A prayer for Lent.

One week ago today, my family gathered in Wisconsin to celebrate the life of my grandmother, who died recently at the age of 93. She was a wonderful woman who leaves behind a legacy of love. Each of us wore one of her butterfly pins on our clothing, and she had many of them. As the pastor remarked at her funeral, in her apartment you could close your eyes, spin around, and wherever you looked next it was very likely you'd see a butterfly. In symbolic form, resurrection was all around us.

We of course are in the liturgical season of Lent right now, but the pastor is indeed right. Resurrection is all around us...

I gradually awaken
to the realization
that I am covered with pets.
The dog sleeps soundly
pressed as close to my legs
as possible without laying on them.
The cat perches on my side,
resting but alert,
watchful for a sign
that I might be awake
and willing to pet her.
Their bodies comfort me,
blanketing me with their warmth
even before I am fully aware
of their presence.

Although it happened over ten years ago, I remember clearly the first time my son, Sean, saw a rainbow. He was four years old at the time. We were driving south from Iowa to Missouri when we passed through a rainstorm into the sunshine. Looking out of the car windows, my husband and I spotted that arc of color that science tells us is the full spectrum of the sun’s white light refracted through the raindrops. We eagerly pointed the rainbow out to our son, who began to search the sky. After about a minute of Sean saying, “I can’t see it,” and my husband and I replying, “Just look out the window,” it occurred to us that he didn’t know what he was looking for.

The smell of supper emanating from my crock pot.
The sound of the furnace kicking on.
The sun on my face as I look out the window.
Chocolate melting on my tongue.
Watching a squirrel gather straw from my yard to build a nest.

Before I dive in, let me share a quick story I heard recently that I'll come back to later. Here's the gist of the story: An elderly member of a Native American tribe was talking with a young man. He told the young man there are two wolves of equal power within us. One is good natured, loving and nurturing of others, and compassionate. The other is evil, filled with anger and jealousy and selfishness. The two wolves struggle within us every day.

The young man asked, "If they are of equal power, which one wins?"

"Whichever one you feed."

It was while reading a Biblical commentary on Isaiah 40:21-31 that the title of this reflection came into my mind. “Logic does not work on a two-year old.” When my children were toddlers, I often tested this saying. My son or daughter would begin to throw a fit and I would patiently (well, maybe not always patiently…) explain the reasons behind the decision I had made. Those of you who have tried this exercise will recognize its futility.

On a small table next to the window in my dining room, there sits a dead plant. It hasn’t always been a dead plant. For several weeks now it has been a dying plant. Sometime in the last few weeks, the exact moment unnoticed by me, it crossed the line between dying and dead. Now it sits there, sadly shriveled up, its leaves brown and lifeless.

What a week! As I sat down to write this email, I had difficulty choosing a topic from an abundance of subjects worthy of reflection.