Returning

(the familiar story of the prodigal son in a different setting...)

Coming to the garden gate

Grasses green and weeds at bay

Left for tending by another-- 

Cared for by the one that stayed.

Long the journey from the haven

Out into the fields free blown. 
Longer yet the travel homeward,

For the destination’s known.

What’s familiar looks so foreign, 
But the eye’s the thing that’s changed. 
What was left is ever constant; 
What’s returned is not the same. 

Letting go came in an instant--

Turned and left with not one thought.
Gone so far and such a distance,

Seemed the path back home was lost. 

Turning back broke every vessel, 
Every bone crushed in the strain. 
Only spirit made the journey; 
Nothing else would yet remain. 

Drawing close to home and garden--

Spirit stumbles, buckles, falls. 
One last grasp toward the gateway,

Locked outside the haven walls. 

No hope left and none deserved 
For leaving what was giv’n by grace. 
Then a sound erases silence— 
Creaking of the op’ning gate.

Lord, Let Me Be a Spinning Plate for Thee

If you're of "a certain age," you'll remember the guy who always showed up on "The Ed Sullivan Show" spinning plates. The poor guy would start one plate spinning around a tall stick, then another, then another, then another. By the time he got the fourth or fifth plate spinning, he'd have to come back to the first plate and second plates to give them a good spin to keep them going before he could even think about launching a sixth plate.

Eventually, he'd have a good dozen or so plates spinning on those tall sticks while he ran around between all of them, holding each stick and giving each plate a good spin to keep it revolving around its axis. And at the very end of his act, he'd quickly run down the row, retrieving all of his plates in a hurry before they slowed down enough to begin dropping down to the ground.

Now before I get to my spiritual illustration in all of this, let me point out that I'm no scientist. I'm sure any physicist or eighth grade science teacher worth her salt could point out the flaws in my theory, but I'm going to use the image for my point anyway. So just go with me here.

I think there are two reasons these plates were able to spin in mid-air successfully. First, they kept moving. And second, each of the plates had a focal point.

And if you've ever read any books on Christian living, you know exactly where I'm going here.

Number one: If we don't keep moving spiritually...if we don't keep learning and growing in Christ...we're going to fall down. We've got to keep looking for ways to move ahead as Christ leads us. We need to listen for His voice as He calls us to follow Him in the ever-changing adventure of life and store up His word in our hearts to strengthen us for the times ahead.

Number two: If we don't have a focal point, we will become spiritual frisbees. If our plate-spinning guy had launched those plates spinning without those sticks, that's exactly what his show would have become...with disastrous results for the audience in the first few rows! We must keep our hearts and minds focused on Christ and His will for our lives.

Balance is an important quality in our lives; the older I get, the more I realize this to be true. Movement is also necessary...not just physically, but also mentally and spiritually. Look back at your life over the past month or the past year and see if you're in the same place that you were before.

Those plates may have seemed like they were staying in the same place because they kept the same focus, but remember...they were always moving. How could you tell?

I plan to resume posting to my blog. I started this site, my "marginal notes" a few years ago when I was working with my friends Kim McLean and Devon O'Day in their Hippie Chick Twang offices. But I got sidetracked with other projects and quickly lost momentum and motivation to write so after two entries, the blogging stopped.

My amazing sister Christie began her blogsite a few months ago so I feel challenged to rejoin the writing circle. (If you enjoy tearooms or Victorian nostalgia, I highly recommend visiting her blog at www.christiegrammyshouse.blogspot.com...it's a pure delight!)

It's my intention to share views that I believe are important, observations that make me laugh, and the poetry I've written from the heart. I hope my writing will make you think, give you a smile, or warm your soul. If I can do that for you, my friend, it's been a good day.

Here's one of my poems to start things off...


Reunion

I will not say good-bye for we will meet again
When I too cross the river of life.
I will see your dear face when I pass through the door
And enter the eternal side.

I will miss you until then and look for your smile
And listen for you in the wind.
So haunt me if you like; I’d welcome it so
If you’d follow me ‘round, my dear friend.

Please flicker the candle when there is no wind
And crunch the leaves where no foot’s trod.
Rock the chair where no warm living body has sat
And whistle a tune in the fog.

So when I am finished with travels on earth
And leave this tired body behind,
I’ll look for you in the sweet prism of heaven
And welcome your image so kind.

After we’ve talked and I’ve met your friends there,
We’ll take just a moment or two.
I’ll acknowledge the candle, the chair, and the leaves
And I’ll say, “My dear friend, that was you.”

~ Lynn