| JAN-FEB 2009 |
| PRAYERS & POETRY |
| ARTICLES & INTERVIEWS |
| ILLUMNIATIONS |
| REVIEWS |
| ARCHIVES | |
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JANUARY/FEBRUARY
Ordinary Mysteries
It's not what you look at that matters, it's what you see." Henry David Thoreau
The shadows grow long
as day turns into night.
Standing in the twilight,
beauty all around me.
The winter air, cold as stone,
howling hard at my face.
Like the coyote in his wilderness,
the wind is crazy with delight.
The tic-toc sound of woodpeckers
and one lone crow circling above.
Nature so alive I knew the night
would be busy with excitement.
Under deep glow of the moon
the earth and sky radiate.
I discover the face of God
in such ordinary mysteries.
~ Patrick Blessinger
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Hold On
Hold on to what is good,
Even if it's a handful of earth.
Hold on to what you believe,
Even if it's a tree that stands by itself.
Hold on to what you must do,
Even if it's a long way from here.
Hold on to your life,
Even if it's easier to let go.
Hold on to my hand,
Even if someday I'll be gone away from you.
~ A Pueblo Indian Prayer |
REQUESTS
Angels, seen or unseen,
Blessings, heard or unheard
Cash when needed
Death when necessary, though preferably painless,
Ease in old age
Faithful friends
invincible Hope, particulary in times of despair
enough Intelligence to learn to share
enough Joy to be able to share
enough Kisses to want to share
unconditional Love
healing mysterious inspiring majestic Music
Newspapers and the ability to read them
Openness and the luck to find it
a few good Prayers from those who care
occasional Quiet
understanding Relatives
Stars, 'specially
on a clear night with a loved one also watching
Toys to play with, even after childhood,
Usefulness, a positive sense of,
fresh Vegetables and the desire to eat them
Wisdom when you least expect it
X-rays that come back negative
Yodeling - how do they do that anyway?
a great Zoo along with a beautiful spring day to visit it
and also (how easy it is to forget) Gratitude
for Zest, Yea-sayers, Xenias, Wizards, Vitality,
Utopias, Trees, Songs, Rain, Questions, Parents,
Openness, Novelty, Magic, Lillies-of-the valley,
Knowledge, Jokes, Imagination, Health, Grace,
Forgiveness, Eyesight, Dessert, Children, Birds,
Animals, and even Alphabets.
~ Sarah Voss
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Living with Hope
Optimism and hope are radically different attitudes. Optimisim is the expectation that things--the weather, human relationships, the economy, the political situation, and so on--will get better. Hope is the trust that God will fulfill God's promises to us in a way that leads us to true freedom. the optimist speaks about concreate changes in the future. the person of hope lives in the moment with the knowledge and trust that all of life is in good hands.
All the great spiritual leaders in history were people of hope. Abraham, Moses, Ruth, Mary, Jesus, Rumi, Gandhi, and Dorothy Day all lived with a promise in their hearts that guided them toward the future without the need to know exactly what it would look like. Let's live with hope!
~ Henri J. Nouwen |
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RESCUE
Have we spent our lives too hastily?
Like the amaryllis,
once vibrant, now quiescent--
it could be we've exhausted our best times
and there's nothing more.
They say "Hang on, hang on!"
But is the price too great?
Old wilted plants discern they'll bloom again,
though who'd believe it now,
to see their dormant stupor?
Did we win earthly laurels early on,
only to falter now?
Yet isn't there's an Origin,
a seed, a bulb of life,
planted in our seeking minds,
to later flourish in our souls?
~Joan Seifert
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