Time

Every day we are engaged in a process of give and take - with ourselves, others and our environment. We have fairly well formed ideas about what it means to give and take. We not only understand, but feel this process.

One seemingly paradoxical instance of this process struck me recently: talking and listening.

I had previously thought of talking as giving, and listening as receiving, and I suppose in some ways it is, but I think there's a bit more to it than that.

Being heard and known to others is an important part of being in community and feeling fully human. When I feel heard; that is to say, when someone has listened to me, I have most certainly received something. And conversely, when I have listened to someone, I have definitely given something.

What is it though, that we are giving and receiving? Well, I think there are a few things: time, effort, attentiveness, energy, care. I imagine the list is extensive, but finding (making!) time to be meaningfully present with another is clearly at the heart of the exchange.

I appreciate each individual person has different needs, and while this exchange seems more valuable to some than others, there are surely few gifts of greater worth than time. It is a commodity we all have (some in greater measure than others) and spend in one way or another.

How indebted we are to those significant people in our lives whose gift of time has shaped and transformed us into who we are today! And what greater responsibility do we have than to spend it wisely?

Life

Life is...

So much can, and has, been said.

Life is fragile, and we need to make good decisions to continue living and enjoying a good quality of life. We want to live and be happy. In recent years I have acquired some first aid training; first aid kits; self-defence skills; a fire plan; health and safety knowledge; nutritional understanding, etc. All these things promote quality and quantity of life - for both others, and myself.

Life is temporary, and while we're here, we must make the most of it.
The great philosopher, Socrates, is credited with saying, 'The unexamined life is not worth living'.
To get the most out of life, it is well worth considering what is really important to us, and how we think we might best live our lives. What is our vision for our future? What is our purpose? What do we value?

Life is eternal. Eternal life has come to be primarily associated with quantity of life, but this understanding does not do justice to the qualitative element of eternal life. Eternal life has begun.

Life is beautiful! We are amazingly beautiful creatures, and there is so much good in our world.
Invictus, a short poem by English poet William Ernest Henley (1849–1903), made popular for many by the recent film with the same name, finishes with the inspiring words:

'I am the master of my fate:
I am the captain of my soul'.

Life is beautiful. We can make it beautiful, even when it seems hard to see how that is possible.

Life is valuable; both our own life, and others. It is distressing when people do not value life in their words and/or actions. Life is precious and we honour ourselves, each other and God when we live in a way that values life.

So much more could and must be said, however I will draw this entry to a close with two words and three dots that invite you to further consider and discuss this reality that is life.

Life is...

A Prayer for the Suffering

The tragedy in Haiti, like so many human tragedies before it, has momentarily shaken many of us out of our comfortable, hyper-real lifestyles.

Suffering is part of the human experience, and most of the time, most of us will do just about anything to avoid it; both other's suffering and our own. But sometimes, as now, it is in our face and we simply have to deal with it.

One thing we like to do with suffering is throw money at it, as it makes us feel better. Of course, we should give money (and can: www.salvationarmy.com.au/). Many of us also like to pray at times like this. Again, it makes us feel better, and we hope makes some kind of difference.

But what disasters, such as the one in Haiti, really highlight is that something much more profound needs to happen. Somehow, we need to collectively reconsider where it is we are going, and would like to go, as a people. Somehow, we need to see a new humanity emerge that values people over power and money.

I hope future generations prove more successful at solving the 'somehow' than my generation, and the generations before mine have been.

Anyway, a prayer was promised and is due. My fourteen month old daughter is sick with a cold, and I include her in my prayer too.


Dear God,

We remember today, those is Haiti who are suffering; those mourning the loss of loved ones, lost themselves, physically broken, angry, frightened, alone.

We pray for swift assistance. We pray for peace. We pray that you will fill the empty space in our prayers where we don't even know what to pray for.

We pray that we would not remain uneffected and indifferent to those suffering in Haiti, in the same way that we are not indifferent to those suffering in our homes. Help us to reconsider what we value; and enable us to live our values each day.

We also pray for forgiveness. Forgive us for those things we do (and do not do) that perpetuate injustice, destroy communities, and degrade and dehumanise those you love.

We pray for all those suffering. We pray for ourselves. We pray for change.

God be with us,
Amen