Love month continues to unfold. Since I last wrote we have celebrated Ash Wednesday, Valentine’s Day, Family Day and of course, my birthday! With the marking of a natal day comes some reflection on where I’ve been and where I am going. It is inevitable. My oldest sister called and reminisced about the day I was born when she learned she had a baby sister. My brother called from Ottawa and we commiserated about not having the energy we used to have. By the end of the conversation we were sounding like a pair of old cranks!
A few years ago a dear friend (who reads this blog – Hi Jan!) included in her birthday greeting this quote, “Just to be is a blessing. Just to live is holy.” (Abraham Joshua Herschel). I feel that sentiment so deeply at all times but especially at birthdays as greetings and wishes swirl in from friends across the country and from various stages of my life. As a minister I have moved several times throughout my life and I have enjoyed the privilege of collecting dear friends in every place that I have lived.
In this season of Lent it is a rich reflection to consider the many people who have been part of my journey. Friends and acquaintances who have touched my life have spun an influence that has made me who I am. I do think life is a blessing and some of the simplest times can be rich with meaning and holiness. Indeed, many everyday moments of life are sacramental. I am so grateful for those times when I realize that God has graced me with such a moment.
A.A.Milne wrote, “Life is a journey to be experienced, not a problem to be solved.”
I hope that you are enjoying an experience today and in that experience you feel the holiness of life. God is blessing you right now – enjoy it and be grateful for it.
