Mini-manifestoes
. . .we have millions of them;
most unpublished
and nearly all
never shared
especially when it comes to
our own deaths
. . .the little, unnoticed, never-talked-about-or-even-recognized-deaths
that culminate and lead to
THE BIG ONE
. . .many times they lead to
too-sacred-to-speak-of-sabbaths
Sometimes. . .
we get them from others
unaware
unintentional
but more real
than the ever-changing Seasons. . .
Eugene Peterson gave me one this past week. . .
He died
He was the author of many books but his masterpiece was his rewriting of the Bible entitled, THE MESSAGE. . .
I remember reading this when it came out in 2011;
it was his Mini-Manifesto. . .
When I heard of his death on October 22, I re-read it again
and underlined new passages. . .
did I not read them before. . .
did they not spark a little ember in me that they now have. . .
the take-aways
this time
settled into a deeper place
where roots will soon follow:
TWO QUOTES:
“I think that the dying pray at the last not “Please” but “thank-you.”
–Annie Dillard
“Only where graves are is there resurrection.”
–Karl Barth
and this story:
“while visiting a Benedictine monastery, Christ in the Desert, in New Mexico, one of the Brothers was leading us on a path from prayers in the chapel in the refectory where we would have lunch. The path led through the cemetery. We passed an open grave. Jen, my wife asked, “Oh, did one of the Brothers just die?” and the reply was powerfully, impactfully short, “No, this is for the next one.”
My Mini-Manifesto has me celebrating 24 years of doing hospice work as of October 31–Halloween. . .
part of THAT manifesto
is not being taught how to die
BUT HOW TO LIVE
. . .again and again and again and again and again and again and again
the greatest beams of light
find their ways past the griminess of our not-so-hallowed-panes. . .
m i n i- m a n i f e s t o
ALL
of Life is sacred. . .
the roots that grow the deepest
are never fully seen
or known
but they most assuredly exist
and they
n o u r i s h
m i n i – m a n i f e s t o
we grow in the most unsuspecting and unusual places
m i n i – m a n i f e s t o
we are puddles of mud slushed together with the most hallowed of water
m i n i – m a n i f e s t o
the only holy
the only sacred
you need to not only step
wade
splash around in
a b i d e
is your own
m i n i – m a n i f e s t o
it doesn’t need
published
shared
just lived
exclusively
d a i l y
making the mini-manifesto
more than the mere dust we are. . .
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