Reflections on Mission - Wilbur

“Flower in the crannied wall,

I pluck you out of the crannies,

I hold you here, root and all, in my hand,

Little flower- but if I could understand

What you are, root and all, and all in all,

I should know what God and man is.”

                                    Alfred Tennyson

This week, while toiling and laughing aside the youth, in front of mountains and trees, it was a moment of knowing God, the Divine Creator of all that is.  There were so many moments that were memorable and remarkable.  Imagine sitting in the dirt, surrounded by mountains picking peas?  Or consider the pouring of “fine” on a trail then raking it and pondering the feet that will travel there?   Do you see, in your mind’s eye, the smiles of satisfaction when the labor of your hands sort through blueberries or wash the freshly picked peas to feed those who are hungry?  Our souls were fed this week with the labor of our hands and the extension of our hearts in empathy and love.  It is in our youth that we experience the ‘stream of hope” that runs through this world.  This is a gift that God gives to us when we sit at the middle years of our lives.  Ah, here I am at 51, blessed with the opportunity to experience this “stream of hope” and it causes me to pause and be grateful.  Oh, to sit beside a 14 year old picking peas and watch them so gracefully rise, smile and drop their bucket load of peas into the tub.  To see their face, to feel their satisfaction at the task, is to truly be in the presence of all that is Divine and good. 

As we consider what we as a human species has done to our home- Earth, take time to be present in nature and all this it wild.  Take time to look at the faces of our youth and empower them to be all that they can be, and encourage them to tap the Divine in every moment.  It is through their ability to be ever present in the moment and to feel the suffering of others and our Earth on a global scale, will we live together in peace and health. 

Bless these youth and all the generations of children yet to come.  May the faces of these children help us to live and act seventh genrationally and conscious of our responsibility to our home- Earth.

Wilbur