A gardener's vocation

Once upon a time there was a lawn...
but now it's a garden.

Thinning the delphiniums (delphinia?) in my messy front yard yesterday, I decided that being a gardener and nurturing earthy growing things is a definite vocation. It seems that not everyone is called to be a gardener, anymore than everyone is called to be an accountant, lawyer, or parent...

So what is the gardener's vocation all about?

Gardeners are called to participate in creation through providing positive conditions for life to bloom and flourish.

Gardeners are called to plan their plots and pots with hope for the future, though they live fully in the present moment, tending what is before their eyes.

Gardeners are called to embrace the physical labour required to change landscapes from barren to bountiful.

Gardeners are called to work within nature's plan to spread beauty and productivity, sometimes moving things around a wee bit.

Gardeners are often called to bring order out of chaos, or chaos out of order (our formerly mono-culture front lawn is a pretty chaotic but happy place for pollinators these days).

Gardeners are called to create pleasing habitat for others to enjoy, especially bees, birds, butterflies, other bugs, bacteria, (and bunnies, in my yard).

Gardeners are called to reduce waste and conserve resources by using available organic materials for compost or mulch, and saving seeds when plants offer them. 

Gardeners are called to teach friends, neighbours, passersby, and especially, young people and children, about how to green our world, our lives, and our plates with nature's good gifts.

Gardeners are called to notice and appreciate the littlest things: the light on a bumble bee's wings, the sudden appearance of a bud or fruit, the detail in markings on a leaf, the change in light as a cloud goes by, the tiny chirps of new life in nearby nests...

Everything is planted. June 3, 2020.

Gardeners are called to leave room for creation to "do its thing," recognizing that the value of all growing things depends upon a certain point of view. A weed can have its good qualities, and every bug has a purpose and place in the food chain.

Gardeners are called to see themselves and all creatures as small but positive parts of the great web of life.

Gardeners are called to welcome both sun and rain, and forgive hail and damaging winds... eventually.

Gardeners are called to practice patience. And to rejoice when it is rewarded.

Gardeners are called to enjoy the bounty that nature provides and share it, knowing that all things are gifts from the universe, meant to be shared by all.

Gardeners are, quite simply, an extension of the Creator's hand. As are we all.

Guest moodler: We need a Pentecost

For today, Pentecost Sunday, my best friend led the online liturgy at her church this morning, and gave a wonderful homily. She gave me permission to share it with you, and at the bottom, I've tacked on a powerful video/prayer that was shared at the end of the liturgy. Enjoy!

Pentecost

Reflection May 31, 2020

by Cathy Coulter

            We need a Pentecost in our world. We need the spirit of compassion and justice to rain down in tongues of flame and bring us to our senses and repentance with a changing of hearts and minds. Living in this time, in the news cycle from this week, can fill us with fear and make us wonder -- how, then shall we live? We are encouraged over and over to reach out in love. But today, my message will be to reach in with love. To first reach in to yourself. The Spirit will carry you to a place within, from which you can emerge healed and strengthened to be a force of love and change in the world.

            I've been spending some time learning about the saint and mystic, Teresa of Avila, who lived in Spain 500 years ago. In midlife Teresa got serious about the spiritual journey after a mystical experience and she went on to become a spiritual powerhouse, writing books and reforming convents. She was smart and charismatic, and had to be to dodge the Spanish Inquisition of the time because she wrote and taught the revolutionary idea that people don't need the church or priests to be the go-between to God, but that everyone has direct access to the Holy One right in the middle of themselves. That message didn't go over so well with the church and priests who wanted to maintain power over the people.

            Teresa wrote a book called The Interior Castle which describes the soul as a castle made of diamond or crystal, and in the very centre lives God, the Beloved, calling us. We already have it all, right within our souls, all that we were created to be, all the love and joy and communion that we were created to experience, but of course we can't always hear God's voice of love, or experience the joy because we are not awake to it. What prevents us from hearing this voice of love? It seems to be the traumas and hurts that have made us build walls and keep us distracted and doubting our own beauty and goodness. We have built these walls to shield our tender selves from hurt but it's these same walls that prevents me from seeing the giftedness that I am. God has created me and you so special, as it says in the reading from 1 Corinthians chapter 12, with each person necessary to the whole. When you realize the gift that is uniquely you, the sharing of that with the world is a beautiful thing.

            Teresa was a big believer in the importance of self-knowledge. In fact, she says the three keys to travelling through our interior castle to the centre are self-knowledge, humility and contemplation. And that we can't do it ourselves. We rely on the power of the Holy Spirit who does the work. As it says in Corinthians, “No one can say "Jesus is Lord" except by the Holy Spirit [and the gifts that each one of us are given] are activated by one and the same Spirit.” All we have to do is begin to look within and the Spirit will carry us, like a river, when we allow ourselves to relax and flow with the current.

            The Covid pandemic has shaken us all and turned the whole world upside down. Our day to day activities have changed. Many have more time on their hands, some are busier than ever. But everyone has likely had moments of questioning what is really important. What is it I really want in my life, if life never goes back to how it used to be when I was going through my days on automatic pilot? If you have more time or less time in your day, can you take a moment to stop and be quiet? Call upon the Holy Spirit that is promised us. Perhaps it won't arrive with tongues of flames but in a small whisper. What are you learning about yourself in these challenging times? Who is it that you truly are at your core? Can you remember the bright, beautiful curious child you were that explored the world and was drawn to certain things, things that still call to you today that give you a lift of joy? Are there writers or speakers or music that move you, that make you feel your true self stirring? Those are clues of the beautiful unique voice that you are.

