
My next book of reflections ‘This New Day’ is available from 6 November 2020 through Coventry Press.
A cloudy Sunday
is suddenly awash
in late afternoon sunshine
that makes me
catch my breath
as spring battles
to assert itself.
The green shrubs and plants
glow gold
as a lorikeet
snacks on the grevillea
in this sacramental moment
of peace and joy.
The sky
Is festooned
In all manner
Of cloudy raiment
At dawn’s first light.
Near the horizon
A fierce glow
Of reds and oranges
That kisses other clouds
Pink
Joyously, the tableau grows
Until its time is passed.
This ephemeral beauty
Is a sustaining grace
For the gift
Of another day.
Flash of bright colours
red, yellow, orange and blue
Flurry of wings and
screeching
simultaneously
jolt me
awake
make me smile and
see again
the spring newness
of leaf and flowers.
The joy of
your presence
shining through.
How many times
have I walked on the sand
especially
at my local beach?
Sandcastles and
holes dug by children
Scrabblings
small and large
by canine friends.
Lumps of wood
seaweed
human detritus
shells, rocks
graveyard for a variety
of aquatic life.
Yet seeing
footprints
transfixed me this morning.
How many sets of footprints
have marked the sand
only to be erased
by wind and water?
Such a passing marker
of the human race
that considers itself
so dominant
so apart
from the rest of God’s creation.
Are footprints
a symbol
a reminder
like this pandemic
that we are passing?
And what will will we do
with our brief time?
Shall we build
or destroy?
Music feeds my soul.
Elevating me
with its grandeur,
calming me
when needed.
Evocative of
joy
sorrow
good times.
Energising me
with its beat
or driving guitar;
stirring me
to justice.
Its benefits are amplified
in concert,
especially connecting
as fans belt out the chorus
together.
I survive without it.
I live with it.
All the ‘stuff’
that we can aspire to own,
does it actually
own us?
So caught up in wanting
and having
things
that we can neglect
what really matters
like loved ones
and integrity
and friends
as well as the gifts
we cannot buy
that make life worth living
like sunshine
freedom
a flower
a smile
hope
love
It’s hard to know
where to start
I feel so lucky being married
for so many years
to a woman I adore.
This woman is
my best friend
soul mate
and lover.
This woman who
tolerates all my flaws
and still loves me.
It is her love
that has freed me
to be the best version
of me – which is
no mean feat.
My theological training
taught me
that we are each
made in the image
of God who is love.
We are made whole
when we give ourselves
freely in love.
And I get to live
that graced reality.
There is a joy
I experience
when I smell
boronia in bloom.
This nondescript plant
only has its
small brown bell-shaped flowers
one month in the year
but they signal
spring is close.
So the smell
triggers memories
of emerging from winter
but there is also
a delicate sweetness
to the fragrance
unlike any other
that is guaranteed
to put a smile
on my face.
Gratitude is always important
but especially
during a lockdown.
Shining stump of a rainbow
which dives into the bay,
shrouded in clouds
from white to
shades of grey.
It presides over a scene
notable for its icy, lashing wind
and waves
topped in white,
crashing against the shore
spreading seaweed and human detritus.
Bleak?
Some may say.
I think it’s best described as
Grace
Glorious wonder
Sustainer