Tuesday, June 9, 2020
Linda Cheatham
Believe
“A Prayer among Friends”
by John DanielAmong other wonders of our lives, we are alive
with one another, we walk here
in the light of this unlikely world
that isn't ours for long.
May we spend generously
the time we are given.
May we enact our responsibilities
as thoroughly as we enjoy
our pleasures. May we see with clarity,
may we seek a vision
that serves all beings, may we honor
the mystery surpassing our sight,
and may we hold in our hands
the gift of good work
and bear it forth whole, as we
were borne forth by a power we praise
to this one Earth, this homeland of all we love."A Prayer among Friends" by John Daniel, from Of Earth. © Lost Horse Press, 2012.
I was introduced to this poem a few years ago, and I’ve returned to it often in the months since we began collectively weathering the current pandemic. In a time of great fear, uncertainty and sadness, as many of us were reassessing our priorities and developing a new appreciation for our relationships, it suggested a vision of what could be and perhaps even a finer understanding of what abundant life really means.
I read it again in the days immediately following the murder of George Floyd and in the light of the resulting societal confrontation with the reality of systemic racism. It still rings true. “May we seek a vision that serves all beings…and may we hold in our hands the gift of good work….” I believe that much of that good work requires us, as Rob put it, “to resist shedding our discomfort,” for as Nathan said earlier this week, “I trust that we are in the midst of our real journey, and that God is leading us with love into uncomfortable and challenging places….” And that “we are entering into that discomfort together.”