            I think of the reading from Acts: “Divided tongues, as of fire, appeared among them, and a tongue rested on each of them. All of them were filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other languages, as the Spirit gave them ability. And how is it that we hear [them all], each of us, in our own native language?”

            I think of each of us having a unique voice, or language, given to us as the Spirit of God chooses and when the Spirit moves within us, we all start speaking in these unique languages but everyone will be able to understand us as if we are speaking in their native tongue because we are all speaking from the source of ourselves, which is Love. Love, the Beloved, waiting there in the centre of your very soul, calling for you to spend time with God.

            So celebrate your self today. The self that you uniquely are. Celebrate with humility that we have been given this great gift to be here, each beautiful one of us, and that we can be together sharing in each other's language.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w5Q-oMiW7mM

A little ecumenical prayer during this week of Laudato Si

I'm in the thick of planting time, so online moodling isn't exactly a priority right now. But I'm still moodling (musing and doodling) about life each day, just not at my computer keyboard. These gorgeous spring days that exhibit the Creator's immeasurable creativity offer an immense collection of beauty to appreciate, and the awe and wonder that nature inspires should be a clear sign to everyone on the planet that we are loved! Unfortunately, we forget to be amazed when we take it all for granted...

Five years ago this week, Pope Francis and his team of encyclical writers published their letter to the world known as Laudato Si: On Care for Our Common Home -- so that we stop taking our world for granted. It's easily the most important letter ever written by a pope, and calls everyone on earth to a greater awareness of and care for our planet. In these days of COVID-19, it's easy to forget about the environment in our concern for humanity's struggles with this disease. But we can't continue to exist if we don't begin to make some of the different kinds of lifestyle changes we have had to adopt during this pandemic. There are many places on our planet that are experiencing natural rejuvenation because we have slowed down our consumption of resources and reduced our use of fossil fuels. Animals are also breathing a sigh of relief as we have become quieter... have you noticed? I really believe that the way we are living through this pandemic can be the beginning of positive changes that will give us a chance to live in a much healthier place.

But it won't happen without a lot of deep thought, prayer and action. 

We can make the world a better place once the virus has passed us by if we can use the immeasurable creativity shared with us by our Creator to come up with solutions that work for all, but especially for the marginalized members of creation. Can we forgive debts? Live within our needs? Spend love miles rather than airmiles? Share our abundance? Protect nature? Appreciate all that is and recognize that everything is gift? And revisit the wisdom of Laudato Si?

The ecumenical prayer video below was made for this Easter season by the pastor of St. Luke's Anglican church and only three musicans so that appropriate social distance could be maintained. I invite you to take a bit of time to sing some Alleluias with us, and to pray that our entire planet (not only the humans) will emerge from this pandemic with better health, deeper love, and more wisdom. Lyrics are below... to sing is to pray twice!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uq-NsJ3vNz0&t

O--- Surrexit Christus, alleluia! O--- Cantate Domino, alleluia! (translation: Christ is risen, alleluia! Sing to God, alleluia!)

Laudate omnes gentes, laudate Dominum. Laudate omnes gentes, laudate Dominum.

(Kiswahili lyrics: Si-fu-ni wa-tu wo-te si-fu-ni Mwen-ye-zi. Si-fu-ni wa-tu wo-te si-fu-ni Mwen-ye-zi.

English lyrics: Sing praises, all you peoples, sing praises to the Lord. Sing praises, all you peoples, sing praises to the Lord.)

Alleluia, alleluia, alleluia.

Cantate Domino, alleluia, alleluia! Jubilate Deo! (translation: Sing to the Lord, alleluia, alleluia! Rejoice in God!)

Jésus, le Christ, lumière intérieure, ne laisse pas mes ténèbres me parler. Jésus, le Christ, lumière intérieure, donne moi d’acceuillir ton amour. (English lyrics: Lord Jesus Christ, your light shines within us. Let not my doubts or my darkness speak to me. Lord Jesus Christ, your light shines within us. Let my heart always welcome your love.)

Nada te turbe, nada te_espante; quien a Dios tiene nada le falta. Nada te turbe, nada te_espante: solo Dios basta. (English lyrics: Nothing can trouble, nothing can frighten. Those who seek God shall never go wanting. Nothing can trouble, nothing can frighten. God alone fills us.)

O Lord, hear my prayer, O Lord hear my prayer. When I call answer me. O Lord hear my prayer, O Lord, hear my prayer. Come and listen to me.

I am sure I shall see the goodness of the Lord in the land of the living. Yes, I shall see the goodness of our God, hold firm, trust in the Lord.

O—Psallite Deo, psallite! O—Alleluia, alleluia! (English lyrics: This is the day the Lord has made! Alleluia, alleluia!)

What's going on in the front yard...

How I love spring, and seeing things grow! I'm always amazed how one day, there's a little green plant, and the next, the same plant suddenly offers a little flower! Or at least, that's how it seems. On this May 8th, there are blue scilla, purple violas, little yellow anemones, and a few assorted tulips making an appearance.

