One of the gifts of attentiveness is that it opens our eyes to wisdom where we don’t expect to find it. The following poem that I wrote recently considers some unlikely sources of wisdom. May we not allow fear or judgment to obscure the way God may be communicating with us!
Unlikely Messengers
If you
can’t look beyond
the sting
of the bee,
you miss valuable
lessons from
earth’s
masters of
communication
and
teamwork on behalf
of the
common good.
If you
view poetry solely
as a tool
of courtship,
you live
the impoverished
existence
of those who
who never
learn to see
from
another’s perspective
or
practice the art of attention.
If you
hold people
you
dislike in disdain,
you
bypass the truest
mirror of
your own
faults
and weaknesses
with all
the consequences
of an
unexamined life.
If you
only see COVID-19
as an
instrument of death,
you won’t
learn how
the good
life is linked
to
sacrifice, creativity,
and
compassion within
our
shared existence.
In your
restless quest
to learn
what Robert Frost
and countless
other teachers
keep
trying to show you—
that
earth is the right place
for
love—don’t overlook
life’s unlikely
messengers.
—Jennifer Halling, OSB
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