Thirst

^{Thirst takes many forms, such as the physical thirst for water or the emotional thirst for love. There are also spiritual thirsts, which long to be quenched, as Mary Oliver reminds us in her poem.}

Thirst by Mary Oliver

Another morning and I wake with thirst


for the goodness I do not have.

I walk
out to the pond and all the way God has


given us such beautiful lessons.

Oh Lord,
I was never a quick scholar but sulked

and hunched over my books past the
hour

and the bell; grant me, in your
mercy, a little more time.

Love for the
earth and love for you are having such a
long conversation in my heart.

Who
knows what will finally happen or
where I will be sent, yet already I have
given a great many things

away, expecting to be told to pack nothing,

except the
prayers which, with this thirst,

I am
slowly learning.

Lion

I recently saw Garth Davis’s movie “Lion” and was deeply moved by the film’s depiction of what it feels like for a small boy to be lost. Saroo, the main character, gets separated from his older brother and then accidentally travels by train over 1,000 miles from his home, ending up in Calcutta, a city foreign in every way from his village. Garth does a masterful job of conveying Saroo’s emotions with minimal dialogue. With a look or a smile, a cry or a frown, Saroo shows his thoughts and feelings. We are reminded of the power of non-verbal communication and the intuitive knowledge of children. Though vulnerable and scared, Saroo is also tough and resilient – and acutely sensitive to his surroundings. Memories of and love for his mother and brother keep him going, determined to get back home. Among questions the movie raises are what constitutes home and family, and how love and memories sustain us through separation and loss.

Passion

How interesting that the root of the word passion is from the Latin “passio,” which means “suffering.” If you are really passionate about something or someone, you will definitely be inspired by and fulfilled by that person or thing; but you will also be subject to pain or heart break.

The passionate way can be rocky even as it is exhilarating. To feel deeply can bring both joy and despair. I believe that living with passion is living a fulfilled life, but we must be ready for the suffering that can come with that fulfillment - especially if we dare to take an unorthodox path or risk to raise our voice for the truth against the prevailing wind.

As we approach the season of Lent and retrace Christ’s last steps, remember that the journey from the Last Supper to the Cross is referred to as “The Passion.”

Perspective: How Things Appear Differently From Up Above

I went flying with a friend this week, and it made me think about perspective: how things appear differently from up above, looking down; how we have to reorient ourselves to recognize from above what is familiar from the ground; how both sizes and distances change depending on our vantage point.

As we begin a new year and a new chapter in our nation’s history, I am going to remind myself to try on different perspectives, especially ones with which I am unfamiliar – to see things fresh and anew. Looking at an issue from multiple angles can help me know it more deeply and more fully, and ask me to step out of my familiar perspective to see from someone else’s point of view.

Consider Wallace Stevens’s poem “Thirteen Ways of Looking at a Blackbird,” in which Stevens asks us to look at the common blackbird in new ways.

Benedict of Nursia's Rule of Benedict

Benedict of Nursia, a mystic and wisdom thinker, lived 1,500 years ago; but his Rule of Benedict continues to guide monastics and lay people alike to this day. The first paragraph of the Rule of Benedict invites us to “listen carefully to his instructions and to attend to them with the ear of our hearts.” 

Careful listening is the key to being fully human and alive. Let nothing go by that could nourish our souls and lend meaning to our lives, Benedict seems to say. I especially like the notion of listening with the “ear of our hearts” – in other words, listening with real feeling, not just intellectual curiosity. In a world of sound bites, we have little practice to listen carefully and with full attention. To do so is to be that much more connected to one another and the world around us at the level of our hearts as well as our minds.