The Invitation
While struggling with this matter of Trust at the level of soul and spirit, I was clearing out some old papers to make room for documents related to my more recent books. There in the midst of these papers was a copy of a poem/proclamation written by Oriah Mountain Dreamer (2024). Called “The Invitation,” this widely known statement spoke to me directly regarding the matter of Trust. Bringing in his own wisdom as well as the wisdom of the Native American tradition from which he comes, Oriah Mountain Dreamer speaks to the Essence of Trust. He identifies the conditions that he looks to when establishing an authentic relationship with another person.
I believe that what he has to say relates to the matter of soul and spirit in a trusting relationship. Furthermore, as I carefully read The Invitation, I discovered four facets of Trust: Intentions, Integrity, Inspiration and Integration. I also found that each of these four facets were manifest in the two forms of spirit and soul. Spirit-ful Trust is based in the appearance of “real” (genuine) values and purposes that do not readily change. They are never just convenient. By contrast, Soul-ful Trust is based on the willingness to take risks in not only the actions we take in the external world but also our explorations of the world that resides inside us.
I wish to apply these distinctions to each of the stanzas offered by Oriah Mountain Dreamer. I realize that my categorizations do not do justice to the unique wisdom being offered by this Native American elder. I recall many years ago when I was attending college that Theodore Gill (President of the San Francisco Theological Seminar) suggested it is foolish and unfulfilling to stuff God into a specific theological box. I must similarly acknowledge that I am doing some stuffing and fully recognize that Mountain Dreamer’s Invitations speaks to much more than the Essence of Trust. With this caveat in mind, I begin my exploration of this poetic account of Trust.
Spirit-ful Intentions: we come to trust other people when we feel confident that their intentions are clear (for them and us) and are held consistently. Furthermore, we are drawn to them when their intentions are lofty and worthy of our mutual engagement:
It doesn’t interest me
what you do for a living.
I want to know
what you ache for
and if you dare to dream
of meeting your heart’s longing.
Soul-ful Intentions: it is not enough that people we trust offer lofty dreams, they must also be willing to dig deeper and take a risk on behalf of these lofty intentions:
It doesn’t interest me
how old you are.
I want to know
if you will risk
looking like a fool
for love
for your dream
for the adventure of being alive.
