BETWEEN SATURDAYS

Many of you who will be reading my ponderings, participate in our Mornings Apart at St. George’s.  So I think it would be interesting to have a “Between Saturdays” post, where we can hear from one another about what resonated or what questions came from our time in community.  If you are receiving this as an e-mail, click on  “Seeds of Faith”, written in blue at the end of this post to get to my home page, where you can enter a comment.

Every month we start with a welcome that asks folks to set aside any preconceived agendas or expectations about what will happen during the Morning Apart.  We say, just let the morning flow and see where God takes you.  Well, I must confess to doing exactly the opposite today!

“Wakeful Tranquility” was the theme, as our priest, Amy Pringle, shared her passion for tea and how it has been incorporated into her spiritual life.  It was obviously a wonderful experience.  The enthusiasm for sampling tea, finding a favorite, and then quietly reading with a warm mug in hand, permeated the morning.

Yet try as I might, tranquility evaded me. I wanted to find peace sipping a cup of tea, but it was not to be.  Still, God found me, just not as I had envisioned.  Maybe next time I’ll heed my own words and leave my preconceived expectations at the door!

Peace

                                                                

I awake

to anxious thoughts.

A fitful sleep

stirring

unwanted images.

Where are you God?

Why this?. . .again!

I wanted

peace today.

I busy myself

searching for calm.

I listen for words

to quiet the voices.

Nothing fits.

Nothing works.

Until. . .

I sit by

the Bonsai.

Delicate branches

whisper to me

of the gentle soul

that tends

its growth.

A ceramic deer

resting in the moss

gazes

past my layers

into my heart.

Oh, you ARE here God!

I almost forgot

to look

at the familiar

for a glimpse

of the extraordinary.

January 21, 2012