Monday, March 20, was the first day of spring. Tonight we
will be having a prayer service to say farewell to winter and welcome the new
season. This prayer is in keeping with our understanding that the basis of
wisdom is common human experience, as noted by Sr. Irene Nowell. Thus, we will gather to reflect on what we experienced during
the winter months. The threshold of a new season provides the opportunity to
determine which memories to discard and which to retain as fertilizer for the
seeds we plant in spring.
Here at the Mount, one of our primary communal memories of
this past winter is the death of Sr. Lou Whipple. We don’t understand why she was
given only 50 years to experience human life and explore the depths of wisdom.
However, as noted in Sirach 24:26, “The first human never finished
comprehending wisdom, nor will the last succeed in fathoming her.” No matter
how many years we live, we will never be able to plumb the depths of wisdom and
achieve total transformation. Nonetheless, we can take comfort in the following
observation by Abbot John Klassen, OSB: “We know that [although] the
transformation … will not be complete in this life, that Christ, with the Holy
Spirit, will bring it to completion.”
Somehow, the wisdom that we do attain in this life and share
with others helps in the evolution of the kingdom of God. Therefore, while we
have breath, it is our task to continue to live in right relationship, observe
life, and learn from our experiences during the cycling of the seasons. When we
come to our final season, we can, like Sr. Lou, let go in trust that Christ
will bring our transformation to completion.
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