Three years ago, I decided to take a picture a day of the front yard, thinking that I'd put them all together like a time lapse film and see things grow frame by frame. I took about 3 dozen pictures out my front window, trying to take it from the same spot with the same angle every time. The pictures aren't bad, but it would have been better if I could have had my camera on a stationary tripod, and if I could have done it at the same time of day and only one kind of weather.

This week during the rainy periods, I put the pictures together as best I could with my photo program, and the result is the little amateur video below. When I look out today, I think our yard has reached the 26 second mark or thereabouts. I wish I had taken more daily pictures between the tulips and the lupins, but that's always planting season in our back yard, so the picture-a-day project was forgotten. The video is what it is, and it's kind of neat to see how things progress. Next time I'll use a tripod. Enjoy!

https://youtu.be/ETEO2yNG79s

A L'Arche Quarantune

I love this version of Coco Love Alcorn's song!
Looking forward to the day that I can reconnect with my L'Arche friends!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t_pARR9_QDE

A full greenhouse

Here's what my greenhouse looks like on this rainy Monday afternoon. I've run out of space to plant anything else indoors, so I'm glad that it will soon be time to move all these plants outside...

Once again, I have more tomato plants than I can grow.

Want some?

Dahlias are up in the pots against the window,

and squashes that I might get to plant in my friend Lidia's garden.

The peppers started blooming this weekend! 

Tomatoes won't be far behind.

And the petunias are ready for flower beds.

Lavatera, marigolds, clarkia and snapdragons are up, too.

But what makes me happiest is how the garden has reacted

to the 3 cm of rain we received in the last 24 hours.

My strawberry plants are looking much happier

than when I transplanted them last week!

(And I'm so glad I got to spread the straw 

before it rained so the mud stays put!)

Our tank was empty yesterday.

It's a million dollar rain, in my books.

Watching things grow is my favourite 

antidote to coronavirus worries.

And the pear tree is almost ready to blossom. 

Isn't spring grand??!!

Sunday reflection: Walking with the Good Shepherd

Today's reflection is brought to you by
Psalm 23.

You are my guide,
my protector,
my provider.

You offer me green fields after long winters,
trickling waters after frozen expanses,
and blue skies after endless grey.

You restore me completely.

You show me the path of life
simply because you are life.

When the valleys I must walk become dark,
I don't have to be afraid
because you walk with me.

You are my comfort.

Your abundant providence
is before me
when life is full of challenge and struggle;
your love surrounds me
if only I look for you.

You drench me in blessings
that overflow
so that I may share them with others
just because you love us all,
and that's the whole point!

Your goodness and compassion
are here at every moment
for me to remember
and draw upon.

For now,
I live in this beautiful world you've created,
this revelation of your love,
my whole life long.

Hold me always close to you,
O perfect shepherd.

+Amen.

* * * * * * *

These early days of May are among my favourite times of year, when the buds on the trees are about to pop, and there are hundreds of green shoots poking up from the ground. It's the perfect time for the 23rd Psalm and its meadows of green and still waters. Nature is just crying out to be enjoyed, and this year, with covid-19 stopping the world in its tracks, I am hoping that more Canadians are taking the opportunity to do just that.

I know that our leaders are anxious about restarting the economy and getting on with life as they knew it, but their determination to "return to normal" -- when normal wasn't exactly a healthy place to be with regard to over-consumption of the earth's resources, pollution and stress for too many of us -- strikes me as premature. If we learn anything from this time, we need to really know that the economy is not the bottom line, LIFE is. And there have to be ways to continue as a society without endangering more lives just to prop up our so-called economy. The Creator of all didn't form human beings from stardust just so we can do things and amass possessions, but we were made to be in harmony with all that is.

So rather than rush into this "restart," I encourage us all to continue with social distancing measures and all those other things that will reduce further spread of this pandemic. I am praying that we can avoid more valleys of death and continue to walk with the Good Shepherd by appreciating all that we have, sharing with those in need, and paying attention to the good things springing up all around us.  

Taken any Chalk Walks lately?

One of the things I have loved about this covid time is that suddenly, there are children in our neighbourhood. I mean, there have always been children, but now, because they aren't at school all day long and their parents aren't trucking them off to numerous extracurricular activities in the evenings, I actually get to see them hanging out where they live, or at least, see evidence of their presence.

The chalk art that seems to have sprung up everywhere overnight with the arrival of spring is a delightful give away. Hopscotches with 142 jumping places, long wiggly lines from one end of the block to the other, creative "obstacle courses" made by moms for kids to follow instructions like, "spin here," "do five jumping jacks," and "RUN!" and greetings to elderly neighbours make me smile. Then there are the sweet self portraits, cartoon characters, and hopeful messages about love. "We're all in this together" seems to be a popular line. So is "Stay home, stay safe."

On our after supper dog walk these last two evenings, my husband and I came across some grown ups on their knees with chalk in hand. When I commented to a young man how happy I was to see him creating an art walk, he laughed and said, "Mike, the guy across the street, is calling it The Chalk Walk." Mike is probably my age, and he uses stencils for song lyrics. 

This afternoon, my daughter and I took a walk to record a few images before it rains. It's enough to make me want to go out and find some more sidewalk chalk! But it's the little kids' art that I really love, and I'm staying home... except for my chalk walks! 

