Will

What does God desire?

Do justice and love kindness,

Walk humbly with God.

- Haiku paraphrase of Micah 6:8 -

(Photo taken on January 21 at the Women's March on Washington, Philadelphia location)

With

Hear words of comfort,

"Lo, I am with you always."

Never deserted.

(Photo: Chapel of St. Ignatius, Seattle University; August 12, 2016)

Open

I

A tightly closed bud

Bursts forth in an explosion.

Radiant colors!

II

Hushed notes crescendo, 

Rising, exquisite climax,

Sensual, sublime.

III. 

In opening - joy,

Vulnerable, yet beautiful -

Reveals God's glory.

(Photo: Tyler Arboretum on Earth Day 2016)

Grace

Love freely given

Without hidden agendas

Or expectations

Undeserved blessing

The gift that keeps on giving

Like a waterfall

(Photo: Nugget Falls at Mendenhall Glacier in Juneau Alaska on August 19, 2017)

Sign

Children are watching -

Not what is on our placard,

Rather, how we live.

What sign shall I be?

One of fear or one of love?

I know which I choose.

(Photo: En route to the Women's March on Washington,
Philadelphia satellite march, 

January 21, 2017)

Celebrate 4

The blind man can see!

In the Light we now see, too.

This is the Good News.

(Photo: St. Pete Beach, FL, February 2013)

Journey

Each minute unknown,

Nothing certain lies ahead,

Except your presence.

Lead and support me.

Give me courage for life's trip.

You are my North Star.

(Photo: En route to Dawes Glacier, Alaska; August 18, 2016)

Love

I.

Oh sweet blessed gift

Filling me, spilling over
Like a waterfall.

II
Who are we to love?
Our neighbor, Jesus tells us, 
Even those we fear.

III.
Love brings down walls
And builds bridges between us,
Make us neighbors.

IV
All love involves risk.
Jesus knew that, on the cross,
Love poured out for all.

V
Oh sweet blessed Gift
Filling us, spilling over
Like a waterfall.

(Photo: Philadelphia Flower Show, March 2017)

Rest

Release of tension

Riding on a breath of wind

Let go and just be

(Photo: Grand Canyon, September 2011)

Joyfulness

Where deep joy resides:
In the glow of one's being
A spark in the darkness

The euphoric dance
In all that is life-giving
In my Lover's arms.

(Photo taken circa 1982)

Go

The forward movement 

Of the action command GO

Conveys urgency.

What is so urgent?

Showing people that God's love

Is unrestricted.

(Photo: Blind Pass, St. Pete Beach, FL; February 20, 2017)

Afraid

What is this dis-ease,

This gnawing feeling in my gut?

These unsettled times

Do not be afraid.

Do I believe the angels?

Trust God is with us?

Take away my fear.

Help me put my trust in you

And breathe in your peace.

(Photo: Ridley Creek State Park)

Celebrate 3

After this week's news

What's to celebrate today?

God is Love is God.

I rejoice in this:

God will never let us go.

Love is God is Love.

(Photo: Longwood Gardens, March 18 2017)

Beloved

We are your beloved.

You gather us all in you, 

So no exceptions,

Gathered like flowers

From a beautiful garden,

Each of us precious.

(Photo: Longwood Gardens, March 17)

Speak

Speak truth to power!

This is our clarion call.

We fight injustice.

(Giving thanks today for Dietrich Bonhoeffer, a person of faith, who spoke up and acted during the Nazi regime. He is an inspiration in the days in which we live. May I be so bold as he.)

Presence

There's no need for words.

Walking with me is enough

Knowing you are here.

(Photo: February 2012, St. Pete Beach, FL)

See

This is often true:

At times when I close my eyes

I can truly see.

Time to take a look

At the visions and the dreams,

Bear witness to them.

(Photo: Armadale, Isle of Skye, Scotland; May 2017)

Faith

Deep, deep in the earth

The slumbering autumn seed

Starts germinating.

With warm earth, fresh rain

Its roots begin to take hold.

Life breaks through the soil.

(Photo: Armadale, Isle of Skye in Scotland, May 2016)

Kindred

We are family

(Everyone across the globe)

Bound by God's deep love.

