Epiphany XV: An Extraordinary Coincidence

 

Good Monday morning, good pilgrims of the Epiphany Season. When I put my feet on the floor first thing this morning, it was 20 degrees. In 2009, when I was in DC for the second inauguration of Barack Obama, it was 28 degrees. There were wind gusts up to 23 mph.

Between the long lines of millions of people and the several security checks, it took two hours to get to a place where we could see the Capitol Building, there, in the distance, but we watched the inauguration on one of the many Jumbotrons out on the lawn.

It was C O L D. Dangerously so. But, I was bundled up in warm clothing, several pairs of socks and warm boots, a hat, a scarf, and gloves. The joy and delight in my heart were irrepressible and all the fuel I needed to keep me warm.

The nice lady who now runs The Geranium Farm published a prayer today for MLK, Jr., and the Inauguration. She called it "an extraordinary coincidence". I suppose it is. Or, it is just as it was intended when the possibility of this confluence of events first showed up in the heavenly Lottery Drum of Calendar Events.

The prayer for MLK, Jr, from the Book of Lesser Feasts and Fasts asks that "your church . . . may resist oppression in the name of your love, and may strive to secure for all your children the blessed liberty of the Gospel of Jesus Christ. . .".

I prayed that prayer fervently this morning.

The source of the prayer for the Inauguration was listed as "Prayerpedia". Bless their hearts. I'm sure they meant well.

I suppose someone had to write it. And, for any other inauguration, it would be a good prayer. An appropriate prayer. A prayer that contained reasonable petitions to an omnipotent, all-powerful God.

The first petition: "May your Holy Spirit instill our president of righteousness and the values and principles of your kingdom to exercise the sacred trust of administering the nation."

The second: "Give our new president, his administration, and Congress the ability to honor you by doing what is right, fair, and just for all citizens, especially the poor, hungry, and marginalized."

By the time I got to the third, I had to stop: "We ask that all the people in our nation, irrespective of race, gender, ethnicity, or religious faith be treated with dignity."

I could hear my grandmother say, "Yeah, and people in hell want ice water, too."

It's just that it hurts my heart to have to pray for these things which I know are possible to obtain only through the miraculous power and intervention of God.

It makes my head ache to have to pray for the things that I understand are central to - baked into - the fiber and fabric and DNA of this "one Republic, under God," which is governed by a system of government known as a "participatory democracy".

And, it hurts to know that I am asking for things that this particular elected official is "constitutionally incapable" of achieving.

Hear me, now: There is nothing in the world wrong with praying this prayer. And, there is something to the sentiment that says if you don't ask, how can you expect to receive? And yes, I know that Our God is an Awesome God and that Jesus told us, "with God, all things are possible".

I was sixteen once and sang "Dream the Impossible Dream" from a heart that was filled with altruism and nobility and adolescent hope. And then, I grew up and realized that most miracles happen when your sleeves are rolled up, your work boots are on, and there's a bead of sweat on your brow.

You may even have a few bruises on your body and scars on your heart, and your faith may be shaken, but you know, deep in every fiber of your being, that "this bridge called my back" will be part of what carries us from where we are to where we hope to be - one day, a day we may not see with our own eyes but through the eyes of our children and our children's children.

God works through our work. And, God loves us enough to let us make our own mistakes so we can learn the lessons we couldn't
learn any other way.

So, this is a day when I'm going to "keep my eye on the prize". When I'm going to stay focused on the last words of the poem I heard Amanda Gorman recite at Joe Biden's Inauguration in 2021:

"We will rise from the golden hills of the West.
We will rise from the windswept Northeast where our forefathers first realized revolution.
We will rise from the lake-rimmed cities of the Midwestern states.
We will rise from the sun-baked South.
We will rebuild, reconcile, and recover.
And every known nook of our nation and every corner called our country, our people diverse and beautiful, will emerge battered and beautiful.
When day comes, we step out of the shade aflame and unafraid.
The new dawn blooms as we free it.
For there is always light, if only we’re brave enough to see it.
If only we’re brave enough to be it."

