John 6:29, 13:34, 16:33
"The work of God is this: to believe in the one he has sent."
"A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another."
"In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world."

Song of Serenity

When the world is all too much with me
and the worries pile up endlessly,
when my tear-filled eyes make it hard to see
and I cannot find serenity...
Through the endless years you call my name,
You, the Holy One, always the same.
I can trust in you: you will carry me.
You have shown yourself full trustworthy.
For I do believe even when I fail
Your grace and love always will prevail.
And not only I, but every human soul
Is offered love, and to be made whole.

The work you call us all to do,
all you ask of us, is to believe in You.
There's a message we are sent to tell-
the New Command: love each other well.
Troubles, they will come, but I can rest assured.
I take heart for you have overcome the world.
So I ask in all humility
equip me, Lord, with serenity.
-HJ Sept. 17, 2009

 
Kiche Manitou campground
Spruce Woods Park, Manitoba

Restful silence.
Distant raucous crow.
A lone goose honked its way
across the early morning sky
as we lazed in snug sleeping bags
protected from the autumnal chill.
Woodsmoke curling,
woody vines twining,
leaves just beginning to change colour.

Jar of clay

 

This jar of clay is giving way.
The glaze is gone, its edges worn.
Hairline cracks leave winding tracks
that weren't there when it was born.
All 'round its base the wrinkles chase,
where once was surface smooth and gloss.
Now many a chip on the old jar's lip,
the question: is it gain or loss?
Is passing time really such a crime
if we're destined to be made anew?
Or must this life cease to bring sweet release
and let pure crystal waters flow through.
Whether loss or gain, old age is a pain,
though there's comfort we can take:
life's grief scratches deep, then a restful sleep,
sweet escape from the jar when we 'wake.
-HJ Aug 29, 2009

Just So

Stand in a pool
that is oh so cool
on an overworked hot hot day.
Lean your head back,
let your body go slack
and your limp limbs float away.
Beneath the cool flow
let all troubles go
and heal your soul's disarray.
Just so: long motorcycle ride,
Or a book long denied,
Or an hour alone, to pray.

"Oh God, save me from myself, save me from myself...this masterful self which manipulates your creation...this self which throws the thick shadow of its own purposes and desires in every direction in which I try to look, so that I cannot see what it is that you, my Lord and God, are showing to me. Teach me to stand out of my own light, and let your daylight shine." -Austin Farrer, quoted in Absolute Truths by Susan Howatch

Heaven goes by grace. If it went by merit, you would stay out and your dog would go in. -Mark Twain

 

Worry is an open wound
in the stomach-pit of your mind.
The ache may ease momentarily
but is never far behind.
You poke it and prod it
in morbid distress,
and when partly healed
pick scabs and bleed fresh.
Ignore the pain and continue your work
but suddenly stand glazed of eye
and frozen in panic as you see
parades of possible horrors pass by.
Tomorrow the wound may be healed and forgotten
and calmer days will follow,
but maybe the worst that you feared will come true
and leave your life empty and hollow.

HJ Aug 22/09

 

BE STILL
"You have striven so hard, and so long, to compel life. Can't you now slowly change, and let life drift into you? Surely it is an even greater mystery and preoccupation even than willing, to let the invisible life steal into you and slowly possess you". - D H Lawrence, in a letter to a friend

 
A timid child in a fearful place
afraid of the world, with a hidden face,
surrounded by strangers and possible pain,
wanting nothing more than home again;
imagine the touch of a gentle hand,
a loving look, a promised land.

Thus almighty God, the infinite power,
comes as gentle lamb in the weeping hour.

-HJ July 19, 2009

 

My head a pathetic fogginess that I can hardly see through,
not wanting to waste the opportunity of solitude,
I strain to focus,
chart my course through cloud to clarity,
longing for truth to declare itself,
and hoping I'm able to receive it.

Though a seeker of truth
I'm a lover of learning,
Love words, but not the speaking of them.
When spoken they are lost, gone from me.

Pure truth, let fall one crystalline sparkling drop,
distill my muddy mental waters;

Pure beauty, but a glimpse I ask,
one quick clear vision;

Pure love, if I could hold for one mere second
just a corner of your hem;

Evermore remembrance
could keep me on the road.

-HJ July 19, 2009