Spiritual Direction

Sunday, October 31, 2021

Offerings


Sometimes words are not sufficient to capture the gifts
       of the season, nor the gratitude. These are my offerings.


 May they inspire you to notice the holiness of your moments on this cool, damp autumn day.



                                           Fruit and flowers




              Sages for the hummingbirds who have now moved on.




         Old outbuildings that now shelter our goats and chickens.




             The woods across the road whose color changes every day.



Subtle hues of the penstemon who will soon begin
                                 their long winter's nap.


      And a yard that, though past its blooming peak, is
   ripening seeds for all who will seek refuge
in the months to come.



May we each know the blessing of offering ourselves, each in our own unique way, to a world that so badly needs beauty and kindness in these troubled days.


Saturday, October 16, 2021

Welcoming the Stranger



They passed through silently,
stealthily,
foraging for nourishment,
not knowing
I was watching.

On their way to Cuba, to Haiti and the Dominican Republic,
to Belize, to Honduras and Nicaragua,
and the mountains of Mexico,
days and days will they travel the skies,
feeding and sleeping 
in hopes of safety, 
against all odds, 
in hopes of arriving.

That they alight here at all is
a mutual gift, 
for them, sustenance among 
the flowers and the old apple tree,
for me,
the sheer delight of their
presence. 

I will never wing my way to
their destinations
and yet,
still,
I participate in
their journeys
in the planting,
in the loving,
in the gratitude.