Taizé Tuesday: Behüte mich, Gott

I'm finding it challenging to remember these Simple Moodlings these days. The weather has turned for the better since my last Taizé Tuesday post, so I'm outside more than indoors, and only at my computer for my daily prayer with the Brothers each afternoon or evening.

Their lovely evening prayer can be found livestreamed on the Taizé Facebook page at 12:30 pm MST, or later in the day at https://www.facebook.com/watch/taize/. This afternoon we sang this beautiful chant, which has become one of my favourites:

Behüte mich, Gott,

ich vertraue dir,

du zeigst mir den Weg zum Leben.

Bei dir ist Freude, Freude in Fülle.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S6-UneKFn2I

Keep me, O God,
for I trust in you.
You show me the path of life.
With you there is fullness of joy.

In this time of the coronavirus, it's a wonderful psalm prayer. No matter what happens, God is with us, showing us the way home. Plus I'm a sucker for images of Taize as I knew it, and the gorgeous oboe and flute descants. Enjoy!

Simple Suggestion #281... Make every day Earth Day

Yesterday was a strange Earth Day, to be sure. I wonder what might have happened if there was no corona virus keeping us all apart. Marches and rallies? Earth Day parties and concerts? Pollution as per usual?

In an effort to mark it in some way, two days before the event, I went out and decorated our front sidewalk with chalk, reminding people about Earth Day, and inviting them to give her a some love by joining in my little Resurrection Project (click here to read that moodling) and cleaning her up.

In many ways, our covid confinement is cleaning her up. Because we are staying home, there are less fossil fuel emissions, some waterways are cleaner in usually crowded tourist places, our songbirds are heartened by a reduction in noise pollution and are singing more, and other species are enjoying some places from which they've been displaced by humans. Scientists are noticing these things... are we?

I can't help but hope that we will learn something from all of this, though I worry that once covid restrictions are lifted, humans will return to our old ways with a vengeance, as if to make up for all the "deprivations" of being stuck at home.

While we have a chance to notice the good things this enforced simpler living is doing, I'd like to appeal to our higher natures to consider carrying many of the good habits we are developing now into our covid-free future. Things like one grocery trip a week, and saving our elderly neighbours trips to the store. Going for long walks. Spending love miles instead of air miles. You can probably name a dozen other things you might be doing differently that are having a small but positive impact on our planet's health.

It's been a long while since I've posted a Simple Suggestion, mainly because, after 280 of them, it seems I've covered a lot of the possibilities... But every day can be an Earth Day, and global climate change won't stop just because we're all stuck at home for a few months. We really need to live Laudato Si... and do more to protect and care for our common home.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=1&v=KIVuISZGdug

Let's let this covid crisis and our 50th Earth Week be a dress rehearsal for how we're going to save our planet from further disaster.

If you're looking for more Simple Suggestions, click here.

Sunday Reflection: Resurrection projects

Today's reflection is brought to you by
1 Peter 1:3-9.

Blessed are you,
O God!

You give us new life
through our Christ,
who showed us
that really living
is only possible
after we rise
from our own struggles
and deaths.

In this unusual time,
perhaps we are being tested
by fire:
called to listen
to our leaders,
to care
for each other,
to reach out
to those in need in creative ways,
and to reflect
on ways we can live
in greater harmony with your creation.

Our experience
can be compared
to that of the first apostles
whose world was turned upside down
on Good Friday.

We are being challenged
to listen
to care
to reach out
and to reflect
as Christ did,
and so to show
that we are yours alone.

We are called to be part
of your Resurrection project!

This is our salvation
and we thank you
for showing us the way!

+Amen

* * * * * * *

Happy Easter! Alleluia, he is risen! and so are we, though at the moment, it may not feel that way, thanks to the coronavirus. For some of us, it feels as though everything is on hold, but really, if we look around, it isn't. Life continues, thanks be to God! 

I am unceasingly grateful for the melting of winter's last embrace (it snowed here on Palm Sunday!), the slowly greening grass... and the growing things in our little greenhouse (more on that later this week). I am also grateful that Easter extends for 40 days, and that resurrection seems to extend to all of creation right now. Reading stories about reduced air pollution and cleaner rivers and signs of nature's rejuvenation is heartening after what seemed like the longest Lent ever! May we learn how to live more lightly on our planet from here on!

There is still work to be done, even after resurrection. We went for a bit of a drive this afternoon, and I was dismayed to see so much litter in different ditches and parks -- and this year, the usual Capital City Clean Up has been restricted thanks to covid-19. So my resurrection project for the next few weeks is to go out dog-walking wearing gloves and with garbage bag in hand, so that nature doesn't have to try to decompose those things of which humans have failed to properly dispose.

What's your resurrection project?

A very different Good Friday

Because of the coronavirus, we have just come through the most unusual Lent I can remember -- a time when not only Christians, but people of all faiths have been asked to give up many things. And now we have reached the Triduum, the three holy days marking the passion, death and resurrection of Jesus the Christ.

How do we carry it through?

For me, Easter weekend has always been one of the busiest weekends of the year because I am usually up to my eyeballs in liturgical music for the season. But this year, even our churches are closed, and Alberta Health Services and the provincial government have outlawed gatherings of more than 5, or just those who live together in one household. So I won't be gathering with friends to sing the solemn songs of Good Friday, lead Taizé Prayer Around the Cross, or participate in our joyful Easter Vigil choir. Heavy sigh.

