Boot Planter

 

 

This is the reflection I wrote that gradually gave way to the poem "Boot Planter" in Fields of Grace.

 

 

"Just when I think this is the end of my usefulness there emerges another way.  When I can no longer move, my stillness presents another way to grow.

 

The earth that I once walked upon now fills me - there is no separation between me and life - I take it all in.  It would be tempting to say there is nothing else I can offer now, but I would be missing so much.

 

I wonder what else in my life I am discounting, what else I'm ready to discard that could lead to new insights and provide me with unlooked-for graces."

 

 

 

Boot Planter

 

 

 

 

                         Thick soles,

                    now abandoned,

                    surrender quietly

                    to journey's end.

 

                   Usefulness,

                    once measured in miles,

                    redefined;

                    the future

                    no longer certain.

 

                   Travel-weary stillness

                    brings new insight;

                    transformation

                    brings new life.

Sacrament of the Present Moment - Awareness

"The present moment holds infinite riches beyond your wildest dreams..." 

Jean-Pierre de Caussade S.J., The Sacrament of the Present Moment

    
     Jean-Pierre de Caussade was born in Toulouse, France, and took his final vows as a member of the Society of Jesus in 1708.  In 1731 he was appointed spiritual director in charge of a Jesuit retreat house where he became the spiritual director for the Nuns of the Visitation.   His notes to the nuns form the small book, The Sacrament of the Present Moment.   

     I've come to realize that it is Awareness that enables us to "Find the Sacred in the Ordinary" and to appreciate the "Sacrament of the Present Moment."

   As you go through your day, take a moment every so often to simply

•       Stop 
•       Breathe deeply  
•       Look around 
•       Listen

     You may be amazed at all you have been missing.  Too often we take things for granted, and become blind to our surroundings.

     Messages of comfort, encouragement, love, consolation, challenge, hope, faith, and more are present in all that we encounter. 

"We learn through what happens to us from one moment to the next...Each moment is a revelation of God."    Jean-Pierre de Caussade S.J.  

Dandelions*

Spring seems to be arriving slowly in our valley - there is still snow on the hill across from our house even at this late date.

 

We are all looking forward to those first flowers of Spring; the crocus, daffodils and tulips.  But there is another flower that will soon show itself, and it's not welcomed with the same amount joy - the dandelion.  Yet, even this lowly flower has some lessons for us:

 

 

Dandelions

 

 

 

 

                       Unwanted,

                        unappreciated.

 

                       Appearing

                        like clockwork

                        each Spring.

 

                       Unfazed

                        by criticism;

                        emerging,

                        celebrating,

                        returning.

 

                       Dandelions

                        know how to live!

 

*from Fields of Grace, Everyday Encounters with the Holy,

  by Cathy Scherer Stubbs (c) 2011

 

 

 

 

 

 

 







Crocus*

Even though there is still some snow left here, it's time to think about Spring! 

 

Crocus*

 

 

 

 

                    Just when I'd

                     nearly given up,

                     you break through.

 

                    Stunning

                     testimony of

                     Spring's return.

 

*from Fields of Grace, Everyday Encounters with the Holy

  by Cathy Scherer Stubbs (c) 2011