Muddy tracks and incorrigible hope…

Hello March and hello you:)

I’ve been courting the quiet and
trying to unhurry about it.
The girl I used to be would’ve been horrified by the gap,
annoyed and shamefaced with all the gaps I’ve come to keep
since my body stopped reliably getting on board
with my plans.
That idealistic sprite has grown into someone far more accepting,
less judgy, even of her own challenging self:)

I want to explain,
to paint a picture that will satisfy the questions
(my own included)
so that it all makes sweet cozy sense.
So far such a paint eludes me.

But I will say “hey!”
And how beautiful it is to see the daffodils pressing
through the cold hard ground,  insisting on beauty.
And how brilliant when they come around again, fresh new mornings,
like a pale sky promise being kept.
And how I’ve loved making little bites of art to tuck into paths and pockets
for someones to find and maybe feel hugged by the hope.
And how I’ve grown some new songs and planted some seeds and found some joy
and carved some grooves and said so many thank you’s
for some changes.

And how I’ve come to think that it’s okay when sometimes all I’ve got to share
is a prayer
which is plenty good enough
because of all the times we humans can feel
we haven’t got one.

So here’s one today – join me if your heart nods yes.
( For Ukraine, for the oppressed.  For every hurting soul)

Lord,
stand up
where the sirens wail
and make peace be at home there.
Into every racing mind,
in the anxious poundings of each aching heart,
let your soothing
breath
rest.
And our own feet,
may they follow hard
after the muddy tracks
of an incorrigible
hope.

Thanks for joining me – squeezing your hand across the waves
with love and a teary smile.

“Prayer is taking a chance that against all odds and past history,
we are loved and chosen, and do not have to get it together before showing up.”
– Anne Lamott

13 Comments

  1. Elizabeth Nelson on March 1, 2022 at 11:32 pm

    beautiful prayer, friend…. thank you for putting this out there for all of us to join in…

    • jennifer on March 2, 2022 at 9:21 am

      Thanks for joining in, Elizabeth – I love your heart:)
      – Jennifer

  2. jeanie on March 2, 2022 at 7:12 am

    Your prayer is beautiful an so heartfelt. It reflects the feelings so many of us share. Courting the quiet. I like that. Sometimes that is where the greatest growth occurs. Biggest hugs to you.

    • jennifer on March 2, 2022 at 9:20 am

      Hey beautiful you:) I’ve missed you:)
      Thanks for your kind words and, yes, it’s been a growy time for me.
      I appreciate those hugs and send a squeeze back with love,
      Jennifer

  3. Susan on March 5, 2022 at 12:49 pm

    Oh, this made me tear up big time. Just your words, your beauty, your hope, your soul … the tears are easy to come for me and have been for awhile but you always help me see that there is so much more than the sadness and fear, there are the daffodils and the sweet notes and the prayers. xoxo

    • jennifer on March 23, 2022 at 8:23 am

      Susan:) Thank you for being a friend:)
      I’ve been a “bad” blogger these past many, many months
      – remember when we learned it’s the consistency that counts
      when blogging (all those years ago!).
      Change came a rolling, for sure!
      Thanks for enduring my wobbly ways and being so friendly
      just the same.
      I really appreciate you!
      – Jennifer

  4. Cathy B Davis on March 6, 2022 at 7:39 am

    Beautiful!!

    • jennifer on March 12, 2022 at 11:43 am

      Hi sweet Cathy!
      Thanks for dropping by
      (wish our actual doors were closer and we could porch-sit together
      and catch up for real:))
      Love you,
      Jennifer

  5. Donna Donabella on March 8, 2022 at 12:53 pm

    I too pray for peace….and I hope against hope for that peace to stand!

    • jennifer on March 12, 2022 at 11:43 am

      Joining you, Donna.
      With you,
      Jennifer

  6. Suzanne McRae on March 21, 2022 at 8:07 pm

    Your words are always so soothing Jennifer. They are like a prayer, like a song that brings comfort. I love your idea or making little bits of art and leaving them for others to find, to give them hope. Thank you for the beautiful post. Sending love… I hope you are doing well. xx

    • jennifer on March 23, 2022 at 8:20 am

      Thank you for your kind words, Suzanne;
      I appreciate the way you see and share
      in this world:)
      Big love,
      Jennifer

  7. Eva on June 17, 2022 at 8:53 am

    And here we are…several months later…and the unrest remains. So many lives shattered. So much sadness, suffering, anger. Whew, this place we call home is struggling and this prayer you shared is a powerful way to remember and to know that God’s got us…during it all. Continued prayers for Ukraine, Buffalo, Uvalde…all of us. Thank you my friend. Sending love and thankful prayers for YOU.

Leave a Comment