Really, it's a small price to pay for preserving the health of people, particularly those on the front lines during this pandemic. But I will miss all the Triduum singing, and the people with whom I so enjoy making music of solemnity and celebration.

Fortunately, many Good Friday events will be happening online. A couple of dear priest friends will be livestreamed saying mass from their parishes in Sherwood Park and St. John's NL, the brothers of Taizé will hold their Prayer Around the Cross on their hillside in France, and the Edmonton Outdoor Way of the Cross, which celebrates its 40th year, has been pre-recorded using appropriate social-distancing protocols and is now posted online for participants to enjoy. Even if you've never walked with Good Friday crowds in Edmonton's inner city, I would encourage you to take your faith to the streets listen to the message of this walk... This video goes live at 10 am on April 10th, the time the walk is usually scheduled.

One thing is certain... there will never be another Triduum quite like this one. May it move us to a deeper solidarity with all those who are struggling, and motivate us to be the hands and feet and heart of God on earth.

Taizé Tuesday: Heureux qui s'abandonne à toi

As anyone who has been reading these moodlings for a few years knows, I find a lot of comfort and joy in the music of Taizé, that small ecumenical monastic community of brothers who welcome people from all over the world to pray with them on a beautiful hillside in France.

They are still praying, online these days, without any guests, every day at 12:30 pm MST (my time zone). And I'm finding that so many of their chants are perfect for the time in which we find ourselves, a time of many uncertainties and concerns. So for the next while, I've decided to give those songs space on my Tuesday moodlings.

This chant is one I've only learned since the brothers started their online prayers on March 16, after they sent home all visitors and volunteers and social-isolated themselves. If you're at all inclined to sing along, these are the lyrics:

Heureux qui s’abandonne à toi, ô Dieu, dans la confiance du coeur.

Tu nous gardes dans la joie, la simplicité, le miséricorde.

In these challenging times, what can we do but abandon ourselves to the will of the One who made the universe with all the trust we can muster? I'll post the English translation below the video. Enjoy!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SrTLu4IjdSk

Happy are those who abandon themselves to you with a trusting heart.

You keep us in joy, simplicity, and mercy.

Sunday Reflection: Palm Sunday 2020

Today's reflection is brought to you by Philippians 2:6-11.

Jesus,
God,
you show us what true humility is.

You
of all people,
could have been a big shot,
but you chose to live
an ordinary life
with extraordinary love for all.

You emptied yourself
of all ego
and showed us
how to be servants
of love,
even dying the worst death imaginable
in solidarity
with those who hunger
for truth and justice
but are denied.

God raised you
after you showed us
that only by walking through
valleys of death
do we truly learn to live.

You
are above all
and your name
bows us low
no matter where we are.

Help us to live through
our valleys of death
and to reach out
to those who struggle
as best we are able.

We confess that you
are our tender God
and our glorious brother.

Be with us
this Holy Week
and in the weeks and months ahead.

Show us,
in the fullness of time,
that our actions are
enough.

+Amen.

* * * * * * *

It's strange to have Palm Sunday without the usual ritual, and togetherness. But this year, it's what a lot of us are called to do. Though I wish there was some work I could undertake to help the world cope with this coronavirus, as I'm not in healthcare or essential services fields, I have to recognize that my main work is to stay home, pray, and check in with family and friends while social distancing.

So this morning, I cut some Canadian palm branches (from the juniper evergreens under my bedroom window) and attended Palm Sunday mass via FaceBook. Then I put pieces of my virtually blessed juniper all around the house, as I have done every other year with palms imported from the southern U.S. When that was done, Lee and I walked a block to our elderly neighbour, Lidia, and fastened a small Canadian palm branch to her front steps to mark Holy Week, wishing her a happy Palm Sunday through her screen door and blowing kisses.

It's the best we can do, and it is enough.

Remember that whatever you do these days to show kindness to others -- whether a small gesture of solidarity, a donation to an organization that helps those struggling at this time, a smile, a prayer, or simply staying put to prevent this virus from spreading more quickly -- is enough. 

Christ is walking with us through our lonesome valley.

Peace to you all.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=85BvT5X6WSo

Creative connections

It's still early in this time of Covid-19, and things will get worse before they get better. But I have to say that, so far, I'm really impressed with the many creative ways that people are coping with this crisis. Besides being invited to socially-distanced walks with neighbours, I've been on the receiving end of several other fun initiatives to keep spirits up... mostly online: games of Trivial Pursuit and dice (I won 40 cents that will never be collected!), a yoga class, meditative evening prayer from Taizé, and a wine and cheese phone call with a high school chum.

But the most amazing thing so far was a re-connection with a large group of friends, many of whom I haven't seen in over 30 years. I traveled for a year as as a student member of an Up With People cast of 130+ people in a musical, educational and cultural program which focused on peace, love and friendship among nations. We performed in the U.S., Canada, and more than a half-dozen countries in Europe, while participating in community involvement activities at schools, senior centres, and social agencies. Living with a large group like that, I made a few lifelong friends, but keeping up with everyone was impossible. Back in the 80's, all we had was snail mail, and long distance phone calls were pricey, especially overseas!

