Choosing A Path

Close to Fine

“God of rainbow, fiery pillar, leading where the eagles soar,
we your people, ours the journey, now and ever, now and ever, now and evermore.”
Julian Rush (“In the Midst of New Dimensions,” 1985)

Christians are in the middle of Holy Week. We have followed Jesus from his birth in Bethlehem, through his childhood and his ministry, with its massive crowds and miraculous healing rituals. We've laid palms on the road for his ride into Jerusalem on the back of a colt, and now we're poised for the dark days of his betrayal, trial and murder. This is the part we don't like—the darkness before Easter's resurrection. This is when we would like to check out and just show up for the stuffed eggs and chocolate bunnies. But “we your people” are on a journey, and that journey includes some darkness.

There are believers who celebrate only the darkest day—the crucifixion. And there are those who simply praise away the darkness and move right along to the light. There are some who emphasize sacrifice, and some who emphasize salvation. And, of course, there are those who skip the whole thing and just go sit under a tree and enjoy the sunshine and spring flowers. There is no right or wrong; it's whatever speaks to the your soul.

There's an Indigo Girls song, one I've written about before, called “Closer to Fine.” The refrain goes:

“I went to the doctor, I went to the mountains.
I looked to the children, I drank from the fountain.
There's more than one answer to these questions.
Pointing me in a crooked line.
And the less I seek my source for some definitive,
the closer I am to fine...” (Amy Ray & Emily Saliers)

There is more than one answer to almost any question. When it comes to care of the human soul, we are wanderers on a solitary journey. It's meant to be that way—we must find our own road, not simply swallow the party line. We can wander through our lives as sheep following a shepherd, or we can turn over every rock and taste the water of every fountain. We can sit on a cushion and meditate until our bums go numb. We can experiment until we find the precise trail that leads us home. Regardless of how we get there, when we allow our open heart to lead us on this journey, we're way closer to fine.

In the Spirit,
Jane