Stand still. The trees ahead and the bushes beside you
Are not lost. Where ever you are is called HERE…….
~David Wagoner

Over the last days I have been looking for words that reflect our upcoming Lenten theme, ‘Holy Way’. The words above of poet David Wagoner begin a poem that reminds us to be in the present moment. This is always a wake up for me, a sometimes not so gentle nudge to be awake and aware in the precious pulse of the day in which I find myself. Not yesterday, which has already etched its memory in my bones. Not tomorrow which I am still trying to twist with my imagination. Today……this HERE that is the gift of the rising and setting sun and the One who set the whole spinning in motion.

I love that this poem reminds us of the stability and wisdom of our fellow earth travelers, the non-human ones, that we often ignore. The deep knowing that the trees, which churn out the oxygen for our lungs, are simply living in the present moment without a sense of being lost or barreling ahead into the next day, the next season. The bushes are doing their own work in the HERE, sheltering us and unseen other creatures, small birds and tiny animals, from the winds that can blow through the day.

Last Thursday most of us hunkered down for the biggest winter storm of the season. For days before its arrival, meteorologists had outlined its coming.They had described,sometimes in great detail, the way the rain would begin, how it would turn into sleet and form a layer of ice. This ice would then be covered by anywhere from 6-12 inches on new snow to fall upon the banks of snow which already tower over the heads of small children. This would be followed by winds, powerful winds, that would push the snow and everything in its wake, around making it difficult and dangerous to travel. This account of the future was told to us over and over. We were wise to listen and heed the warning because it all proved to be true.

As I listened to these words of caution, for some reason I began to think of all the people who have a storm show up in their lives without any kind of warning. No wise person stands with a clipboard or animated computer screens telling them what to expect. There is no way to prepare. They simply didn’t see or know it was coming and then….BOOM…everything changes the HERE of their lives. An illness. A death. The loss of a job. A disappointment so large that it seems an explosion has happened in the very center of their being. No one said it was going to happen. There was no way to prepare. These times which we have all experienced can leave us feeling lost, hopeless, powerless to deal with the here and now.

And yet, for me, those are the times when I am most often offered the wisdom of my other companions on the journey. Human ones are there to comfort and advise, of course. But many times it has as equally been those in Creation who cannot speak words that offer the wisdom I need. The trees stand tall, roots going deep into the ground that holds my feet upright. Even now in this frozen, white landscape they are standing at attention holding out their branches with the buds pulsing to give birth. At the right time. Not yet. They are reminding me of the HERE. These silhouettes of twists and turns that through trunk and branch reach toward the clear, blue winter sky, are waiting with a patience I can only dream of. “HERE”, they are saying, “HERE.”

Predictions of storms to come are often a gift that can help us prepare for something that may or may not arrive. We can fill the fridge with milk, the cupboards with bread, the secret drawers with chocolate to help us endure. But in the end, whether storm of snow or sleet, or heartbreak or hurt, we must live through it, hoping to glean whatever the learnings might be.

It has been my experience that standing still is often a good practice. Standing still, like the trees, resting and relishing the gift of HERE.