I Wonder...

Our monastic community blessing Sister Bridgette Powers as she
renewed her monastic profession, taken by Sister Nancy Bauer.

What would it be like to really love the world?

An indigenous storyteller might say...

"To love the world would be to create...or better...to find ceremony
in the return of salmon to Oregon
in the wild strawberries in a father's favorite dessert
in permission sought before destroying the ecosphere
in the green beans crawling up a corn stock for support
in a reverent stance before land, sea, air or animals
or in the magnifying of life and community when I am practical, thoughtful, grateful.

Ceremonies have power...

They fuel our beginnings, values, send-offs into new, bigger life and responsibilities.

Communities create ceremonies...and ceremonies create community:

installation ceremonies
jubilee ceremonies
retreats and deaths
a shared feast, like Babette's
a walk in the forest, an hour near water
or just looking, pondering, loving, praying.

It's all here, all now, in this moment when life is noticed and applauded," says my guru.

"In this moment, we come to know who we are, and to Whom we belong."

Renée Domeier, OSB