My Dickinson, My Cocoa

These last few days have been particularly cold...as cold as Dickinson...

The person I imagine Emily Dickinson to be is almost a shell of a person, blank and bright like snow.  I imagine her through her poetry.  That she was a recluse of sorts who usually dressed head-to-toe in white in her later years, seems to uphold this idea.  But her poetic gift also yields an image of a person not at all shell-like and blank, but rather robust and passionate...

Emily Dickinson's poetry deals with a variety of themes--love, spirituality, death and immortality, and nature.  The following poem by Dickinson is usually called "The Snow" (though she titled none of her poems).  It is a great example of a poem that rather straightforwardly describes a snowfall, but manages to evoke a sense of warmth as well.  I recall in its reading the way I often feel upon returning home after a cold day out, warmth from a cup of hot cocoa and the smiles of my children spreading and edging out the chill of the day...

It sifts from leaden sieves,
It powders all the wood,
It fills with alabaster wool
The wrinkles of the road.
It makes an even face
Of mountain and of plain, --
Unbroken forehead from the east
Unto the east again.
It reaches to the fence,
It wraps it, rail by rail,
Till it is lost in fleeces;
It flings a crystal veil
On stump and stack and stem, --
The summer's empty room,
Acres of seams where harvests were,
Recordless, but for them.
It ruffles wrists of posts,
As ankles of a queen, --
Then stills its artisans like ghosts,
Denying they have been.

First Snow...

The first snow of the season came to us this past weekend.  Of course, I had to go the grocery store.  On top of the fact that I generally do not enjoy grocery shopping, also I am not a cold weather girl.  So, it was with great wailing and gnashing of teeth that I climbed into my car and pulled out of the garage.  Once at the store, I parked and got out of the car.  The cold air hit me like a slap in the face, the stinging flakes lashing at my cheeks.  Greyness cloaked the once-blue sky.  I was officially grumpy.  I hurriedly shopped, scooping up items I needed (but forgetting some, as well) as I walked briskly down the aisles.  Check-out time.  After digging out the credit card, I shoved the groceries into bags and advanced to the exit.

But as I drove home, I recalled the faces of my children as they awoke to the snowfall earlier that morning.  There was wonder in their eyes, and joyous smiles on their lips.   They were bubbling over at the thought of skiing and sledding and building snowmen, so happy at the sight of the falling snow.  I decided to change my perspective, and look at that first snow through their eyes...

First Snow
          by Erika Mehlhaff

First snow
Falling flakes of cold crystal
A soft, white promise
Glistening
Bright
Refreshing
New
Like Spring

Reminders...

I have been reminded in the last 24 hrs that even in my most stressful moments, my most worrisome moments, my most empty and hopeless moments, I surely have been blessed beyond what I deserve. 
I have been blessed to have the best people in my life, and so many awesome experiences and adventures.  I am truly lucky.

But what if, in a split second, my whole world was turned upside down?  What if some small thing changed the trajectory of my life forever?  What if my story was edited to become "someone else's story?"

There are many events and occassions that might change a life.  Some are planned; some are unplanned; some are happy and exciting; some are heartbreaking.  There are marriages and births and goals met; there are divorces and deaths and dreams unrealized.  And all of these things are blessings.  "Even the negative things?" you might ask.  Absolutely.  If it can enrich one's life, clarify one's purpose, and/or bring one closer to God, it is a blessing!  Each blessing, small or large, directs us to be who we are supposed to be and to live how we are supposed to live--even if it is not in line with our plans for ourselves!  Each blessing, small or large, is a reminder of God's plan for each of us!

I am reminded today to count my blessings.  I hope to be a reminder to others to do the same...

Truth...

Truth, a trio of haiku
               by Erika Mehlhaff
  
Unveiled Truth, distinct
Full and empty all at once
That which makes us whole

Unveiled Truth, entire
Amends the insufficient
Makes us better men

Unveiled Truth, perfect
Unmitigated guidance
Bold reality

***
There is no film of any kind, nor spoken word nor song, that can unveil the Truth like the written word.  Whether as fiction or nonfiction, prose or poetry, Truth written in earnest spills forth as clearly and completely as the ink from that which would transcribe it.

The written word allows us to process Truth within ourselves, and then apply it in our lives.  It is then that we are faced with the choice of what to do in the name of that Truth.  It is then that we are challenged to do right, even when it would be easier to do otherwise.  It is then that we are challenged to be bolder, brighter, better men.

Truth is what guides us all, in some way or another.  Truth, often obscured by the universe, is our bold reality.  Do you recognize the Truth?

Today, I feel November-ly...

November seems one of the best months of the year for poetry.  Poetry in Autumn can do something for the soul, either settling into it like the chill of the wind settles into one's bones, or warming it like a blazing fire warms one's hands...

November

         by Erika Mehlhaff

November brings melancholy.

There is rain...and wind.

There is a coldness that

Rounds out the days

And surrounds us like a shell,

Empty and strange and colorless and anemic...

And yet...

November brings peace.

There is rain...and wind.

There is a warmth that

Rounds out the days

And surrounds us like a shroud,

Open and familiar and radiant and sanguine...

                      ***

Happy November to one and all...

Gardening for Glory

My daily devotions are all online.  Today, the focus was on the words from Luke 8:15:

But as for the seed that fell on rich soil, they are the ones who, when they have heard the word, embrace it with a generous and good heart, and bear fruit through perseverance.

The question of whether or not the soil of my life is rich enough for the seed to be planted is easily answered for me.  The Word of God has taken root in my heart already, and I try to tend that garden every day!  However, as I reflect on this more deeply, I am faced with the question of whether or not I can prepare the hearts of others in the same way...

How can I prepare soil that seems to fight back with me at every opportunity?  What can I do to clear out the weeds and rocks and fertilize that soil?  My only recourse has been prayer--my own and those I have requested.  And though I would like to think that prayer is enough for everyone, I am faced with the possibility that for some, more than prayer is needed.  I am faced with the possibility that I am missing something.  But what could it be...?

I will continue to pray that the Word might take root with less resistance in the hearts of those who need to hear it the most.  And I will pray for some enlightenment as to what else I can do to encourage this.  It is my great hope that the hearts around me ALL transform into lush and fragrant gardens of the Word, and that we can cultivate them together for God's greater glory.

E.

A link to today's devotion:  http://www.loyolapress.com/assets/Bookcovers/58916_rich-soil.swf

A prayer...

O Lord my God,
Teach my heart this day where and how to see you,
Where and how to find you.
You have made me and remade me,
And you have bestowed on me
All the good things I possess,
And still I do not know you.
I have not yet done that
For which I was made.
Teach me to seek you,
For I cannot seek you
Unless you teach me,
Or find you
Unless you show yourself to me.
Let me seek you in my desire,
Let me desire you in my seeking.
Let me find you by loving you,
Let me love you when I find you.
                                        --St. Anselm