This and That...

I've been going through some of my journals and notebooks
lately and have come upon poems which were written at a
variety of times in a variety of places. So, dear reader, I
thought I would share them with you, as a gift for your
Advent pilgrimage.

hope springs

Re-member

re-covery

re-storation

   so many re- words...

   so many beginnings again

re-newal

re-surrection

   speaking in tones both soft and sweet

   both truthful and terrible

re-minding me

   that life moves ever onward

   with many stops and starts

   and new beginnings which are not new

   at all but simply are placing one foot in front

       of another yet again-

              in re-signation

                   and in hope.

taste and see

the soul can only

be spoken of in

a whisper...in

picture-language and

metaphor...

it cannot be grasped

but flows like sand

through your fingers,

like a stream of living

water through your heart,

speaking of a Source

beyond all your knowing,

your small rivulet joined

to the roaring universal

river pressing relentlessly

and joyously onward to

the waiting, receptive Sea.

taste and see...

drink deeply...

be refreshed and renewed-

   she whispers her invitation

   in the dream-world between

   sleeping and waking

now, arise...

begin a new day

bathed in the holiness

of this moment.

how, then, shall we pray?

if all of life is linked, the atoms of each living thing

entangled with the other and the other and the other

in one holy enmeshing of existence, then

instead of asking God to intervene, to alter things

to our desires, to change the ways in which the

very nature of the world unfolds, perhaps we need to be

aware that in the linking lies the medium through which

our prayers may more- my hope and love and caring moving

through the essence of creation to reach your mind and heart and life.

the connections are already there, forming the very fabric of our lives,

the gift of the wisdom of the Infinite Mind, the Ground

of Being, the Creator of Life & Love-

      my prayer is my way of being linked-

                                      of giving love-

                                      of wishing peace & blessing

                                      even as I myself am

                                                      being changed and blessed.

the adoration of the magi

"The human creature does not

live by bread alone..." so the

wisdom of the ages tells us.

Our souls long to be fed by

what will never fade away-

though in this time of want and

deprivation, so many stomachs

cry for food and heads for shelter

and hearts for safety. Yet, in the

midst of want and need, a

yearning rises...for beauty,

for the gifts of music, poetry,

and art of every sort...for the

impractical necessities

without which our spirits starve.

The voices of the wise of every

age and culture, rising in

collective resonance, tell us that

to value only practicality is to

deprive ourselves of that which

truly feeds our humanity,

which makes life a worthwhile

pursuit- a taste of chocolate

on the tongue, roses in winter,

a good book, a child's painting,

kindness, respect, reverence,

laughter, joy...reflection of the

beautifully impractical gifts of

the Magi as they knelt in

adoration before a child,

recognizing in him the presence

of the Divine, acknowledging

in him the holiness of the Human.

taking time

Once upon a time,

in old Anglo-Saxon days,

"haste" meant "violence"...

and as the days are hastening

by toward the holy festival of

Christmas, we are hastening

to complete just one more task,

buy just one more gift, send just

one more care, attend just one

more party, the days marked by

the all-too-familiar litany of

"hurry-hurry-hurry"...

doing violence to ourselves- to our

hearts & minds & bodies- as meals

are eaten on the run, or not at all...

and tempers fray when lines are long

and courtesy gives way to curtness...

as multi-tasking becomes the order

of the day, a struggle to keep a multiplicity

of plates in the air...as time becomes

the task-master driving us, with every clock

the accusing enemy chanting

"hurry-hurry-hurry"...

Where, oh, where, is the slow,

awe-filled anticipation of Advent?

Where is the silent, solitary moment

to sit before the fire and think of those

beloved ones no longer here? Where

is the mealtime shared, by candlelight,

with one we love, satiating body & soul

with food & laughter? Where is the quiet,

early-morning walk to feel the frigid air

and hear the hymns of the birds? Where

is the pause to listen, really listen, to the

oft-told stories of the elderly as they

recite the rosary of their cherished memories?

Where is the moment of just breathing in,

breathing out, pausing in gratitude for all of life?

Dear friend, there is still time...

time to go slowly-slowly-slowly...

to walk in awe-filled peace to

the manger...to the cusp of the

awaiting new year.

Will you make time?

             take time?

or only make haste?

Blessings. Advent blessings. And peace.