[In the Gutter, Somerville, MA]
This morning I woke up beseeching God for a full-on intervention to save our planet—then groggily remembered that I don’t even believe in an Almighty who listens to my prayers. (My God’s more a verb than a noun.)
More fully awake, I recalled a powerful moment at meeting for worship this past Sunday when all of us prayed for the water warriors of Standing Rock. And lo . . .
(No, Silly, I’m not about to claim that the collective prayers of Friends Meeting at Cambridge are responsible for President Obama’s way too late but still appreciated intervention. Of course not! )
No, what I want to say is this. I need to pray more.
Like this:
EAGLE POEM*
To pray you open your whole self
To sky, to earth, to sun, to moon
To one whole voice that is you.
And know there is more
That you can’t see, can’t hear,
Can’t know except in moments
Steadily growing, and in languages
That aren’t always sound but other
Circles of motion.
Like eagle that Sunday morning
Over Salt River. Circled in blue sky
In wind, swept our hearts clean
With sacred wings.
We see you, see ourselves and know
That we must take the utmost care
And kindness in all things.
Breathe in, knowing we are made of
All this, and breathe, knowing
We are truly blessed because we
Were born, and die soon within a
True circle of motion,
Like eagle rounding out the morning
Inside us.
We pray that it will be done
In beauty.
In beauty.
Joy Harjo
*Thank you, Judy, for sending along this amazing poem (which had been read/discussed at a yoga class I had to miss). Just when I needed it!
Dear Patricia,
Well, hello, there, Patricia, my so, so very For Always awesomely special and precious soul sisterfriend Christian Quaker woman who you’re For Always so, so very much!!!!! Wow, Patricia, what a beautifully and sensitively composed with such sharp awareness blog post article here this is of yours which is very interesting and fascinating in learning more about your beliefs, sisterfriend!!!! Wow!!!! Yay!!!!! Sister, I have been praying so hard, so much, and so often to our So, So Very Sweet, Loving, Caring, Powerful, and Interventionist Spirit God for intervention with saving our planet, in helping the so,, so very dear people of the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe, and in general for all persons and for all concerns, Patricia!!!! Sister, I love how you share and declare here that for you God is more of a verb than a noun. It is very much indeed vitally urgent and important that we also think of our God as a Verb. Our God is For Always our God In Action who is Very Real and Beautiful and A Very For Always Active Participant in our lives and in our Heaven Eternity who does very much indeed provide for us and who is our God who is a Doing God who actively acts for us IN ACTION, sisterfriend! Wow, you have made such an awesomely great point here. Sister, for me I also see our Spirit God as a noun, as Love, as Caring, as Good, as So, So Very Sweet, as Powerful, as Mother, as Father, as All Encompassing, Patricia, as Infinite For Always. I think that God did somehow intervene on the great behalf of the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe. I worry, though, that we have not heard of the last of the heinous efforts against these so, so very dearest and darling people but I will somehow maintain my very faith and hope that all will somehow be well and work out for them. Even with the negativity and the bad outcomes which can occur in our lives and on our Earth, with the bad our Sweet Spirit is For Always there with us to provide for us such comfort and solace and a way out of no way to somehow navigate our way through the rocky terrain in somehow surviving and coping with the negativity and the bad situations which we endure and experience in our lives and on our so, so very special and precious planet Earth, sister!!!! Wow!!!!! Yay!!!!! Our God is just so, so very Good, Patricia!!!!! Yay for our God!!!!! Yay for all of us along with Sweet Spirit and our relationships with Loving Spirit Creator, Patricia!!!! Wow!!!!! Yay!!!!!
Sister, the title of this very inspiring and thoughtful reflection here is quite applicable to the great theme and topic of your insightful blog post article here and perfectly accents and complements your enlightening article here! The picture which you have featured with this very fine and excellent writing is perfect here, absolutely picture perfect here! Sister, I thank-you for how you have as usual as always included and featured here a marvelous link which is very helpful, interesting, and fascinating here, Patricia!!!!! Thank-YOU so, my friend!!!!! The poem which you have very graciously and generously featured with this astounding blog post article by our deeply profound Joy Harjo adds such great depth to your remarkable writing here and is a call to action for me and for others toward more of a greatly inward look in my and our prayer lives as prayer warriors praying without ceasing, Patricia!!!! I, too, thank your yoga friend, Judy, for sharing this and for this very lovely offering here with this very spiritually empowering poem, sisters!!!!! Wow!!!!! Yay!!!!! Sister, I thank Spirit continually for YOU, Patricia, and for our friendship and sisterhood!!!!! Yay for YOU, Patricia!!!!! Yay for our friendship and sisterhood, Patricia!!!!! Wow!!!!! Yay!!!!! Yay yay yay yay!!!!! I thank God continually for your very productively proactive and inspiring blog post articles, your other great writings and books, and for all you do in such a very diligently conscientious manner so, so very well in such very fine and excellent fashion, Patricia!!!!! I so look forward to your brilliant, absolutely brilliant blog post articles, other magnificent writings and books, and for all you do!!!!! It is such a joyous pleasure and a blessing reading your very uplifting blog post articles, and such a sweet joy responding to them with my very heartfelt, detailed, and thorough thoughts, ideas, and comments!!!! I For Always feel even better and brighter with such more cheer after reading your awesome blog post articles and responding with all of my very, very heart and spirit to your so, so very full of spirit and Spirit writings, sister!!!!! Wow!!!!! Yay!!!!! Yay yay yay yay!!!!!
Sister, please have such a totally terrific and a very thrilling Tuesday, a wondrously wonderful rest of your week and weekend ahead, and may all of your days be so, so very especially blessed!!!! Patricia, YOU are my and our very, very joy and blessing and a joy and blessing for so, so very many other people as well, my so, so very dear friend!!!!! Spirit loves and cherishes you so, so very much, Patricia, and so do I!!!!!! :)!!!!!
Very Warmly and Sincerely For Always, my so, so very For Always very precious and special soul sisterfriend Christian Quaker white woman who you’re For Always so, so very much, Patricia, with Such Very Peace and Love To You For Always, my so, so very dearest and darling friend, and with Such Blessings and Such Even Very More Blessings To You For Always, sister of mine,
Yours For Always soul sisterfriend Christian black woman and For Always in the very great spirit and solidarity, Sherry Gordon in Iowa City, Iowa