… watching for the brushstrokes of God
“ Those who have died have never, never left
The dead are not under the earth
They are in the rustling trees
They are in the groaning woods
They are in the crying grass
They are in the moaning rocks
The dead are not under the earth” Sweet Honey in the Rock
How do we learn to carry our grief? How does grief as a vital ongoing conversation accompany us throughout life? What spaces does grief open up?
“How often do we resist beginning a creative project due to the fear that it will not live up to the image in our minds? Humility invites us to release those expectations and enter into the call of our gifts, knowing that it may look very differently from what we imagined.” Christine Valters Paintner, The Artist Rule
What would you do if you knew you wouldn’t fail?
“The earth is a revelation, offering itself to us daily in an astonishing array of beauty and suffering. What is required of us is living with a level of openness and vulnerability to the joys and sorrows of the world.” Francis Weller, The Wild Edge of Sorrow
How do you take in the beauty and the suffering?
“You must find a way to get in the way and get in good trouble, necessary trouble…you have a moral obligation, a mission, and a mandate when you leave here, to go out and seek justice for all. You can do it. You must do it.” Words from Martin Luther King Jr. to John Lewis
What trouble is calling out to you?
When you do the dishes, do the dishes. Brother Lawrence
What are you called to stay present with?
Pondering the dark
Glowing embers in the night
Be still and know God
Sitting by the fire under the night sky, how do I know God?
With the Eyes of the Heart 