Saturday, April 08, 2017

A Grace of Swans




This has been a hectic few days, coming just before the most demanding week of the Christian year. We finished up our study series, I was at a seniors' residence for a service, and there has been plenty of pastoral care.

On Thursday I visited one of our beloved members in the hospital. Even though she was quite frail I reminded her that she had "taken a licking and kept on ticking" many time before. She smiled and said that she planned on continuing to tick. In the early hours of Friday morning her wonky ticker gave out and this intelligent, generous, faith-full woman was gone from our midst. We are saddened by her loss, even though she lived long and well.

This morning I was awake early so I drove to Sawgwin Creek, which is in the midst of a huge marsh at the edge of the Bay of Quinte. Ruth is away, so it was just "me and my shadow."

The sun was rising, the dawn chorus was in full voice, and the brisk air was the "perfection of the morning." There was evidence that other creatures have been around, as you can see below.

As I stood in the stillness I could hear the approaching whistling of wings. It was a flight of swans, twenty in total, flying low over the marsh, and my head. It was a wonder, and a deeply spiritual moment for me. I felt God's grace and the invitation into the next chapter of my life. I am often deeply aware of the presence of the Christ who walked this earth when I am in the natural world. This morning was profound.

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