God and I were sitting in our pajamas near a nice fire, watching the sky, hoping the storm wouldn’t bring the cold temperatures predicted. Hoping the planet would somehow survive the ravages of greed. I was examining an ugly bruise on my forearm. Essentially, bruises occur when capillaries near the surface break and spill blood. Thin skin increases the risk.
Thousands of years ago, a prophet wrote that God wouldn’t take advantage of a bruised reed. There was no mention of bruised arms, egos, or disintegrating hips, but why would this assertion be necessary? What kind of God would go around beating up injured, weakened people, or break an already bruised reed?
“Um, God,” I say, “What’s your point with that whole bruised reed thing?”
God’s full attention swings toward me, a lumbering presence, a set of boots. I pull my sleeve down to cover the purple blotch. A tiny fraction of God’s focus is enough to end life as we know it, but I risk such things because in the end, it doesn’t matter. We’re sitting on a second-hand couch. I don’t care if it gets scorched.
“Why do you ask?” God says, warm breath laced with lavender and the allure of summer.
“Nice move,” I mumble and shift my gaze to the sparrows landing on the icy fence. As most four-year-olds know, Why? has no final answer. Asking why is a way to prolong the conversation, to shift the burden back.
I turn again to the God on my couch. “I ask because…” I am inundated with unwelcome insights. I hate bruised reeds. If I were God, I’d make a bonfire out of those damned reeds. How is it possible to walk alongside the bruising and the bruised? I don’t like wounded healers, and I don’t want to be one.
We sit. The wind is picking up, the chill becoming dangerous.
The ancient gaze of God is kind. “You love what you think is whole and beautiful because your vision is shallow.”
I close my eyes.
The primordial voice of God is gentle. “You love stories with endings because the untold threatens your sense of control.”
I cover my ears.
The wounded hand of God is warm as it hovers over mine. “You love stones because the bruises don’t show.”
I open one eye.
It’s not a single hand but a thousand; mottled, thick veined, and open. I choose one, entwine our fingers, and wait. God willing, the frozen ground will eventually soften toward spring when both planting and burying will be easier. “Oh, we’re willing,” God says as the sky dumps snow. “But are you?”
I really like the line, “… vision is shallow.” Very deep 😉
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Yes, thin skin and shallow vision–these are problems humans must contend with. Happy Easter.
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Beautiful, Rita. Truly exquisite. My Sunday church.
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Hi Polly. I hope your Easter moments were filled with meaning and challenge….this is what makes us know we’re alive. Thanks so much for your kind comments.
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I keep loving your words and the way God speaks through your hands. may all our hands do such work.
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Kendra, thanks. It is a weird experience to let the typing stumble its way along to some kind of honest truths, such as they are. May all our hands find their way along in compassion.
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Beautiful. Your words are a balm for me in these weary times. Thank you!
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Thanks so much. They are a balm for me, too. It’s one way to hold on.
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