A dose of grace
A woman stands at the window and stares. We are on the morning commuter ferry, from Vashon Island to Seattle. A snow-covered Mount Rainier dominates the panorama. It stands prominent, imperial in the dawn light. (It is true. Here in…
Hear the music
There is a Tibetan story about an earnest young man seeking enlightenment. (Earnest people must think this quite unfair--since they play a central role in most parables and stories about enlightenment.)A famous sage passes through the man's village. The man…
The beauty of imperfection
I’m unfocussed today, so I’ll blame it on the weather. (Easy to do here). Trouble is, these are the kind of days when I give myself grief, slipping down the slippery slope connecting measuring up to well-being.Gratefully, the geese seem…
Embracing this life as a gift
What's in your sack? the traveler, stooped from the heaviness, is asked.My Mother.Isn't she heavy?She sure is.Why don't you put her down?I can't.Well, why can't you stop carrying her?I don't know. I've always carried her. I know this: I,…
Brave enough to be it
“I like your style,” I tell the geese on this cold and blustery morning. “Even today, still looking for sun, and a good meal. And you hang together; that impresses me. Plus, I’m told you mate for life, with very low divorce…
The gift of grace
By my desk, a waste basket half full of wadded Sabbath Moment starts. None of them felt right. Or adequate.Like a Doctor visit I recall. “Where does it hurt?”“I don’t know.”“Can you be more specific?”“Does everywhere count?” As one friend…
The stories we carry
“You all irritate me,” I tell the geese. “Well, truth be told, only sometimes.”“That’s an interesting way to start a homily,” one says, without looking up.“Okay. Maybe it’s not you. It’s me,” I tell them. “Truth be told, I’m churning…
Mindful of small things
Welcome to the new year. 2021. There are so many who couldn’t wait to get here, with 2020 in the rear-view mirror. Although we all know it doesn’t quite work that easily, does it?But this I do know, from a…
To make a difference
“Remember, if someone dances with you in the rain, they will most certainly walk with you in a storm,” I tell the sheep this morning. “So, thank you for listening to me every week. I am grateful.”Their look tells me,…
To live is holy
The wind chill this morning hovered in the low 30s, stocking hat and scarf weather, so I tell the sheep that the homily will be brief. That got their attention and I see gratitude in their eyes.“it is a serious…