But communication now is another story altogether. On Saturday morning, my friend Allie, who subscribes to an online conferencing service, invited as many castmates as she could to join her in an online video gathering. By the end of the meeting, 2 screens worth of about 40 friends from 7 different countries connected (some for over 4 hours). Everyone agreed that it was pretty great to see people we hadn't seen since we did our final show at the Capitol Building in Washington D.C. on July 4, 1988.

At first, our online gathering was chaos, everyone trying to get a word in edgewise, but then Andrew decided we should all take turns updating each other about our lives, and that worked really well. Our lives have taken many twists and turns, and it seems we're all in different stages of self-isolation because of the corona virus, but are finding all sorts of different ways to stay connected with the people we love.

If the human race learns anything from this pandemic, I hope it's a deeper appreciation of the things we've been taking for granted, and that who we are and how we love one another is what's most important.

Here's a beautiful little video about how one poet sees that the coronavirus is helping us to reframe our lives... Thanks, Nora, for sharing it with me! Be well, all...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sgm9E_cmvWA

Sunday reflection: From non-necessities to needful things

This Sunday reflection is brought to you by

Ezekiel 37:12-14.

You open our graves,
O God,
though we don't realize
the many ways we have died.

You bring us up from our graves,
and we begin to see
how we have exiled ourselves
from the good you want
for us.

Suddenly
we begin to understand
how we have chosen
other spirits to lead us
instead of your Spirit
within us.

Our lives have been filled
with non-necessities:
self-importance,
busy work so that we can impress others
by our useful lifestyles,
needless activities and possessions,
and many other things
that ultimately do not matter.

But you choose this time
to put your Spirit within us
and to ground us
in the needful things:
compassion,
connection
(from the appropriate social distance)
and appreciation of basic necessities and
all that we have received from you.

You promise that
your Spirit
gives us life,
and that even in this time of struggle
you speak and act
through our love for each other.

Stay with us,
O God,
and keep us grounded
in you.

+Amen

* * * * * * *

I love how on this Lazarus Sunday, the fifth Sunday of Lent, we are told the story of Jesus' interactions with his three friends from Bethany at a time when they are in crisis... how he grieves with Mary and Martha, and turns their sorrow to joy by returning their brother to them.

In this time of Covid-19, we may be feeling like so much of what we have known and loved has been laid in a tomb, but we are called to keep the faith that resurrection will come. We are to continue to support each other in whatever ways we can (don't forget your local farmer's markets and other small businesses), and to share our resources with those who are coming up short (also remember our charities who are helping many in need). 

In spite of all the uncertainties we are facing, I can't help but feel that with this opportunity to re-prioritize our lives, moving from the non-necessities to the needful things, we are learning to live as God has wanted us to live all along, in a greater communion with each other and all of creation.

* * * * * * *

I'm taking a bit of a break from Laudato Si Sunday reflections for the time being, but encourage anyone who has some time to read through it and come to an understanding of the kind of world we might create when we emerge on the other side of this pandemic. Past Laudato Si reflections can be found here, and the Encyclical itself can be found here. Happy reading!

Letting go of fear, choosing change

If you're not living with a sense of unease in these days of the corona virus, I suspect you're more the exception than the rule. I'm already tired of the word "unprecedented" and all the other words like it.

While it's true that our current generations have never been though anything like this pandemic, it's also important to remember that there have always been people around the globe and even in our own neighbourhoods who have lived with forms of uncertainty and fear that we have never known.

But suddenly, we are all in the same boat with Covid-19, which doesn't respect the nice little boxes into which we have placed ourselves. No matter who we are, our lives have changed and are changing because of this epidemic, and it seems that those of us who have lived in relatively secure comfort all our lives are most discomfited by all these things that are suddenly beyond our control.

The virus is frightening enough. It's killing people. What it means for our future is also frightening, because we know that nothing will be the same.

But rather than be engulfed by fear, and its companions, greed and suspicion, I prefer to look at this time as a God-given opportunity to think about the kind of world we want to inhabit once we live beyond the virus. This is a moment when we may have an opportunity to "RESET" our future. And here are some questions I've been asking myself about it all:

During and after Covid-19, can we better care for those who have always been marginalized?

During and after Covid-19, can we choose interdependence over individualism?

During and after Covid-19, can we better care for all of creation?

During and after Covid-19, can we value every person as an equal?

During and after Covid-19, can we re-evaluate and put less emphasis on money and economic growth?

During and after Covid-19, can we put truth and reconciliation to work and re-build stronger relationships with our Original Peoples?

During and after Covid-19, can we choose to live with just enough?

During and after Covid-19, can we re-develop our society into one where everyone works as best they can and everyone is provided a universal basic income that provides for their needs?

During and after Covid-19, can we rebuild our education, healthcare, justice, and social systems so no one falls through the cracks?

During and after Covid-19, can we become more cooperative and less competitive?

During and after Covid-19, can we forgo past teachings about what’s important and replace them with what we are discovering to be truly important?

During and after Covid-19, can we cut climate change, pollution, and environmental degradation by simplifying our lifestyles, living with less and Being more?

During and after Covid-19, can we hold onto the lessons we are learning about community, generosity, togetherness, friendship, love, laughter, nature, and all the things we take for granted, but especially our health?