We are still locked in a battle for the soul of this nation. The spiritual war is still waging.

Let's do this.

I hope something good happens to you today.

Bom dia.

The Second Sunday after the Epiphany

 

Good Sunday morning, good pilgrims of The Epiphany Season. We are rolling right into the third of the Great Manifestations of the Incarnation.

The first was the visit of the Magi. The second was his Baptism (a bit off the timeline, but whatever). This week is the miracle at the Wedding Feast in Cana of Galilee. Next week will be Jesus' first sermon in the Temple.

Back to the Wedding. My friend Lindy - a brilliant writer, especially of biblical reflections - calls this story "The Secret Life of Miracles". As she points out, this miracle, his first public miracle, was done in secret - down where the water used for ritual was kept.

There was no wine. Mary, his mother, points that out to him. Why? Dunno. Except, of course, she knew. She knew he could do it. How? Dunno. Maybe he had been practicing around the house?

"Jesus? Jesus, we're out of ketchup. I've got some tomatoes here. Be a good boy and turn them into ketchup for me, please. No, that wood you're sawing for your father can wait. Now, son. I need it right away for the meatloaf."

Or, something.

It's important to note that Cana, like Nazareth, is a little town of absolutely no import. About 10 kilometers from Nazareth, it seems to have been a place most people only passed through on their way to somewhere else. Indeed, it is never mentioned in Hebrew Scripture but three times in Christian Scripture.

So, it is in this out-of-the-way, sleepy little town where nothing ever happens that Jesus performs his first miracle. In secret.

There's another aspect of this story that strikes me. Timing. The wedding hosts didn't know how to pace the serving of the wine so that it would last. Mary knew it was time for Jesus to perform his first miracle, but he, apparently, didn't.

And then, he did. Or, at least, he was convinced by his mother that his "hour had come". When Jesus finally decided that the time was right, he changed approximately 120 gallons of sacred water into wine.

It wasn't just wine, it was primo, top-shelf stuff. Even the wine steward mentioned it to the bridegroom, saying, "Everyone serves the good wine first, and then the inferior wine after the guests have become drunk. But you have kept the good wine until now."

That Jesus. Such an over-achiever! He got an A++ on his very first miracle. Which may have been the reason for his sense of timing. He wanted to be sure he could do his best.

Nah. I think the reason Jesus decided to listen to his mother can be found in the last part of the last sentence. " . . .and his disciples believed in him."

Me? I think he did it because he realized his mother was right. It was time. He needed to do this for his disciples. So they could believe in him. So they could believe in themselves. That, they could have the epiphany that they were right.

Jesus is the Anointed One.

Jesus is the Messiah.

Jesus is the Incarnation of God.

Off I go, then, into this day when yet another snowstorm is predicted.

In the meantime, please enjoy The Rowan Atkins translation of John's Gospel of the Wedding Feast at Cana. It is not (yet) approved by General Convention as an authorized text for public worship, but it is certifiably hilarious.

I hope something good happens to you today.

Bom dia.


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mfRbtaoddIA

Epiphany XII: Ring the bell

Good Saturday morning, good pilgrims of The Epiphany Season.

See that woman in the picture above? The one in the white coat, holding flowers? In the picture on the left, she's standing next to her radiation team. She is "ringing the bell," and everyone is celebrating that she has finished this round of radiation.

She looks pretty good, right? Happiness can do that to a person, even though radiation has pretty much whipped her butt. All the other symptoms are manageable, but exhaustion? Well, exhaustion is a particular poison to a child of immigrants.

I remember, once, as a young child, being bored on a Saturday afternoon. I had done all my chores, and we didn't own a TV. It was raining outside so I couldn't ride my bike. My girlfriend, Maureen, had a cold, so I couldn't play with her. (Besides, her mother wouldn't let me in her house because I was a "dirty Portugee" but that's another story for another time.)

