Tuesday, October 25, 2005

Preparing for Flight

I wrote this prayer in my journal on September 16, before going for a run:
Remind me of You in tangible ways today. Let me be awake and alive and open to the ways You want to romance me. I am going on this run now, anticipating time with You. I want to listen for You in the stillness and hear Your voice in creation. Teach me, guide me, lead me.

God did show me something while I was on that run--a kite stuck in a tree. That kite mesmerized me as I considered what God wanted me to recognize about myself. This is what I wrote in response:

Fluttering and flapping,
her colored triangles meet at right angles
to create a stained glass window of nylon suspended in midair
The gold trim shimmers in the sun and
gives a glimpse of her ultimate worth
The breeze blows by and she twirls
Look at how dazzling I am!
A gust catches her from underneath and
she is shot up into the blue
until the short string snatches her back
Back to her keeper, the tree
that grabbed her line from the hands of a carefree kite flyer
The selfish branches keep a tight reign on her freedom now
She basks in the sun,
the wind whispers near her cheek
The clouds invite her to join them and
the blue of the sky is an ocean begging her to take a dip
Instead, she will mimic the flight she was meant for
Short spins and dives,
brief moments of flight
rather than the soaring and gliding she dreams of
She is me and I am her
as I cling to the chains
of the swing which keep me from taking flight.
1, 2, 3, jump!
My arms fling back
and my body lurches forward
until my feet land squarely on the woodchips
and my knees bend like shock absorbers
Momentary but thrilling,
fleeting and fun
I can understand now why she continues imitating flight
Even just a taste of the real thing is a sweet, brief flavor in our mouths
Will either of us ever get to fly freely for good?
One thing is sure
Our practicing will make us unafraid to soar when the chance does come

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