Be The Light
The Lights Went Out
and I was thrust into the volcanic ash
of the terror within me
as Lent unfolded
with kids who went
to school
just like the ones I love
only they didn’t go home
from the Florida school
that now lives within me
and I felt my heart break open
as I listened to the wrenching news
and I could only feel the dark
Lent is not something
that marks the calendar
and creates a diet plan
with a spiritual bonus
Lent
is where the lights go out
and we meet the others
who have spent time sitting in
the pit of darkness
without a single spark
like
Sarah, and Moses, and Mary of Magdelene
Jacob, and Matthew, and Miriam and Ruth
Martha and Isaiah, Joshua and John
and you
and me
Lent
bids us to let go
of what has always been
and the parts of life
that no longer fit
that clutter
that keep us numb
and
none of it matters
if we are not willing to
stop trusting the darkness
and to be willing to
Lent
asks
us
Not to Look for the Light
but to
Be The Light
and to be willing to be the light
When the Lights go out
and kids don’t go home
and we choose again
FAITH, NOT FEAR