So, my grandmother looked at me and said, "What's wrong with you?" And I, (stupid, stupid girl) took a long, sad sigh and then said, "There's nothing to do."

"There's Nothing to do?" she said. "There's NOTHING to DOOOO?" "What do you mean, THERE'S NOTHING TO DOOO?"

And then, she fixed that problem right quick. For the next hour, I polished the "claw legs" under her dining room table, took off the knobs on her Victrola Radio and polished those, and then, I starched and ironed all the purificators for the church.

I never said those words again. Indeed, I don't think I've ever thought those words again. Now I think, "Hmm . .. what else needs to be done?"

This exhaustion shall pass. I am learning a new skill. I am pacing myself. It's one of the hardest things I've ever done in my life. But, I'm learning.

That other picture? Of the woman on the right, ringing the bell? That's a picture of an old dog who is learning new tricks. And, you know, she's not unhappy about it.

She's just happy to be finished with this phase of her treatment. She's also happy because she knows she's got a week to recover before she starts chemotherapy. She's delighted to look forward to feeling more like herself and maybe, just maybe, completing one of the many projects that have been on 'pause'.

It's a good day today. It's a brand new day, today. The page on this chapter of life is waiting to be turned and opened and written upon. It's a great day to be alive. It's a gift to be alive.

And, that would be enough (Dayenu), but there lies the within this day the distinct possibility that I might be able to be part of something good. Something kind. Something noble. Some little thing that will make a small difference on this day in this life for someone.

I am so grateful. And, that gratitude fills me with a sense of joy.

I hope something good happens to you today.

Bom dia.

Epiphany XI: Amazement

Good Friday morning, good pilgrims of The Epiphany Season. It's another chilly January morning here on the Delmarva Peninsula. The water in front of our house is frozen solid. The Merganser ducks and other waterfowl are not pleased.

The only thing left to do is to simply wait it out until the season changes and the temperature warms as the days grow longer and the sun shines again. And, bundle up in a warm coat, a hat, and some gloves when you go outside. And, warm boots.

I woke up this morning, remembering something my grandmother said, "If you live long enough you will learn a few things. It doesn't mean you're smart or wise. It just means that you'll have acquired a lot of information. It's what you do with that information that makes you smart or wise."

Last night, I completed an entire category in Jeopardy, and then I completed the Double Jeopardy answer. And, it wasn't even Teen Week. Actually, it was The Second Chance Championship.

I even got a few answers that the panel didn't. I think I love it best when that happens. Especially when that happens several times in 30 minutes. That is second only to when I get the Final Jeopardy question and none of the rest of the panel does.

I remembered something I heard the brilliant actor, Emma Stone, say during an interview. She said that what she really, really, really wanted in life was to qualify to appear on Jeopardy. That was her goal. What happened after that was immaterial. She just wanted to qualify to appear on Jeopardy.

She said she had taken the online exam and it had been almost a year but she hadn't heard anything and was really starting to get concerned that she wouldn't make the cut. The interviewer suggested that perhaps she would be invited to Celebrity Jeopardy. Ms. Stone did not want that. "I want to be on Jeopardy with all the other smart people," she said.

And then she revealed that, because of her chosen profession, she had never graduated from high school or college. And, she said, this would be a marker of having attained and acquired enough information in her life that she had "accomplished something."

Mind you, Emma Stone is nothing if not an accomplished actor. She has won not one but two Academy Awards. She has also won two BAFAs (British Academy Film Awards), and two Golden Globe Awards. In 2017, she was the world's highest-paid actress and was named by Time magazine as one of the 100 most influential people in the world.

But, she doesn't have a high school diploma or college degree and all she wants is to qualify and be invited to play Jeopardy.

Isn't that amazing? Aren't we humans odd creatures? Indeed, we may well be the oddest of all of God's creatures.