As I ask myself these questions, I see some of this work already beginning. Many of our politicians have set aside their differences and ideologies to do what's best for the common good. I cheer them on, and will probably write them a few letters of encouragement with suggestions for our collective future.

We still have a long way to go to get through this epidemic, and many heartbreaks and struggles to come, but rather than living in fear, let's imagine the world we really want and move forward with it foremost in our minds.

It's time to let go of our fear and choose the change we want to see in our world.

Laudato Si Sunday reflection: Protecting what we hold in common

This week's reflection is brought to you by
Ephesians 5:8-14.

You call us,
O God,
to live as your children,
children of light.

Our light --
our goodness and truth --
needs to shine for the world to see,
especially in these darker than usual days.

If we do what is pleasing to you,
avoid darkness
and bring everything into your light,
that light will drive out darkness.

You call us to awake
from the sleep of unconcern for others,
to rise from darkness and death
and you shine on us!

Help us to reach out
with your love and light
as we are able.

Let us do your will
and share your joy
even as we do all we can to
"flatten the curve."

Remind us often
that we are all in this together,
that we hold our health in common
at this time.

May our smiles
rather than our anxieties
shine
for all those
who need reassurance.

Be with us,
O God.

+Amen

* * * * * * *

I'm finding it challenging to connect our little encyclical study with this world pandemic that has suddenly arrived almost everywhere. But I think that this week's piece of Laudato Si: On Care for Our Common Home connects with things we need to do to protect our 'global commons' -- which is our earth's global health in the face of Covid-19 and climate change. We're looking at paragraphs 173 to 177, which can be accessed by clicking here and scrolling down.

I'd like to begin by highlighting most of paragraph 173, where Pope Francis and the encyclical team say

Enforceable international agreements are urgently needed, since local authorities are not always capable of effective intervention. Relations between states must be respectful of each other's sovereignty, but must also lay down mutually agreed means of averting regional disasters which would eventually affect everyone. Global regulatory norms are needed to impose obligations and prevent unacceptable actions...

These words are referring to caring for the environment, but if there is any good news to be had right now, it seems that many (though not all) world leaders are taking this pandemic seriously and implementing necessary restrictions to slow the virus' spread. I am hopeful that, once we get through this health crisis, our leaders will have learned something about how to work together as a world community to implement necessary restrictions on things that harm Mother Earth. Perhaps our politicians will come to understand that the economy isn't the only bottom line of which we must take care. Our environments and all its living beings must become the priority! Pray with me for that awareness in leaders who are willing to stand for necessary changes to the way the dollar has been more important than creation!

In paragraph 174 Pope Francis makes note of the fact that international and regional conventions on ocean governance come up short due to "fragmentation and the lack of strict mechanisms of regulation, control and penalization..." He can't be more right when he says at the end of paragraph 174 that "What is needed, in effect, is an agreement on systems of governance for the whole range of so-called "global commons."

At the moment, we are learning from one another about ways to effectively reduce the rates of Corona Virus infection. Many scientists and healthcare professionals from around the globe are working together toward something that is necessary for the health we hold in common. Just imagine if we could use similar methods to involve the entire planet in caring for our common home!

In paragraph 175, we hear that we need to make more radical decisions about reducing pollution and eliminating poverty. It seems we human beings are stuck in a rut when it comes to handling our problems, the Pope says, because "the economic and financial sectors, being transnational, tends to prevail over the political."

As I watch our economic and financial sectors fluctuate and tumble, as I see our political leaders offer financial supports to those who are suddenly unemployed and unable to make ends meet because of job losses or health issues, and as I watch neighbours reaching out to neighbours, I can't help but hope that this global economic shake-up will be the wake up call our world needs to help it regain equilibrium for the sake of all creation, that people will understand that true wealth only exists when ALL BEINGS are well together.

So maybe it's time to think outside our previous boxes, "to devise stronger and more efficiently organized international institutions" with leaders who work together for justice, peace, and equity for all (paragraph 175). If you had to come up with "a true world political authority" (Pope Francis is quoting his predecessor, Pope Benedict, at the end of paragraph 175), how would you do it? Wouldn't it be great to have a wise world governing body that can look after humanity as a whole in times of crisis, work for disarmament and peace, ensure an end to poverty, disease and hunger, and protect the web of life that we call creation?

I sure don't know how to create a world governing body that will make a difference, but I'd like to nominate people like our female chief medical officers, who are offering wisdom and calm in this very difficult time. Drs. Deena Hinshaw, Bonnie Henry and Theresa Tam have been amazing in all their efforts. If we can support organizations that dream and brainstorm and train similar wise and calm leaders who can tell it like it is and inspire us to take these difficult steps like these women have in order to "flatten the curve" of the Corona virus, perhaps we could one day have similar leaders to save our 'global commons.'

But we need to start looking for these leaders now, and supporting their environmental efforts. If you find yourself with time on your hands this week, I'd encourage you to do a bit of research into environmental leaders and organizations that are making a difference for the sake of Mother Earth. And if there's a way for you to support their growth, even with just a note of appreciation for their efforts, go for it!

We hold so many things in common -- air, earth, water, our health and the health of this beautiful sphere we call home. Every one of us can do something to leave our home better than we find it right now. We arise from the sleep of unawareness of all those with whom we share our earth, and begin to shine God's light around us. Even just by offering a smile (though I challenge us all to do more than that)!

