Dry Tinder

  Dry Tinder
 
  Hot winds
     blow.
  Rain doesn’t
      come.
 
  The tinder
     is dry
  waiting,
     aching
       to be lit
  with the fire
     of God.
 
  Out of control,
     wildfires
   destroy,
     threaten
  the dry
     waiting
       tinder.
 
  Are the small
     backfires
       of God
     enough
  to stop
   the onslaught?
 
  The threat
     is real.
  The tinder
    is dry.
 
  Which
     of the fires
  will set it
   to  burning?
                   (2016)

I wrote this a few days ago and wasn’t too sure why or what inspired it.  My thoughts at the time were of those who are seeking....wanting so much to find and know God in their lives.  They are the ones who are caught up in fear and don’t know which way to turn.  They fear the onslaught of violence, afraid it will suck them in...desperate for the knowing of truth and love of God.  There is the constant struggle of good vs evil and even good people find themselves doing evil things....afraid to stand against it.
 
There are so many posts on facebook stating how much our country needs God....as if God has deserted us.  I wonder if the people who post these things realize that if we, as individuals,  don’t actively know and share God, neither will our country.

We are the tinder.  It is dry, it is fragile and it takes no more than a spark to set it aflame.  It’s our choice whether we burn with the fires of the love of God or allow ourselves to be fuel for the violence, ignorance and greed which seems to be sweeping over us.

We are ready to burn.  Which will set us afire?

Joy and Sadness

In a recent conversation with a friend I observed, “It’s possible to experience joy and sadness at the same time.”  She laughed in agreement.  She knew exactly what I meant.

Since having that conversation, I find myself reflecting on the fact....especially because of my emotions concerning Mom.  So.... I take the trip inward to see and understand my own co-mingling of joy and sadness.

It’s within myself I see the source of each.  The joy, which has become pretty constant, is not of me.  Its source is the God within myself and comes through me.  The sadness, I have to admit, is totally mine.  It is me feeling the void left by the loss of a loved one’s physical presence.

I can see how God’s gift of joy mixes with the sadness of self.  They rise to the surface together, expressing themselves in tears of both joy and sorrow.  Sometimes one is felt more strongly than the other and that’s okay.

I know both.

JOY

Dancing With the Angels

Just recently I was reminded of something I saw a few years ago on the screen of my mind.  It was during a time of prayer I saw the angels dancing and though I thought it might be a subject for a painting, eventually realized it wasn’t.  Every once in a while there were re-runs that made me smile but I saw no reason for them other than the reminding of a beautiful memory.

Recently, with these days of  Mom’s non-responsiveness to the outside world, the vision of the dancing angels returned.  As I watched Mom’s facial expressions and listened to my own internal knowing, I knew she was in the Light and dancing with the angels. 

It’s funny how some things come together.  One friend assured me she was sending the angels to Mom in her prayer.  Another friend shared her seeing Mom dancing in the Light during her meditation.  This morning I awoke with the knowledge she was no longer here but was as a child having the time of her life singing and dancing with the angels.

She deserves this time of joy and celebration after all she’s been through and I am happy for her!  I find peace in knowing that when she is able to be released completely from her body, the angels will take her home......skipping, dancing and singing all the way!

Walls to Bridges

I have it in my mind that I’m a bridge builder.  Oh, I’m not an engineer by any means, nor do I actually build physical, tangible bridges.  Nonetheless, I do find myself building them....bridges leading to acceptance, understanding, appreciation and eventually to love.

Quite a while ago I started a fairly large  painting I was going to title, “From Walls to Bridges”.  It was to be a painting of people of all colors, nationalities, etc, each taking the stones from the walls on their side and using them to build a bridge spanning the chasm between them.... allowing each to freely walk across to the other side.  I wanted to include new communities being formed; to show the re-unification of  God’s family. 

I wanted to show all those things I saw in my heart but either couldn’t, or didn’t know how to, express them in paint.  The painting stayed stapled to the wall for quite a while.  I even transferred it to a different wall so I could begin another painting.  I looked at it every time I entered my studio.  My students looked and wondered, some aloud, when I would finish it. 

I felt sad the day I removed it from the wall, rolled it up and put it away.  From my students, when they noticed its absence, was excitement in the form of, “Oh, did you finish it?  Let us see!  Where is it?  I want to see what you did.”  These quickly turned to “Oh.”   “Well, you’ll get back to it when it’s time.” and  “It just wasn’t ready to be painted yet.”  (I love those women!)

Not finishing the painting didn’t affect my being a bridge builder.  On the contrary, it made me realize my bridge building is meant to be more active than expressing it in paint.  I am constantly being given opportunities to build.....some small and even some larger bridges.  Sometimes I have to work hard at the building while other times I may only have to suggest and encourage while others proceed with the building.

There’s always plenty of material available and in a way, I find it kind of humorous.  We simply recycle the stones others have used to build thicker and higher walls.  Of course, those who are intent on building walls try to use the stones of the bridges so the work is on-going.  It never stops. 

Some walls are too high and too slippery to climb so there will always be bridges to build.  Bridges are the only way God’s family will become united.

                                                                     Unfinished

God Bless!
Connie