Usually we think of love in terms of the fragrant rose or the glowing rainbow. But sometimes love shows up in a form that hints more at rusty metal than rainbows and roses. A smelly dog that shows up on our doorstep, a colleague who rubs us the wrong way, a neighbor with the wrong kind of politics—you can never say for sure who might touch your heart with some act of friendship or kindness.
In what surprising place have you found love?
Today marks the first day of Muharram, the month of the New Year for Muslims. It is a time, not of partying and celebration, but of fasting. Every cycle brings something new and takes something away, and although various traditions mark the New Year at various times, in reality each day marks the beginning and the end of something.
What is new for you today? Does this new thing feel more like a gift or a loss?
These builders work at heights most of us would find terrifying, constructing the bones of an edifice that thousands of people will walk through and work in without the least concern. They understand that all you need to move around safely is a place to put your foot for the next step.
What girders form the basis for your stability? What do you stand on as you move through the world?
For Diwali, Hindus of all ages light small earthen lamps and set off fireworks, celebrating and rejoicing as they bring light into the darkening season.
How will you brighten the world today?
“Why must people kneel down to pray? If I really wanted to pray I’ll tell you what I’d do. I’d go out into a great big field all alone or in the deep, deep woods and I’d look up into the sky—up—up—up—into that lovely blue sky that looks as if there was no end to its blueness. And then I’d just feel a prayer.”
―L.M. Montgomery
What kinds of moments feel to you like prayer? What settings draw you into a sense of prayer?
