Last weekend I attended a worship service that had its basis in Celtic spirituality. The music was wonderful…bagpipes, harp and drums….. and the poetry of the words filled me to overflowing. One line in particular from a song has stuck with me: "On the road we live as trav’llers, as pilgrims, as guests of the world." The words were adapted from the words of St. Columbanus, 543-615 A.D. a mystic of the Celtic tradition.

When was the last time you thought of yourself as " a guest of the world"? Isn’t it a lovely though? "Hello, my name is _________ and I am a guest of the world. " What would it be like to have that as an introduction? Instead of introducing myself as a wife, mother, minister, woman, sister, whatever…..say instead, and I would imagine with a certain bit of feeling, " Hello, I am a guest of the world. It is a pleasure to meet you." Perhaps, the words even need a bow of sorts.

Just saying those words makes me feel such gratitude to this world that has welcomed me. Saying them makes me want to sit up straighter, feel proud of being invited to this party, at this time, with all of these beautiful people,with such elaborate surroundings. Think of the differences in our behavior if we thought of ourselves as guests instead of residents or even citizens of the world. I think we might be more inclined to use our best manners, walk more kindly, dress ourselves up for being hosted by this amazing planet, this generous Earth.

Today is an especially exquisite day…fall colors beginning to emerge, sun shining brightly, geese flying overhead moving from this party to another, children playing with abandon outside. The gardens know that soon the clock will strike and that their time as guests will be over. And so it is with each of us.

And so today, at this moment in time, I pray that you are pleased that you’ve been issued an invitation, , that you have accepted with grace, that you feel as blessed as I do to be " a guest of the world."