Spring Verses...

In the sanctuary on Good Friday...
The world around me
is greening...coming to life
     leaves
     grass
     flowers abound
yet a heaviness of heart
persists, even amidst
nature's bounty
             beauty
Perhaps it is the ever-present
awareness that far fewer
springs await me
than have gone before.
Perhaps it is the loss of
friends and family,
those once so central
in my life.
Perhaps it is the niggling
fear- which I mostly
keep at bay- that I will
outlive the resources
I possess...
     and then what?
Before me hangs a
purple-shrouded cross...
and sitting in this silent
sanctuary, I breathe
this prayer...
    God, grant me the serenity
    to accept what I cannot change...
              aging
              losses
              time passing
     Grant me the courage
     to change the things I can...
               how I use my time
               how I use my money
               how I care for myself
               how I care for and about others
     And grant me, O God, O Spirit of Life and Love,
     the wisdom to know, to discern, to comprehend
     the difference.

 This is today- Good Friday, 2014.
I am here, now...
     in this place, at this time...
     and Holy, Blessed One,
               let it be enough. 

 present...
Purple pulsates
Precious people
Peace and presence
Patient pondering
Praying...praying...praying
Here at Nazareth
     this Good Friday afternoon

              spring haiku
   The celebration of dogwoods
        caressed by the breeze
         branches swaying in
          the dance of spring

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