A New
Day
“Morning
has broken like the first morning
Blackbird
has spoken like the first bird
Praise for
the singing
Praise for
the morning
Praise for
them springing fresh from the world...”
Cat
Stevens (Morning Has Broken)
This old song by Cat
Stevens (aka Yusuf Islam) is one of my all-time favorites. It seems
especially appropriate today as we've just come through three days of
torrential rain, a controversial inauguration, a weekend of protest
marches, and lots and lots of argumentative conversation. Coming back
to nature, to the rain, to the blackbird and praise for the morning
has a calming, grounding effect on me.
The last verse of this
hymn goes:
“Mine is
the sunlight
Mine is
the morning
Born of
the one light Eden saw play
Praise
with elation, praise ev'ry morning
God's
recreation of the new day.”
In the midst of
contentious times, let us remember this: we belong to the earth. We
are part of the rain, and the trees, and the birds that fly. No
temporary political power can change that, and none can ruin our
appreciation of this holy ground on which we stand. Whatever comes,
we will still have the earth and all its sacred places. We will enjoy
beautiful sunrises and sunsets; we will stand in awe at the ocean's
edge. We will gather with the people we love, and with people we
don't even know and protest injustice. If nothing else, we are alive,
we are awake, and we are ready to take on this new day.
In the Spirit,
Jane
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