As I sit with people, the truism that people do things when they*re ready to do them comes home again and again. I have the privilege of talking about parables this Sunday. One of the beauties of a parable is that there is no one interpretation of them. They have layers of interpretation. Jesus* parables turn the world upside down and inside out. They beg a nuanced understanding. No matter where one is in life, whether one is going breakneck speed or slogging, there is room in a parable to enter and sift and reach an understanding, then do the same tomorrow, and find new understanding. Each of us takes life at her own speed, his own speed. The tortoise and the hare. Sometimes we are blessed to see it.
Each of us takes life
At her own speed.
Such a simple thing to learn.
I had to slow
To see it.
Even now I sit sidelined
For numbers of slow days
Watch the sun*s slow illumination
Of the trees
The yard
The ducks
Even the mountain ash filled with cedar waxwings
This morning.
Sidelined
I watch things move
At their own speed:
The tortoise plods
The hare races
Until they are finally nothing
But dust
Yet more;
Each to his own speed
Her own speed
Both finally dust
And more.
The tortoise takes a slower time
To get there.
The hare thinks it is a race.
Both get there
Anyway.
Such a simple thing to learn.
In the end we are dust
Yet so much more than dust.
Loved and lovely dust
And really so much more,
No matter how long it takes
To get there.
All new growth and new life requires time for roots to form before the sprouts can burst forth into the sun. And, more importantly, we need to have strong healthy roots to sustain the future growth of stems and flowers, and produce fruit. Enjoy this time - it will produce great fruit - all in its own time.
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