humble moment

Humility is the attitude of one who is like the soil.
Humility comes from the Latin word, humus, fertile ground.
The fertile ground is there,
unnoticed,
taken for granted,
always there to be trodden upon.
It is silent,
inconspicuous,
dark and yet it is always ready to receive any seed,
ready to give it substance and life.
The more lowly
the more fruitful
because it becomes really fertile
when it accepts all the refuse of the earth.
It is so low that noting can soil it,
humiliate it;
it has accepted the last place and cannot go any lower.
In that position
nothing can shatter the soul's serenity,
its peace
and joy.
Anthony Bloom

new moment

one does not discover new lands

without consenting to lose sight of the shore

for a very long time

Andre Gide

whisper moment

a whisper

allows me to cry

in the garden

of God's grace

silent moment

there is a stillness in the air
and in the land
this day

a crispness
in this valley between seasons

earlier I bundled up
to walk deep into the woods
to stand
among the quiet standing

leaves rained down
noiseless
falling
and landing

it was as if the land
was being soaked
with silent tears

and I thought of those
who cry alone
in the night
unseen
unheard

and I prayed for arms
to come 'round

a shoulder
to lean on

a hug

a wordless touch .........

messy moments

while making squash soup the other day
I found myself hesitating a bit
before plunging my hands into the gucky part
the part that contains the seeds
the seeds which carry new life

and I thought of ministering within the body
how it is sometimes necessary
to plunge into the gucky part
get our hands dirty
in order to reach
and free
the seed buried within

the seed that carries new life

speech and silent moment

God the Father has only spoken one Word, his Son.
Sometimes we make music for the Lord in conversation --
for speech is a blessed gift.
Sometimes we rest together side by side, in the presence of the Word;
a deep sharing can then take place.
The divine Word will instruct us.
Perhaps what we all need is to listen a little more attentively
to the stirring of his Spirit within us,
that we may know the time to speak
and the time to be silent,
so that both speech and silence
will be used only for God’s glory

written by a Modanna House worker