Dear Friends,
Last Thursday we celebrated Earth Day, and I received a reflection from a friend about grass. I found it so delightful and inspirational that I thought I would share some of it with you.
Did you ever notice where grass grows? So many times, it come up in-between cracks in the sidewalk or in spots you would not imagine. “I am grass. We are grass. We need to grow where we are planted… Not necessarily where we are expected… And when we are stepped upon and crushed – Holy Spirit – renew us that we may come back stronger and not allow anything to stuff us in a box, or keep us in our place… If we are living in His image, we are not meant to be stifled…” (Franciscan Media).
When I read this, I so identified with the grass! You try to grow where you are and at times you can be stepped on, whether it be ideas or projects or just ways of being. The Holy Spirit and prayer need to be part of the healing and going forth… the energy to be renewed. There are times after being stepped on that the grass looks bent and broken, but we, through prayer and the support of others, are able to lift our heads and look to the Son! So it is with the grass; it struggles to look at the sun and continue to grow.
Can we be like the grass, and grow where we are least expected to be? Can we survive being stepped on, crushed? Can we be flexible enough to go to a new space, an uninvited place, and be find a way to grow? These are tall orders, but if the grass can do it, so can we! All those things that get in the way of our growth are just stumbling blocks that have no life; we, the grass, are a living organism.
Earth Day helps us remember the beauty and frailty of our planet, and the wonder of our God. (Make sure to check out the full moon this week!) If God took the time to make all these wonderful creations, don’t you think He would make sure to take care of us? Trust and spring back from crushing blows, the Lord is near!
Take time this week and see how you are like the growing grass. See how you respond to all the things that can and will happen to grass, for we all part of this wonderful earth.
Till next week,
Sister Theresita
P.S.: We in our local community prayed an Earth Day prayer and here are two quotes that were part of the service. Thought you might want to ponder these as well:
"You cannot get through a single day without having an impact on the world around you. What you do makes a difference, and you have to decide what kind of difference you want to make."
Jane Goodall
"Humankind has not woven the web of life. We are but one thread within it. Whatever we do to the web, we do to ourselves. All things are bound together... all things connect."
Chief Seattle