There's suddenly more time to pray

I had great intentions at the beginning of this Lent to double my meditation time. For the past year or so, I've been doing my best to spend 20 minutes every morning in contemplative prayer. For me, that means sitting, usually with dog close by and a cup of tea, lifting people in my life up to God one by one, and then just resting in God's presence. Of course, my monkey mind runs all over the place, but the point of contemplation is to come to an awareness of my thoughts, and turn them back to God.

Sometimes I sit for twenty minutes and never get back to God more than once or twice! But God knows I'm trying -- at least I've set aside the time.

My hope for this Lent, which began three weeks ago, was to add a 20-minute evening meditation. Which didn't happen -- until this week. Since Monday, I've been lighting a candle and sitting at about 9 pm, and my monkey mind seems to be a little less frenetic later in the day.

Of course, the big motivation for finally meeting my Lenten resolution is our current pandemic, and all the anxiety that the world seems to be feeling right now, come home in my own psyche. If we've ever needed contemplation and calm, now is the time. So I'm suddenly making more time to pray.

And then the Taizé Community ups the ante! This week, the Community closed its doors and sent all pilgrims and volunteers home (and maybe some brothers, too). But always concerned about hospitality, it has invited us all into its evening prayer through online streaming via Facebook. 8:30 pm prayer in France occurs at 1:30 pm here (MST). The first two days, I was doing other things at 1:30, but the prayer was recorded and can be viewed as soon as it concludes.

Still, I love the idea that there are many of us around the world who are able to join with the men in that little room on a hill in the Burgundy region of France. 3.4 thousand of us joined today's evening prayer from all over the globe, and personally, I delighted in singing the alto (for the chants I knew) with the brothers, who supply the melody, tenor and bass lines. It's international ecumenical prayer without any of us having to burn fossil fuels to participate.

Knowing that I am praying with people from Adelaide, Belfast, Istanbul, Jakarta, Modena, Posnan, Seoul, Turku -- the list goes on -- somehow makes the prayer feel deeper, all our voices calling together to God from across the planet.

It feels right. And I don't doubt that God is listening.

If you would like to join us tomorrow at 1:30, or later tonight for a replay, here's a link to the Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/taize/.

Sunday reflection: A prayer for the common good

Today's reflection is brought to you by
Romans 5:1-8.

You are our peace,
O God.

Your grace is our hope.

Even in our sufferings,
hope in you will
teach us to endure,
to become who we are meant to be,
to live toward your glory
for the sake of all your creation.

Our weakness has been strengthened in you,
because you have poured your abundant love
over us and all your creation.

That is the reason for our hope!

Remind us
in this time of crisis
that we are to act in the best interests
of our world community,
in the best interests of all that you have made.

Protect us from anxiety
and lead us to generosity.

Bless those
whose health and energies are most severely affected
by this pandemic,
and especially,
those who care for them.

May our prayer and care
fill them with your hope and strength!

Make us mindful of the good of all beings
as we move ahead,
aware that we are deeply connected
to all that you have made.

Help us to share your abundance,
your hope,
and to love one another
in all that we do.

+Amen

* * * * * * *

This has been a challenging week as we've gone from life as we always knew it to "a new normal," in the words of our local Chief Medical Officer of Health. It's a new normal that fits with a lot of our voluntary Lenten practices --  except now we are involuntarily giving up many sources of entertainment -- sports, theatre, dining out, community recreation, etc.

The list of closures and cancellations for local events and venues is growing daily, and we find ourselves using words like "social distancing" and "self-isolation." Our lives are being pared down more severely than we would choose. But rather than take these things as deprivation, why not translate them into personal "retreat"?

These changes are necessary in order to "flatten the curve" that is this pandemic known as COVID-19 so that we can cope with an illness that threatens us all in the weeks and months ahead. We don't want to overwhelm our healthcare systems by all getting sick at the same time.

I won't deny the fact that changes like these produce anxiety -- change at any time is a challenge. But I'm trying to see what's happening as a wake-up call for our human race, an opportunity to step back from the hectic, high-stress societies we have created, and to recognize that it's not our jobs or our possessions that give us value, but who we are and how we care for one another. I'm thinking especially of the people in Sicily, singing together from their balconies. I think they have the right idea.

If there is a silver lining to all this, it might be that in stepping back, we will find better ways to care for the common good of all creation. We can learn to be more generous, to seek out those in need and offer assistance in many different ways. Mainly, being a source of calm and care.

So I'm not writing about Laudato Si: On Care for Our Common Home this weekend. Instead, I'm thinking and praying about this pandemic, and recalling the last few lines of St. Francis' Canticle of Creation, from which Pope Francis took his encyclical's title. These lines remind us of our mortality and call us to patience and peace, just as this pandemic does. These are Francis' words:

Praised be You,

my Lord,

through those who give pardon for your love

and bear infirmity and tribulation.

Blessed are those who endure in peace

for by you,

Most High,

they shall be crowned.

Praised be You, 

my Lord,

through our Sister Bodily Death

from whom no one can escape....

Blessed are those 

whom death will find 
in your most holy will,

for the second death 
will do them no harm.

I praise and bless my Lord

and give you thanks

and serve you with great humility.

For all those who will not make it through this pandemic, for all leaders and caregivers, and for all of us, that we remain in God's peace and grace and hope!

+Amen.