Beloved Friends,
We are now moving into the third week of this short and rich season of Advent. We continue to gather and wait together- remembering that waiting with others is almost always more meaningful than waiting alone. We continue to travel this road noticing the landscape both inside our hearts as well as what we notice in the world around us.
Last week we were invited into a time of noticing the smallest of things in hopes of discovering a new way home. Home to the place inside that is waiting to be made ready to welcome the Christ child.
This year we are exploring a new liturgical resource for us: A Sanctified Art. This group of young, talented liturgists from around the church have worked together now for 6 years to offer a creative set of seasonal resources crossing the boundaries of denominations and joining together through our common bonds of the church calendar, the shared lectionary readings, and a deep desire to inspire worship that connects the sacredness of our lives to the richness of our religious heritage.
This week’s poem, again written by one of the founders of Sanctified Art reminds us of our agency amidst this season of waiting; the opportunity we have to make choices along the way. Liturgist and poet Sarah Speed offers a beautiful picture through this poem using the metaphor of wild horses ready and waiting to be set freeas a way to liberate our minds and then, remembering who we are, choosing a better way.
May this season continue to be one of generative days, reminding us all that waiting is a gift ready and waiting for us.
May you never forget that you are loved,
Lisa
Third Week of Advent Poem
By Rev. Sarah Speed, A Sanctified Art LLC, sanctifiedart.org
We can choose a better way
Instructions for a hard choice
First, you must take a deep breath.
Let oxygen dance through your lungs.
Exhale it slowly.
Allow the hurt, the shame,
the anger to rise up in you.
Let your mind run wild, like a million loose horses.
Let the narratives unfold, unroll, a river of choppy water.
Ask yourself how you got here.
Look down at your feet.
Roll your shoulders back.
Remember who you are.
Take another deep breath.
Then, walk it back to the beginning.
Instead of looking at your feet, look at hers.
Imagine where she stands.
Imagine what he needs.
Dry the river of false stories in your mind.
Turn rushing water into a dry creek bed,
certainly not clean enough to drink.
Call the horses.
Bring them home.
Watch as they shake off the dust of the day.
Name what you’re feeling.
Inhale again.
Now you are ready to choose a better way.