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"In the morning the world is peeled to shining."
- Marge Piercy, The Art of Blessing the Day
This morning I sought to be conscious of the good. While walking the dog I heard the scolding of a crow, the "Wheels on the Bus" song of a mother distracting her toddler on the way to daycare, and the insatiable curiosity of my dog's nose.
I sought to be conscious of the good.
And then I got an email from a beloved telling me her job offer - a job she has trained three years to attain - was rescinded before she could even begin. It was rescinded due to the new administration's hiring freeze.
The ache of this before-it-was-even-begun dream job loss joins the despair of whole swaths of beloved population's being threatened across the country. Lives and the sacred dignity of full humanity are being radically challenged.
In the midst of all the losses and changes, we are people who seek to serve the common good. There is an irresistible notion that we are given life in order to work for justice and communal compassion in this world.
Friends, every day the world is peeled to shining.
Every day we must summon consciousness of the good.
Find replenishment. Discover again the healing properties of laughter and play. Hold the grieving in prayer and remember your call. Come to church. Breathe deeply. You are a disciple of Jesus and your work is ever before you.
I end with this quote from the astounding sermon given by Bishop Mariann Edgar Budde at the National Cathedral on day two of the new administration:
"May God grant us the strength and courage
to honor the dignity
of every human being,
to speak the truth to one another in love,
and walk humbly
with each other and our God,
for the good of all people,
the good of all people
in this nation
and the world."
Every day.
Pastor Elizabeth
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