Trinity Journals
Trinity Voices
« The Heard Word | Main | Rectors Reflections - November »
May 30, 2008
The Summer Day
THE SUMMER DAY
MARY OLIVER
Who made the world?
Who made the swan, and the black bear?
Who made the grasshopper?
This grasshopper, I mean-
the one who has flung herself out of the grass,
the one who is eating sugar out of my hand,
who is moving her jaws back and forth instead ofup and down-
who is gazing around with her enormous andcomplicated eyes.
Now she lifts her pale forearms and thoroughlywashes her face.
Now she snaps her wings open, and floats away.
I don't know exactly what a prayer is.
I do know how to pay attention, how to fall down
into the grass, how to kneel down in the grass,
how to be idle and blessed, how to stroll throughthe fields,
which is what I have been doing all day.
Tell me, what else should I have done?
Doesn't everything die at last, and too soon?
Tell me, what is it you plan to do
with your one wild and precious life?
Dear Friends,
I love the poetry of Mary Oliver! This poem seems to tell us that to pay attention is a form of prayer. It tells us we can learn from God's creatures in creation how to pay attention. What better time than summer to practice—kneeling in the grass, being idle and blessed, strolling through the fields, walking with a friend, watching children play, being quiet, reading Mary Oliver. What if, whatever we do and wherever we are, this summer, we practiced paying attention?
Call it living in the moment. Call it radical listening. Call it being present. We might just remember who made the world! We might just remember not only who we are, but whose we are. We might recognize that all life is precious. What a wild thought!
May your travels, wherever they take you, be safe and wonder filled. Remember to come to church when you can. We will be here.
Blessings, Frannie
PS: At Trinity this summer, you might practice paying attention by going through your home to find rummage sale items, helping to sort for the rummage sale, joining others to knit a prayer shawl or reading Eve's Bible to prepare for Sunday discussion. Read more about these activities in this newsletter or call Alecia @ 326-2083
