One of those weeks.

When the cares of my heart are many,
    your consolations cheer my soul.  Psalm 94:19

            I have been in transition for a few weeks, leaving one congregation and moving to another.  We have been in our new home for almost a year and it seems that just now I am feeling the pains of leaving our home of 27 years. In a few days we will head off to celebrate my 35th class reunion!  Our daughter and her family are preparing to sell their home and move to a new neighborhood.  All of this has left me a bit vulnerable to the news.  Have you ever had that happen?  Our own life circumstances can make watching the news overwhelming. When the ground under our own feet is less than steady the typically rocky news can feel like an earthquake.

            I see stories that make me anxious for the vulnerability of our young people, for our government and the environment.  Acts of violence, political chaos and melting icebergs can leave me asking "What are we doing?" 

            I see stories that I do not fully understand and I see responses that I understand even less.  A young man dies from a fireworks accident and it was beyond my comprehension how quickly and viciously some people condemned him or even laughed at his actions.  It only made wonder if they thought they could avoid tragedy by making such declarations as to their own superior judgment.

             At times it is beyond comprehension how we treat each other.

These are the times when I cry easily as well, not full out cry, but you know what I mean, I get teary.  My eyes fill with tears as I watch Barbara Bush kiss her husband, a president I never voted for, I have seen the same clip three or four times over the past two days and I have the same reaction every time.

            When I think about this I am reminded that there are times when vulnerability is a good thing, it can help us to look at the world and people in it in a new way. When we are less than sure of something a great change may occur. There can be a stirring in our hearts for people that we may never have imagined.

           

            In the midst of all that the news inundates us with, there is hope.  A young woman survives a plane crash and in her lowest moment when she is sure she will die, she says  "I can't die like this-not ever hugging someone again!"  A hug!  A hug gave her the stamina to carry on.  Is it really that simple?  That what can inspire amazing courage and spirit is this simple act we so often take for granted?

            I have enormous gardens in our new yard and yet a simple flower growing up out of the stone brought me great delight.  This little sprig reminded me that honestly-- this is the norm---people overcome great struggles and oppression everyday and they rise up out of the dark places to life.

            The news may try to bury us in all that is wrong, all that hurts but in the end there are signs all around us that there is more. There is more to be done, more to be said and more to see.

Shel Silverstein may say it best:  "Listen to the mustn'ts, child. Listen to the don'ts. Listen to the shouldn'ts, the impossibles, the won'ts. Listen to the never haves, then listen close to me... Anything can happen, child. Anything can be.”