When the water freezes, Mergansers and other ducks and waterfowl move to open water or migrate to warmer climates. That's not a decision they've made based on information they got at The Elementary School for Ducks and Other Waterfowl.

I know humans who have acquired lots of information in their lives, but they aren't as smart as some ducks. Indeed, as I've observed some of my wildlife neighbors over the years - especially the red foxes, deer, rabbits, and turtles - some of these creatures appear not only smart but quite wise, especially as they tend to and feed their young.

Don't get me wrong, I'm as pleased as I can be with my accomplishment last night. It doesn't prove a thing, however, about my value or worth as a person. It's not a real measure of my intelligence or abilities. It certainly has little or no connection to any wisdom I may have.

No, I think one of the greatest measures of our growth and development, and maturation as a member of the human species is our ability to be compassionate and kind. Because those qualities come from a heart that is filled with gratitude. And, a heart that is filled with gratitude beats in the chest of a human being who understands that all of this life, this very brief time on this very fragile planet, is a gift.

The true measure of the advancement and achievement of our skills and knowledge and wisdom can not really be calculated because it lies in our ability to be amazed.

Rabbi Abraham Joshua Heschel once said that we should get up in the morning and look at the world in a way that takes nothing for granted. It is to understand that "everything is phenomenal; everything is incredible".

I believe that a heart that is filled with gratitude could never treat life casually. Rabbi Heschel said, "To be spiritual is to be amazed."

I think this is what Rabbi Jesus meant when he said that people should become like children to enter the kingdom of heaven.

Somewhere I have a video of one of our grandchildren laughing uproariously as her mother reads "Goodnight Moon." I remember showing that clip to one of my mentors who said, "That's the way it should be when we hear the Gospel in church. It should be such incredibly good news that we giggle like children with pure joy and delight and amazement."

While I think it may piss God off if we don't use the intelligence and skills and talents with which we were blessed to do good in this life, being amazed by the wonders of God as a child is amazed and delighted by simple pleasures is the real measure of our achievement as humans who are spiritual beings.

As Ann Lamott writes, WOW is one of three essential prayers. The other two are HELP and THANKS.

I hope something good happens to you today.

Bom dia.

PS: Please continue to pray for the people in California as they struggle to recover from the devastation of this catastrophic fire.

Epiphany X: It's up to us

Good Thursday morning, good pilgrims of The Epiphany Season. The cold weather - 15 degrees this morning - is rather shocking to the system. Thank God we are blessed to have this wee cozy cottage. Our warmest thoughts and deepest prayers are with our siblings in California who have lost their homes or sustained terrible damage to them, and especially those who have lost the lives of their loved ones.

For many of us, the world feels increasingly out of control. Even with the good news of the cease-fire in Israel-Palestine, the next thirty days are very fragile. So many things could happen - might happen - to cause the whole thing to come crumbling down.

President Biden's farewell speech last night was a work of political brilliance. He did not waste time on self-accolades but simply, briefly highlighted the major accomplishments of his administration.

He said the word: Oligarchy. Said it. Right in front of God and the whole country - indeed, the international stage. He blew the trumpet in Zion, to sanctify a fast and gather a solemn assembly to stay together and stand fast in the democratic principles that founded this great nation.

The Statue of Liberty, he reminded us, was masterfully designed to sway a little when the storms rage. And, he cautioned, so must we.

I could hear Motormouth Maybelle somewhere in my head saying, "Well, love is a gift, a lot of people don't remember that. So, you two better brace yourselves for a whole lotta ugly comin' at you from a neverending parade of stupid."

"It's up to you," he said.

The smooth transition of power is not going to be from one administration to another, but from one former POTUS to the American people.

It's up to us.

We live in a representative democracy. The key to a successful democracy is a highly participatory citizenry. You know what that means: We are going to have to start showing up. We are going to have to start speaking out. And, if you've already been doing that, you've got to start inspiring others to do the same.

