by BFL Spiritual Director/Catechist: Rodney Dean –– A serious thunderstorm gives way to a beautiful summer rain. Walking barefoot in the wet grass, the warm rain falling, I roll the garbage can out for the weekly visit from those amongst us who take care of what we no longer want or need. A resident bunny scurries away, probably because of the large container on wheels. It is not usually with me as I meander the lush property of The Retreat House.
The freshly mowed grass is warm and wet and it is summer. A rainbow is barely visible and I see it only because of the chore…which was motivated by the vesper light hitting the old church, illuminating the Bell Tower with a golden hue. It invited me to come and see.
The walk back is along the old cemetery, close to a Crepe Myrtle tree, majestic with its blooms appearing…maybe magenta in color? My toes sink in the soft grass…and there is a little mud there too. It is so sacred…so holy…and I have just taken the garbage to the curb. How can this be?
God is always present. We might miss this, and then sometimes we don’t. Moses could have ignored the burning bush…and yet he did not…or maybe God made sure he did not. The Holy One does stuff like that…3000 years ago…and 5 minutes ago. That’s what the bird seemed to say who just flew through the open porch where I sit in the flight path…God is fleeting, just like the bird, just like the vesper light on the Bell Tower, just like the summer rain, just like the rainbow.
Thanks Be to God. Amen.