmness and a cleansing, as if I were sipping sweetness. The Southern California breeze cleansed and calmed me. I didn’t want to leave, not wanting my time there to end. But I knew it would. And I knew I could come back whenever I wanted.

That day, I had a whole new way of looking at myself, my life, and my disabilities.

Sipping Your Sweetness

I sit
Amongst your glorious garden,
Turning towards
Your natural beauties
For peace and quiet.

I ask you to soothe my wounded soul,
And as I sip the sweetness
From your nectar,
I feel your soothing, gentle breeze
Calming and cleansing my tattered heart.

At once, I feel
A delicate delight
And a whispering touch of wisdom
That sings out to my soul!

I gain comfort and
An abundant bounty,
Which mends
My clipped wing.