Category Archives: snippets

brief insights or thoughts

Weft of friendship

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Warp and Weft

 

Once again my heart is melted with gratitude
Once again I am engulfed with the wonder of friendship
Once again I know that such relationships are the stuff of life.

As we prepare to welcome a new life into this crazy world,
It is the weft of friendship that fortifies my soul,
Gifts within gifts – to help a new life blossom.
And what a grace to see two generations of friendship
In deep and easy communion
Welcoming a third.

When I count my blessings
These are at the top of the list.
Thank you, my friends.

[image from wikicommons, with translation as noted in wikipedia]

Grateful on Father’s Day

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my Dad (and Mom) I want to thank my Daddy
For choosing me.

True, his first choice was my Momma.
And that choice has blessed my life as well,
Allowing me to grow up in the context of love.

But he also chose me – adopted me.
He gave me his name.
He gave me his time.
He gave me his love.

I was three when he came into our lives.
And, from that time forward,
He has been my Daddy, my Dad – ‘Poppy’ to my kids.
And a continual blessing.

Sometimes God’s love comes to us most tangibly
Through the smile, the hug, the steady presence
Of another, like my Dad.

Thank you, Dad.

still

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wrapped in a blanketI finger the edges of my soul
looking for the imprint of your presence.
The veil hangs straight and still
no ripple of movement
and yet – peace.
Somehow I know that you are here.
Still. Still. Still.

Stay with me, still
And still my heart
So that even passing evidence
Lingers at the tip of my awareness
Just beyond knowing
But not beyond faith.

You love me, still.
Still, I love you.
I rest, with the fullness of that peace
Folded round my shoulders
Swaddling my heart
In you.

 

[image modified from a photo by MIKI Yoshihito per cc 2.0]

God’s little finger

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Yours are the hands through which [Christ] blesses all the world. – Theresa of Avila

muddy handprintsSo, even if I am but God’s little finger
Or the fingernail upon that little finger
There is an itch in the world that I can scratch.

When we are elbow-deep in muck
And there is that itch on the tip of our noses
A scratch can be a welcome blessing.

[image cropped from photo by sugarfrizz per cc 2.0]

A Full Circle of Grace

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circle of graceHoly One,
Lift my heart from fog
Lift my life from shadows
And touch me with your sun.

You do.
You lift me and I am glad.
You hold me and my heart rejoices.
You kiss my head and peace anoints my soul

Your holy gift,
My joy at receiving,
These complete for just a moment
A full circle of grace.

Amen

9-7-01

[photo by chocolatsombre per cc 2.0]

Simple gifts

Quote

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'tis a gift to be simple‘Tis the gift to be simple, ’tis the gift to be free
‘Tis the gift to come down where we ought to be,
And when we find ourselves in the place just right,
‘Twill be in the valley of love and delight.
When true simplicity is gained,
To bow and to bend we shan’t be ashamed,
To turn, turn will be our delight,
Till by turning, turning we come ’round right.
– Joseph Brackett (sung by Jewel)

Holy One
I walk the distance in my soul
The distance from distracted to quiet
The distance from scattered to whole
The distance from me to you.

Too often I forget that you are there
That you already surround and embrace me
That turning, turning,
Places me in your arms, in your quiet
In your delight – and in mine.

Bring me to that turning
Help me touch the quiet
Help me to embrace your simple gifts
Of love and delight
Of connection and deep peace.

I quiet my soul
I turn and lean in just the tiniest bit
And find I am resting my head upon your chest
And feel you wrap your holy spirit ’round me
This … this is home.

Thank you.
Amen.

[photo by Kate Ter Haar per cc 2.0]

 

What is the message of the cross?

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cross
What is the message of the cross?
Not that God needed blood in order to be able to forgive,
But that no amount of rejection, violence or hate
Could keep God from forgiving.

 

How sad that even this most loving act
Has been reinterpreted as the requirement of a blood-thirsty god
Who is bent on vengeance unless he can be placated by death.
It tells us more about ourselves than we can bear to admit.

God did not drive the nails.
God endured it
And, sweet mystery, still offers to love and forgive.

Would that we could learn such love.
It is my greatest wish.
And God’s.

That is the message of the cross.

[cropped from photo by Adam Selwood per cc 2.0]

Christians are the proof of Easter

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caring handsChristians are the proof of Easter,
Much more than the empty tomb.
It’s not so much where Christ is not …
It’s where Christ is.

It’s where His body is, today.
And what He’s doing in the world
With our hands and feet and voice …
Which are, of course, now His.

(Ok, so I have to say I find this pretty intimidating.)

[photo by Randen Pederson per cc2.0]
[This saying, ‘Christians are the proof of Easter’ comes from a third grader in a Sunday school class I taught some 40 years ago, when I asked the class, ‘What do you think was the proof of the resurrection?’ and he answered, with excitement, ‘Christians!’]
[St. Theresa of Avila gives us the quote that Christ has no hands but ours.]

magnificent heart

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spring flowers

 

We are silly little creatures.
Why would you concern yourself with us?
Why turn your magnificent heart toward such tiny trinkets?

 

It’s not the pull of the trinkets.
It’s the nature of your magnificent heart
To touch the soul of each little thing
And bring it to
Its full and glorious self.

Life calls to life.
Love calls to love.
Beauty calls to beauty.
You call to me.

[photo by Mike Bizeau from his wonderful photo blog, Nature has no Boss, used with permission]