Growth

"I planted the seed. Apollos watered it, but God has been making it grow. So neither the one who plants nor the one who waters is anything, but only God, who makes things grow...." 1 Corinthians 3:7

Perhaps the places in us that are most resistant to change, and growth are the places that mask our pain. We need to go there, let go and receive life's undercurrent. Only then can we resolve our pain, as fertilizer to make our hearts grow in love, courage, and acts of service...

Just in your time...

The Clock is ticking,
but you sit in the sand
and watch me play, struggle,
run, perhaps I am young.
But there's no hurry in you.
You wait till I believe myself
into it, and you trust I will
one day.

The clock is still ticking,
and you hold the world
in your strong hands, and even
my beat-up dreams become
a reality just in your time...

"Not only so, but we also glory in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance, perseverance character, and character hope. And hope does not put us to shame, because God's love has been poured out into our hearts through the Holy Spirit, who had been given to us..."Romans 5:3-5

What are the safe seasons?

Catching my eye
a little doe lifts her foot in the air
then touches the earth with determination,
another step of the dance,
a ritual proclaiming,
"This is my space, my dining hall, my dance floor."
Gazing with respect, love, and wonder,
a tiny sadness surges through me
as I remember how I, too,
have learned steps to a fearful dance,
casting glances over my shoulder,
not quite at ease in my being,
always yearning for a safer season,
ready to dance back into my forest of protection.
Where are the safe seasons?
Do you know?

---Macrina Wiederkehr

Psalm 65

Praise awaits you, our God, in Zion;
to you our vows will be fulfilled.
You who answer prayer,
to you all people will come.
When we were overwhelmed by sins,
you forgave our transgressions.
Blessed are those you choose
and bring near to live in your courts!
We are filled with good things of
your house,
of your holy temple.
You answer us with awesome and
righteous deeds,
God our Savior,
the hope of all the ends of the earth
and of the farthest seas,
who formed the mountains by your
power, having armed yourself
with strength,
who stilled the roaring of the seas,
the roaring of their waves,
and the turmoil of the nations.
The whole earth is filled with awe at
your wonders;
where morning dawns, where evening fades,
you call forth songs of joy..."

Psalm 65

Drumming the Rivers

Denied the musical instruments
reserved to men, Zaire women
play the rivers like drums,
beating tempos on the waters,
chanting rhythms slapped on waves.

Without score, without concert hall,
without formal black silk gown,
beneath feathery palm silhouettes
they ply the shining surface, an arc
of droplets flying from their hands.

Over loads of laundry, foam bubbling
on bare arms in the African morning,
they do not discuss oppression. Fluid,
spontaneous, they sing the liquid words
and drum the vibrant pulse of liberation.

Poem for South African Women (June Jordan) quoted in Kathleen Fischer, Women at the Well.