By Debra Donnelly-Barton
Beauty in word and image speak so clearly of the Spirit and remind me that there is fun and homeliness in the spiritual life. I am so often serious, that it is easy to miss serendipity and play.
That’s how it is sometimes —
God comes to your window,
all bright light and black wings,
and you’re just too tired to open it.’
Dorianne Laux
In a setting so domestic—BAM—God like a raven or an angel or a moment. And the reality that my own exhaustion keeps me from even getting up and opening the window tells me everything I need to know about human spirituality.
Maybe the window is stuck. How many coats of paint are on the sill? Or maybe the flash seemed like a mirage, a funny play of light. No reason to get up for that!
But then, wisdom, or inspiration invites me to look deeper. Perhaps I am simply tired. Or maybe I haven’t cleared the cobwebs off the glass for so long that I can’t see what’s beyond.
I might have some good reasons for looking the other way, some real despair when I’ve prayed and hoped and been disappointed. Yet, even then, the flash of wings, a hovering just at the window, remind me that there is still singing to be done and praying and sitting up long enough to wonder if beauty and holiness might be found just beyond the smudged glass.
To ponder:
- Without criticizing yourself, wonder about your own response to the flash of presence in your life.
- How clear is the window through which you are seeing the appearance of the Spirit?
- What might you be invited to do to get clearer, even ready, to receive what is being given?
For more from Debra Donnelly-Barton:
Contemplative Writing as Spiritual Practice – September 27 @ 9:30 am – 4:00 pm