Today I found my stone of hope. It is a smooth white stone which I received on my first visit to Silver Bay back in September. The stones were given as small gifts to the newest spiritual guidance program participants. They have been prayed with by past participants and passed along to the newest journeyers, so that we might also hold them in our palms during prayer.
But my special stone has been been missing for the past month. I thought it was lost for good-- but somehow it magically appeared in a pocket of my purse this morning! (I could have sworn I'd already searched my purse.) I was in my car when I found it- in the parking lot at my daughters' school after dropping them off- and as I drove away, I noticed the sign of the first street on my right: Stone Street. It is a street I have turned down so many times, but until today had never even noticed the name. Hmm...
So why does any of this even matter? Well, I have actually been thinking about the "stone of hope" quite a bit since last Saturday. It was on that day that I had been driving around running errands with my 8 year old daughter, Camille, and flipping through the radio stations when I landed on a recording of Martin Luther King's full "I have a dream" speech. Camille was as attentive as I was, listening to the powerful cadence of the preacher's voice--
...With this faith we will be able to hew out of the mountain of despair, a stone of hope.
There it was. Alleluia. Blessed Be.
The stone of hope.
And what are we without hope? How can we recover ourselves, our communities, our wholeness and healing without this most precious of stones? And where- in this crazy world- do we find hope?
This week my spiritual director spoke of hope in his weekly eblast to his list, as the Hope Center that he and his community have established officially opened its doors. I have written of this before; this is the place in the inner city of Newburgh where I find much hope and light for the city.
It is also a stone of hope which is held up in this video, in words spoken to deploying troops, by a chaplain I know who embodies the presence of peace in the midst of conflict.
These people and places have played a significant part in my spiritual journey. In so many ways, they are my hope.
But my special stone has been been missing for the past month. I thought it was lost for good-- but somehow it magically appeared in a pocket of my purse this morning! (I could have sworn I'd already searched my purse.) I was in my car when I found it- in the parking lot at my daughters' school after dropping them off- and as I drove away, I noticed the sign of the first street on my right: Stone Street. It is a street I have turned down so many times, but until today had never even noticed the name. Hmm...
So why does any of this even matter? Well, I have actually been thinking about the "stone of hope" quite a bit since last Saturday. It was on that day that I had been driving around running errands with my 8 year old daughter, Camille, and flipping through the radio stations when I landed on a recording of Martin Luther King's full "I have a dream" speech. Camille was as attentive as I was, listening to the powerful cadence of the preacher's voice--
...With this faith we will be able to hew out of the mountain of despair, a stone of hope.
There it was. Alleluia. Blessed Be.
The stone of hope.
And what are we without hope? How can we recover ourselves, our communities, our wholeness and healing without this most precious of stones? And where- in this crazy world- do we find hope?
This week my spiritual director spoke of hope in his weekly eblast to his list, as the Hope Center that he and his community have established officially opened its doors. I have written of this before; this is the place in the inner city of Newburgh where I find much hope and light for the city.
It is also a stone of hope which is held up in this video, in words spoken to deploying troops, by a chaplain I know who embodies the presence of peace in the midst of conflict.
These people and places have played a significant part in my spiritual journey. In so many ways, they are my hope.
And perhaps they are also my call...though I still ask the question how.
[I can see my spiritual director nodding and saying: You'll know.]
It is without doubt that I will follow wherever the call will lead...though I can certainly do nothing on my own. The stone of hope I hold can only be hewed from the mountain of despair by the joined hands of many in beloved community on this journey to wholeness and healing.
May it be so.
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