In winter we are reminded again that within darkness there is light. We remember how the gray winter clouds appear as a quilt of shadowy darkness, hiding the sun. Yet, eventually they release their moisture and reveal the gift of sunlit snow. Until that happens, we are left with wondering when and where the sun will again appear. In this waiting time we spontaneously gravitate towards those who seem to carry light to others by their quiet presence or wholehearted stories.
The cloud of the massacre in Connecticut is certainly in our hearts and minds these days. All the bearers of light that we have seen surface among people of every age, religion and occupation have provided incredible beacons of light amid darkness. What a powerful daily invitation to willingly create a quiet space or compassionate word as a simple life-giving light during ordinary waiting times. As President Obama said at the recent memorial service for those who died, “Only with our willingness to love one another, take supportive actions and remember we are all one family will we possess the life-giving light we need to walk forward together.”
May we all receive the daily gift of noticing small spaces of darkness around us and walk into them with quiet compassion. May our respectful loving presence help to diffuse these spaces with rays of communal hope. And may the gift of wisdom give us a willingness to wait for divine-timing to reveal again that all will be well on our journey together.
Mary Rachel Kuebelbeck, OSB
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