...The spiritual side, from various traditions.
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Source of the Universe, grant me the ability to be alone. May it be my custom to go outdoors each day among the trees and grass, among all growing things, and there may I be alone, and enter into prayer, to talk with the One to whom I belong. May I express there everything in my heart, and may all the foliage of the field, all grasses, trees and plants, awake at my coming, to send the powers of their life into the words of my prayer so that my prayer and speech are made whole through the life and spirit of all growing things, which are made as one by their transcendent Source. ~ Nahman of Bratslav I thank God for most this amazing day; for the leaping greenly spirits of trees and a blue true dream of sky; and for everything which is natural, which is infinite, which is yes. ~ e. e. cummings Spring Prayer We rejoice and give thanks: For earthworms, bees, ladybirds and broody hens: For humans tending their gardens, talking to animals, Cleaning their homes and singing to themselves, for the rising of the sap, the fragrance of growth, The invention of the wheelbarrow and the existence of the teapot, We rejoice and celebrate and give thanks. ~ Michael Leunig O God, We thank you for this earth, our home; for the wide sky and the blessed sun, for the ocean and streams, for the towering hills and the whispering wind, for the trees and green grass. We thank you for our senses by which we hear the songs of birds, and see the splendor of fields of golden wheat, and taste autumn's fruit, rejoice in the feel of snow, and smell the breath of spring flowers. Grant us a heart opened wide to all this beauty; and save us from being so blind that we pass unseeing when even the common thornbush is aflame with your glory. For each new dawn is filled with infinite possibilities for new beginnings and new discoveries. Life is constantly changing and renewing itself. In this new day of new beginnings with God, all things are possible. We are restored and renewed in a joyous awakening to the wonder that our lives are and, yet, can be. Amen. |
*Excerpt from 'Listening to Spring' How quietly the earth breathes forth new life. How eagerly the sun bleeds forth the spring. I AM LISTENING I am listening to seeds breaking open, to roots growing strong beneath the ground, to green shoots rising up from winter wombs. I am listening to thorns blossoming, to barren branches laughing out new growth, to wildflowers dancing through the meadows. I AM LISTENING I am listening to the forest filling up with song. I am listening to the earth filling up with life. I am listening to trees filling up with leaves. I AM LISTENING I am listening to the rain drops giving hope to thirsty gardens. I am listening to the orchards pregnant with new life. I am listening to the flowers bursting forth in rainbow colors. I AM LISTENING I am listening to the growing in the garden of my heart. I am listening to my heart singing songs of resurrection. I am listening to the colors of life. I AM LISTENING *Taken from The Circle of Life, 2005, by Joyce Rupp, Macrina Wiederkehr. Used with permission of Ave Maria Press I ask all blessings, I ask them with reverence, Of my mother the earth, Of the sky, moon, and sun my father. I am old age: the essence of life, I am the source of all happiness. All is peaceful, all in beauty, All in harmony, all in joy. ~ Anonymous Navaho 19th-20th century O God, I thank You for this day of life for eyes to see the sky for ears to hear the birds for feet to walk amidst the trees for hands to pick the flowers from the earth for a sense of smell to breathe in the sweet perfumes of nature for a mind to think about and appreciate the magic of everyday miracles for a spirit to swell in joy at Your mighty presence everywhere. ~ Marian Wright Edelman |