Each one, teach one. That was one of the slogans of the Civil Rights Movement. Now is the time to bring that back.

Most importantly, we are going to have to be radical. By that I mean, orthodox. By which I mean "back to our roots."

We are going to have to be intentionally kind to each other.

That feels an impossible vocation in a political culture and climate where cruelty is the point.

No, it doesn't mean that we lie down and let people walk all over us - not unless it is part of an act of peaceful protest.

No, it does not mean that we smile while acts of cruelty are being done in our name. It means that we do not honor cruelty and stupidity by engaging with it. Smile and walk away. And then, work in small groups to agitate, to be subversive, to prevent the emerging social paradigm of cruelty from the place of dominance it is insistent on claiming.

President Biden modeled the calm, kind but strong, insistent, and persistent demeanor we are all going to need to adapt if we are going to get through the next two years before we can take back at least one branch of government.

My mantra these days is "Be kind. Be kind. Be kind." I have to say that, over and over, because honestly? That's not my first impulse. However, it's as MLK Jr said, ""Darkness cannot drive out darkness; only light can do that."

And, the second is like unto it, from the words of Dr. B.R. Ambedkar at the All India Depressed Classes conference in 1942 in India: "Educate. Agitate. Organize."

My daily prayer includes these words from MLK, Jr's letter from the Birmingham Jail. "Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere. We are caught in an inescapable network of mutuality, tied in a single garment of destiny. Whatever affects one directly, affects all indirectly."

It's up to us, now. Let's stay focused and do this. We got a whole lotta ugly that's going to come at us from a neverending parade of stupid. Like the Lady with the Lamp in the harbor, we're going to have to learn to sway in the upcoming storm.

We can do this. Together.

I hope something good happens to you today.

Bom dia.

Epiphany IX: Stones of Hope

 
Good Wednesday morning, good pilgrims of The Epiphany Season. Today is the 96th anniversary of the birth of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., born on this day in Atlanta, GA (1929). He is best known for his work as a leader during the civil rights movement and his commitment to nonviolence.

I don't know about you, but today I need to sit down and shut up and listen to his words rather than my own. Now, more than ever, I need that stone of hope he talked about because today, 5 days before the inauguration of a convicted felon, a narcissistic, self-confessed sexual predator, and an adjudicated rapist, I feel caught on a rising mountain of despair.

In the days to come, may we all strive to reach the "majestic heights of moral maturity." God knows we're going to need it.

On April 4th, 1967, King delivered a speech called "Beyond Vietnam," in which he strongly denounced America's involvement in the Vietnam War. He was concerned that the war was recruiting poor and minority soldiers, that it was draining resources from much-needed social programs at home, and that it was an unjust war anyway, targeting the poor people of Vietnam.

He said, "A nation that continues year after year to spend more money on military defense than on programs of social uplift is approaching spiritual death."

Throughout the next year, he continued to speak out against the war, and said that the civil rights movement and the peace movement should come together for greater strength. He began a "Poor People's Campaign" to fight economic inequality.

On April 4th, 1968, exactly one year after his first anti-war speech, King was assassinated while he was standing on the balcony of his Memphis motel room. He was preparing to lead a protest march in solidarity with garbage workers who were on strike.

He knew of the dangers. He said, "If a man hasn't discovered something that he will die for, he isn't fit to live."

These words are taken from his last speech.

"Strangely enough, I would turn to the Almighty, and say, "If you allow me to live just a few years in the second half of the 20th century, I will be happy."

Now that's a strange statement to make, because the world is all messed up. The nation is sick. Trouble is in the land; confusion all around. That's a strange statement. But I know, somehow, that only when it is dark enough can you see the stars. And I see God working in this period of the twentieth century in a way that men, in some strange way, are responding."

"Men, for years now, have been talking about war and peace. But now, no longer can they just talk about it. It is no longer a choice between violence and nonviolence in this world; it's nonviolence or nonexistence. That is where we are today."