God embraces all

So why can't we do the same, 

Sisters and brothers?

(Photo taken at the Women's March on Washington, Philadelphia location; January 21, 2017)

Celebrate 2

We gather today

Looking for the light of Christ

In each person here.

(Photo taken today during adult forum when children showed up with headlamps looking for the light of Christ)

Led

In the Pathless Woods

I am making my own way,

but it is unknown.

In this pathless life

I count on God to lead me.

God will show the way.

(Photo: Walking through "Pathless Woods," Sarasota FL, February 2017)

Free

Until they are loosed, 

(the shackles of oppression), 

none of us are free.

(Photo: Women's March on Washington, January 21, 2017; Philadelphia location)

Live

I lift off the ground.

Abandoning everything 
That has restrained me.

To trust and let go,
To fly on the breath of God,
Is scary, thrilling.

I ride on the Wind
Not knowing where it takes me,
Feeling so alive.

(photo: St. Pete Beach FL, February 2017)

Preserve

Hold us close to you

Like a mother and child.

Protect and shield us.

(photo of my grandmother and my father, 1934)

Forgiveness

Winter into spring

New life crawling out of death

This is forgiveness

(Photo: Media, PA March 7, 2017)

Wise

In the mindfulness,

Listening, seeing, learning,

There Wisdom resides.

And when we admit

We don't have all the answers,

Wisdom is there, too.

Be wise everyone:

Trust the grace-giving God

Who knows more than we.

(Photo: En route to Dawes Glacier, AK on August 18 2016)

Celebrate 1

"Let us all rejoice!

This is the day the Lord made.

Let's be glad in it!"

We are flawed people

So dance the devil away.

Evil will not win.

Sing! Hope! Be joyful!

And dance in the light of God.

Celebrate God's love.

"Let us all rejoice:

This is the day the Lord made.

Let's be glad in it."

(photo: Allentown, PA January 2017)

Treasure

The things that I treasure

Are not money and power.

In the end, they fade.

But give me beauty

In the love of another,

Laughter, art, and faith.

(photo: North Rim, Grand Canyon, September 2011)

Sacrifice

Difficult, for sure,

To die so new growth comes forth

But, it is worth it.

Sacrifice means that

Life is not all about me

Rather, about us.

(photo: Tyler Aboretum, winter 2016)

Injustice

Insidiously

The barbed wire wraps around us,

Leaving scarred tissue.

Injustice is this. 

All feel the stabbing cold steel

Drawing blood and pain.

No one is exempt, 

Including perpetrators.

This sin wounds us all.

(Photo: Pointe du Hoc, Normandy, France, May 2016)

Heal

Under the band-aid

Cells are regenerating

Making my wound whole.

Into our sick world

God comes with greening power

Bringing sweet, new life.

Lent 2017

Haiku and a photo. That's my daily plan for Lent this year.

#RethinkChurch (Lent photo-a-day) has posted the following words through this year's season of Lent. I will be using these words for my poetry and photographs.

March 1  Heal                                                 March 25 Journey
March 2  Injustice                                          March 26 Celebrate
March 3  Sacrifice                                          March 27 Sign
March 4  Treasure                                          March 28 Grace
March 5  Celebrate                                         March 29 Open
March 6  Wise                                                 March 30 Will
March 7  Forgiven                                          March 31 With
March 8  Preserve                                           April 1     Darkness
March 9  Live                                                   April 2     Celebrate
March 10 Free                                                 April 3      Light
March 11 Led                                                   April 4      Breath
March 12 Celebrate                                         April 5     Hear
March 13 Kindred                                           April 6      Believe
March 14 Faith                                                April 7     Voice
March 15 See                                                   April 8     Blessed
March 16 Presence                                         April 9     Celebrate
March 17 Speak                                              April 10    Follow
March 18 Beloved                                          April 11     Above
March 19 Celebrate                                       April 12     Deny
March 20 Afraid                                            April 13     Spirit
March 21 Go                                                   April 14      Awake
March 22 Joyful                                            April 15     Hope
March 23 Rest                                               April 16     Wonder
March 24 Love