The rule is this, if the spirit moves, then speak up to 7 minutes... silence... then others can try to guide you closer to God... silence... the spirit moves another to speak our story and the cycle goes on till we have all spoken.
I have a friend, who I know from inside these groups. She may have never gone first before this past Friday. She is a lover of pugs.
In October she spoke of ...
a degenerative disease draining the life force from Molly, the pug.She breaks the silence. She says, "Molly has died." I listen to her story.
a cart that brings joy to Molly whose hind legs are no longer supportive.
a woman who fell in love with Molly while watching her for my friend who was out of town.
My mind wonders back 5 hours as she speaks. A friend at school was wondering a bit about whether or not it is right to donate money to an organization that provides carts to dogs in need when humans are starving.
I say, "I have this friend... the cart brings joy to the dog who is OK except for those hind legs... my friend is struggling with knowing the right time to bring peace to Molly...
I listen in silence and I hear the struggle leading up to Molly's last trip to a vet...
Calling the woman, who fell in love with Molly, to be part of Molly's passing.When she falls silent. I let the others speak first before I tell her that just that day, my school had made a donation...
Calling her son to come say goodbye to the first dog he ever had.
Molly's sadness of being unable to be joyful.
Saturday morning, this post is forming in my head. But instead of blogging I go to say hi to some Flickr friends and there I was greeted by ...
All rights reservedit seems my friend Blamstur has a pug... meet Olive, who if one can believe titles is "Always thinking..."
How did I find this new friend, who has a pug? I remember. A while back, I did a search at Flickr for a small town where I lived while teaching in Massachusetts. Here is what I found...
All rights reservedThere are some things that even I can't forget. Besides that sign I remember autumn in New England and I joyfully watched it happen at Blamstur's site...
All rights reserved (clicking on any of the photos will take you to it's page at Blamstur's site)My friend who lost her dear pet, speaks of not being able to love as deeply as Molly did. If she heard her voice Friday while I sat in silence, she might have less doubts about her ability to love.
peace, hope, joy, and love...
... keep unfolding
The picture of the autumn leaves is stunning. I am sorry for your friend - it is hard to say goodbye to a dog that has been part of your family for so long.
ReplyDeleteI miss the group that I used to pray with desperately. I miss the silence. I miss the love. Your post made me realize it all the more. They meet on a day that I have class. I know it's just this year but the spiritual sustenance has not been replaced.
Kathryn--- I know what you mean. I was not in a group last year. I hope we both can be in one next year
ReplyDeleteThis is such a beautiful post.
ReplyDeleteGannet Girl--- thanks, However, truth be bitterly told: I have been spending too much time at the computer, that fact came crashing down in a way yesterday. Interestingly it would make for a good blog post. Need the wise middle ground. We will see.
ReplyDeleteWayne, I am not sure how I missed this post until today. I saw the pug and clicked. What a wonderful post. I has been so nice being your flickr and blog friend!
ReplyDeleteBarbara, glad you stumbled her too. It was like being led to a page from a journal to revisit. It has been a pleasure knowing you
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