"Now, what does all of this mean in this great period of history? It means that we've got to stay together. We've got to stay together and maintain unity. You know, whenever Pharaoh wanted to prolong the period of slavery in Egypt, he had a favorite, favorite formula for doing it. What was that?"

"He kept the slaves fighting among themselves. But whenever the slaves get together, something happens in Pharaoh's court, and he cannot hold the slaves in slavery. When the slaves get together, that's the beginning of getting out of slavery. Now let us maintain unity."

"Well, I don't know what will happen now. We've got some difficult days ahead. But it really doesn't matter with me now, because I've been to the mountaintop."

"And I don't mind."

"Like anybody, I would like to live a long life. Longevity has its place. But I'm not concerned about that now. I just want to do God's will. And He's allowed me to go up to the mountain. And I've looked over. And I've seen the Promised Land. I may not get there with you. But I want you to know tonight, that we, as a people, will get to the promised land!"

"And so I'm happy, tonight."

"I'm not worried about anything."

"I'm not fearing any man!"

"Mine eyes have seen the glory of the coming of the Lord!!"

I hope something good happens to you today.

Bom dia.

Epiphany VIII: Silence of the lambs

Good Tuesday morning, good citizens of The Epiphany Season. It's one of those cold mornings in January on the Delmarva Peninsula. The high today is predicted to be 31 degrees. Life is good, just cold. Well, outside.

No, actually, that's not true. There's a coldness in my heart this morning that is disturbing to me. I need to say something to someone that will be difficult to do. The question is do I really need to say it or are some things really better left unsaid?

Is it better to "clear the air" or to walk away for a while and check in on the air quality later?

Is it really that important an issue or is it just a big deal right now? And, if it's a big deal right now, what is it in my life right now that is making it so? Or, is it just the accumulation of small, paper-cut grievances that makes it so annoying right this very red hot second?

David Siegenthaler was one of my professors and mentors at EDS (Episcopal Divinity School). He was one of the sweetest men in the universe, quirky and nerdy and occasionally hilariously funny, but always warm and loving and kind. He also had a rapier wit which, when combined with his occasionally biting sarcasm, made for a devastating combination.

It all combined to make him an unforgettable character.

It was David who gave me the best GOE advice: While you're showing them how much you know, don't forget to answer the question. See what I mean?

David also gave me some important guidance in pastoral leadership - something I didn't know I needed to know. Two things, actually.

First, he said that I was always to remember and never to forget that I was not the hero some proclaimed me to be; neither was I the villain some were certain that I was. And, to never, ever believe my own press releases.

Even more importantly, he said that there will always be someone in the church who will write you a letter that contains things about you that are simply not true; accusations will be made that have nothing to do with either reality or truth.

And, he said, you will want to answer that letter and defend yourself. And, you should. Just write out the letter, finish it, and then, tuck it in your drawer and leave it there for three days. And then, after three days, take it out and read it. If it's still what you want to say, the way you want to say it, send it. If not, rip it up and consider whether or not you want to respond to it at all; and if so, how.

I didn't always take that advice. When I didn't, I always regretted it. When I did, I was always deeply grateful.

I think I just answered my own question.

Off I go then.

I hope something good happens to you today.

Bom dia.

Epiphany VII: Resources

 

Good Monday morning, good citizens of The Epiphany Season. I have two resources I wanted to make sure to share with you, in case you need them for yourself or someone in your life.

I think they are revelations, "showings," manifestations of God's light in a particular time of darkness.

There are lots of good resources for understanding and living with Breast Cancer which is so important on so many levels, not the least of which is that cancer threatens your life even while it is taking from you or disfiguring a part of your body that defines you, at least externally, as a woman.

The first is "Dr. Susan Love's Breast Book." by Susan M. Love, MD. The NY Times calls it "A de facto bible for breast cancer patients". That has been my exact experience. (PS The latest is the 7th edition.)

