Dear Friends,
As I begin this April Glimmer, my mind and heart turns to each of you. It really does! I’ve heard from enough of you to realize that we’re in a conversation – even if it happens only once a month. I have learned that my thoughts, feelings and prayer join with yours and in doing so, we create something new…maybe even something holy.
And so, I’m wondering…what does “holy” mean to you? Where do you find “the holy” in your life? It seems an appropriate theme this month as Christian friends walk through Holy Week and Jewish friends prepare for Passover. We usually find an understanding of “holy” in our religious traditions and stories – they invite us to move into realms such as freedom and resurrection that transcend our day-to-day experience. It’s a gift, in fact, to find an experience of “the holy” in our worship and to share it’s Presence in community.
But so many look outside religion for inspiration or may have stopped looking. And that pattern invites the question...What does “holy” look like for you? Years ago, I watched and listened as a nursing home caregiver combed and braided a patient’s hair. Her gentle movements and tender touch joined with a sweet melody as this holy moment unfolded. This caregiver’s song invited grace into the room. Another image comes from a friend who has set aside a place in her house for prayer and meditation. This space, cared for and filled with intention and love, has indeed become a holy space and supports her relationship with the Divine.
Yesterday, a friend told me about watching Boston Marathon bombing survivors coming onto the field at Red Sox Spring Training in Florida. As she described the scene and her own emotional response to it, I found myself praying for these innocent victims and those that did not survive. I entered into an awareness of the holy, as the horror of their lives sunk in. For me, when things make no sense I stop trying to cram the facts into a box of logic. I let go and ask Love to enter, to soothe, to heal all of us who’ve experienced or witnessed pain.
Holy is easily seen in the swell of a young mother’s belly or a young father’s kiss on the forehead of his sweet baby. Holy blazes forth as the sun breaks out into the morning sky and the birds rejoice. I invite you to look for your holy moments, wherever they may be. After you find them, stop. Pause. Reflect. Be.
“The Holy” invites to step into the fullness of life, the whole of life. Holy moments embrace brokenness and discord for they, too, are part of the amazing wholeness of creation. Holy moments remind us of fundamentals…
being, trusting, loving. And for me, dear friends, this is one of those holy moments. As I write to you my heart reaches
out in love. As I see you in my mind’s eye, I
trust that which is greater than you and I. Our conversation becomes our communion as I let go into God. Be well…
With love, Lisa