A Familiar Light on the Road

There’s a quiet joy in finding another
whose eyes reach toward the same horizon,
who knows the way the air subtly changes
when truth moves close.
Most days the path winds through a landscape
where the sacred feels hidden in plain sight,
where the language of silence sounds strange to many,
and the heart’s devotion appears, at best, a poetic curiosity,
at worst, some odd and wayward fancy.
And in times when the world seems to quake
with its own confusion and noise,
there can be a quiet wondering
whether any of this makes sense
beyond the inner echo of the heart’s calling.
So we learn to carry the mystery quietly,
to speak lightly of the currents that move us,
to tuck the deepest knowings gently
beneath the fabric of ordinary words.
Yet something in the body remembers the ache
of offering the sacred to ears that cannot hear it,
and quietly retreats.
Then once in a great while
we meet another whose presence feels like recognition.
Not of identity, but of essence.
Someone who has walked through similar storms,
who understands the quiet unfurling of trust,
who knows the strangeness of being reshaped
from the inside out.
Who knows what it is to stand in their light.
And without effort, something relaxes.
There’s no need to translate silence
into acceptable speech,
no need to rearrange oneself
to appear sensible
in a world intoxicated by certainty.
It’s like stepping into a crowded bar
where everyone’s caught in their own intoxication
and finding, almost by accident,
someone standing clear-eyed in the corner.
In that simple meeting
the whole journey exhales.
The solitude of the path loosens a little
and in its place arrives a quiet warmth,
a sense of being met in the wordless places
where real understanding lives.
To find a fellow mystic in a world
that so easily overlooks the immeasurable
is a reminder that this heart’s devotion is not madness
but a gentle remembering
of what the soul has always known.
And though each of us must walk
our own particular shape of the path
every now and then life places someone beside us
for a stretch of the journey,
someone whose presence turns the road
from solitary wandering
into something quietly shared.
Such meetings become a blessing,
a soft affirmation that beneath the thin veil of difference
there are kindred hearts walking the same direction,
listening, as we are listening,
for the very same call.
There are those whose hearts have found this home too.
Join Imogen for Weekly Zoom Groups, Sunday Satsang Gatherings, Retreats and other events. Book a 1-1 Session or explore Imogen’s other offerings at beyondimogen.com.
If you feel moved to support this offering:
• Like, share & comment — it’s a huge help in getting these words out there.
• Leave a one-time thank you — A small gesture of appreciation and support can be made here:
• Become a subscriber — Support the growth of this space and receive new writings and reflections straight to your inbox.
Thank you for walking alongside me ~ Imogen