Now, I must say that my hospital and the Cancer Center have been excellent in terms of providing written resources. They teach, teach, teach, all the time, which empowers their patients and families. I have a binder **this thick** with resources and information from them which has been very helpful.

And, nothing can touch Dr. Love's Breast Book. It has a "voice," you know? It's not just a sterile, medical manual or a flat, one-dimensional, bullet-point, illustrated "resource sheet". You get the distinct sense that behind every word is a very skilled, highly experienced doctor who wants to ensure you have all the information you need to actively participate in your health care.

One of the nurses at The Breast Center told me that "informed patients are a joy to work with. You not only make our work so much easier, you make it more rewarding." I told her about Dr. Love's book and she couldn't have agreed more.

Dr. Love died of recurrent leukemia in 2003 but she leaves not only this book but the National Breast Cancer Coalition which provides ongoing, invaluable research and resources to women (and men and transpeople) with breast cancer.

If someone you know or love is diagnosed with breast cancer and you want to "do something to help" ask if they have this book. If they don't buy it for them. It's a bit intimidating, so when you give it to them remind them it's not a "novel". You don't sit down one evening in front of the fire to be entertained by it.

It's a godsend for de-mystifying a horrible, frightening process for breast cancer patients and those who love them. Dr. Love's "voice" is clear, sensible, kind, and thoughtful, with an occasional appearance of a very gentle sense of humor. All of those qualities are necessary when you're faced with cancer. This book will help.

The second book is "The Desert Shall Rejoice: Psalms from the Wilderness of Breast Cancer" by Susan E. Goff. Susan Goff is a visual artist, writer, and PS&OBTW, in 2012, became the first woman elected bishop in The Episcopal Diocese of Virginia.

What Bishop Goff has done is chronicle her journey through Breast Cancer with Psalms, tracing the events from the initial screening mammogram, through her treatment, and onto her "cancerversary." As the blurb on the book jacket says, "The Psalms reflect a journey filled with sorrow, laughter, and (mostly) unshakable hope."

I have given a copy of this book to my surgeon, my radiation oncologist, and my medical oncologist. I've also sent a copy to a dear friend - a sister of my heart - who is fighting another form of cancer. Although this is a book about a woman's journey through breast cancer, this is more about the spiritual battle of a very frightening disease than it is about the specific form of it.

Here's a sample:

Psalm Against
“At Least”
Susan E. Goff

O God, when they start a sentence with “At least,”
please silence their tongues.
When they want to encourage me with “At least,”
please mute their voices.
At least they caught it early.
At least the tumor is small.
At least they don’t do radical mastectomies anymore.
At least you are healthy and strong.
At least you’re still young.
At least you’ve got good insurance.
At least you know that God is with you.
At least you’ll only have four infusions.
At least you’ll only have sixteen radiation treatments.
At least.
At least.
At least.

I don’t want at least.
I don’t want any of the least of these.
I don’t want the pittance
the leftovers
the lowest
the minimum.
I want the most of life
and healing
and grace
and love.
I claim the most of all that you intend, O God.
Life abundant. Even here. Even now.

So when they begin their consolation with “At least,”
let me smile kindly,
trust that they intend more,
and claim the most.

If someone you know or love is diagnosed with breast cancer and you want to "do something to help" ask if they have this book. If they don't, buy it for them.

Bishop Susan's voice, like the voice of many ancient psalmists, is one of searing honesty, generous and startling candor, humor - sometimes "gallows" other times irreverent, wisdom that has been born of pain and suffering, prophetic challenge, compassion for herself and others, and, mostly, love. She's also not afraid to drop an "F-bomb" when that's appropriate.

There are many, many other resources for those who are on The Breast Cancer Camino. These are two I have come to cherish. One provides solid, necessary information; the other provides bedrock spirituality and a way to pray, especially when words seem inadequate or impossible to find.

I hope something good happens to you today.

Bom dia.