PRAYING
~ by Mary Oliver
It doesn't have to be the blue
iris, it could be
weeds in a vacant lot, or a few
small stones; just
pay attention, then patch
a few words together and don't
try
to make them elaborate, this isn't
a contest, but the doorway
into thanks, and a silence in
which
another voice may speak.
What I love about Oliver’s poem
is a reminder that Sabbath doesn’t have to go according to your plotting and
planning. Sabbath could be like a weed
in a vacant lot, weeds persisting through a bed of rocks, weeds persisting and
insisting to be seen, and weeds singing to your shy soul. Where are there weeds in your life? That is, something you may not necessarily
want or initially see as a nuisance, but could hold a blessing? As we try to find words for this, notice that
Oliver says you don’t have to rush to get all your ideas/thoughts to rhyme or
to make sure you make good use of your time, but rather be. Be in that moment where you say, “Thank you”,
and listen for an echo of the Eternal in response, which might just be found in
the most unusual places and people ~ that which we thought was metaphorically a
weed ~ but is actually a part of God’s good creation. Amen.
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