At times it seems that life consists of
scaling cliffs and bridging chasms,
bounding moon-ward, leaping mountains,
dancing in the star-filled void,
while through it all a safety-net
of custom, love and promises
makes safe our swift, risk-taking flight.
The Rule of Life safeguards us here,
in heights of mystic ecstasy,
weaving its web of steel-strong strands
from silence, hospitality, and prayer; community
and rest.
At times it seems that life consists of
trolling in a wine-dark sea,
splashing in shallows, breasting waves,
treading water, floating, swimming,
or sinking down to dark abyss,
while through it all we’re held and nourished,
in a diving bell of faith.
The Rule of Life safeguards us here,
in ocean-depths of mystery,
a bubble clear, impervious, shaped from
a meld of self-supporting opposites,
of solitude, companionship, of joyful noises,
quiet trust.
More often, though, it seems
that life consists of walking slow
on solid ground, trudging in desert
wastes, in dim-lit forests, or sliding
helplessly along a crowded thoroughfare,
while through it all, the earth abides, supports us on
the fertile loam of deep-felt vows.
The Rule of Life safeguards us here,
when daily rounds turn dull and worn,
for poverty of spirit grants infinitude of love,
and obedience to that still small voice
frees soul and body for the service of
our God.
Sr. Sue, SSJD is a poet, hymn-writer and spiritual director residing at the Sisterhood’s house in Victoria, B.C.
