Resemble (Easter 2026)

huddled in hiding

just barely surviving

(let alone abiding)

amidst the horrors

of harrowing days

(and narrowing nights)

with no sights

set on emerging

into any kind

Life as they

had known it 

(and no conceivable 

chances for any

forces from above

or below it

to courageously engage

the oppressive system

and overthrow it)

with worries whirled

into obsessive frenzies

and thoughts swirled

into depressive tendencies

hurled and curled

into a life-or-death

bereft-of-breath

freeze-or-flee

slave-or-free

A-to-Z world

they wearily Awakened

with sleep still

in their eyes

to the Surprise

of a New

kind of Sunrise

a Resurrectional Realm

now being unfurled

the finite alphabet

used to articulate

all they knew

now Expanded by

one Letter More

On Beyond Zebra

which leads me

(in the Present

tense of tensions)

to Wonder if

it is believable 

that as We

Assemble as One

in tenuous Solidarity 

and Tremble undone

under the weight

of treacherous brutality

(and willingly Wait

with anxious uncertainty)

We surprisingly Arise

with Eternally Open

and Real Eyes

that insightfully Realize

the real lies

that hinder Us

from fully living

Our Real Lives

and rightfully see

the Real Love

that saved Us

from remaining trapped

in fearful unrealities

and made Us

as Creations Who

Resemble the One

Who is Beloved

and Who came

to remind Us

that We are

Beloved as well

Called to Be

a Divine Humanity

Rising and Shining

like the Sun

Trembling at all

of the inhumanity

in sordid insanity

Assembling with All

the Sacred Body

in Humble Unity

Breathing and Being

the Beloved Community...

Let It Be!

#260wordprayers #Easter2026 #JesusTheChristAnneLamottDrSeussAndTheFabFourForTheWin

('Ethiopian Eucharist', artist unknown)

Tremble (Good Friday 2026)

(in response to

the age-old question

of our Elders

in Spirit who

Sang it True

because the verses

of Their Lives

Rang it True)

while i wasn't

at the site

where caustic fright 

caused accostic blight 

upon the One

who incarnated Love

in such expansive 

and subversive ways

that it threatened

the status quo

of the time

(and maybe Ours)

that abided within

the numbing haze

of entitled sight

(where those who

are privileged enough 

to be centered

in society can

only see themselves

and their ways

as the ground

of all being

and the center

of the universe)

when i see

the same tumbling

of tragic terrors

inflicted upon Beloveds

who have simply

tried to Be

Who They Are

Created to Be

unjustly denied of

their Divine Right

to be Free

from the shame

that binds Us

innocent Lives vilified

by the blame

that blinds Us

i do feel

the same Rumbling

of Revealing from

the Ground of

All Being which

emanated in such

convulsively conversive Ways

from the One

Who was crucified 

by the cursed

and unquenchable thirst

for paranormative power

Who could have

reacted by invoking

a thundering herd

of hench-angels soaring

down from Heaven

but rather Wisely

responded without saying 

a mumbling Word

and by displaying

a humbling Spirit

all of which

only further personified

the Universal Love

that is stronger

than fear-fueled death

and Transformative enough

to change Worlds

and Lives by

causing the Pillars

of the Earth

and the temples

of our traditions

(political and Spiritual)

and the systems

of our survival

(ubiquitous and nervous)

to Tremble...

Thank You.

#265wordprayers #GoodFriday2026 #WereYouThereThen #HowAreWeThereNow

('Good Friday' © StushieArt)

Assemble (Maundy Thursday 2026)

in Days where

We fearfully Hope

for some way

to cope amidst

all that is attempting 

to drive Us apart

We remember One

Who fearlessly faced

the clamourous rage

of pundits and priests

stirring up the pots

of anxious angst

not by arrogantly

taking shots at them

or by laying out 

a glamourous fleece

from a gilded cage

but by displaying

an amourous Peace

as a Centered Sage

inviting all Beloveds

not into a fable

but to a Table

of welcome and release

to gather together

in the stormy weather

of not knowing whether

the tenuous Tether

of Cosmic Connection

was present or not

for a faithful (and

some might say fateful)

Feast of Commemoration

an intimate Celebration

before an imminent excoriation

taking a sip

and a swallow

to faithfully follow

and courageously resist

the compelling temptation

to let the Cup

of suffering pass

from Loving lips

and in the grating

of grinding gears

meant to squeeze

the comforting tears

out of Our systems

and drive Us apart

to always remember

that our Innate

Divinely Human Calling

(even when we're falling

into divisive despair

and crumbling into

dissembled disrepair) 

is to start

by being Mindful

of our harrowed

and Hallowed Hearts

then surrender our fears

and Assemble in Love...

Thanks.

#210wordprayers #MaundyThursday2026 #WeAreStillOneBelovedBody #BetterAndStrongerTogether

('Maundy Thursday' © Rebecca Foster)

The Waves (of Grief...and Grace)

the saying goes

that Grief comes

in Waves

and those Words

contain expansive Oceans

of Wisdom...

so why then

do i try

to control

how and when

those Waves fly

and fall

instead of going

with the ebbs

and flows

of Tidal runs

(like the Dancing

of Doubting

and Believing always

knows and shows

the Way)

and simply receiving

what the Ocean

naturally provides

(remembering my youth

where i met

The Waves

with both fears

and fascinating Joy

deep yearning

and emancipating Hope

learning the Rhythms

and reading

the turbulent Tides

to know when

to dive

under Their thunder

just to survive 

Their power

and when They

were engendering more

exhilarating Rides

and my irrational

yet understandable fears

once submerged

then emerged (one

could say Surf-aced)

and converged

with my tears

in an Embrace 

of Salty 

and Sacred Grace

by the Face

of Love)?

so why not

allow the Waves

of Grief

to crash on

the sandy Shores

of Loss

or ruddy Rocks 

covered with regrets

like moss

yet also filled

with hidden Life

beneath strife

serving as solid

places to rest

or stand

for seagulls and

egrets waiting to 

take Flight

and safe spaces 

to express that 

neverending Love 

without pretending and

sending It out

knowing It

has nowhere and 

no place left 

to go?

so while We

are groping through

the mist

of the Memories

and Hoping in

the midst

of the pain

of the losing

of Beloveds

as We surrender

to the thunder

in Wonder

and listen to

the Wisdom of

The Waves

in the Ocean

of Majestic Motion

in Love

may We always

remember there is

no need

to give Ourselves

some kind of

guilty shove

into the Tide

and there is

no shame 

in our choosing

when to refrain

or Ride

and as We

let the tears

and fears

of endless years

more Naturally and

Supernaturally Flow

They will Show

Us the Way

to Go...

#320wordprayers #CryingInGriefSighingForReliefAndTryingToListenToTheWisdomOfTheWaves #LetThemFlowAndTheyWillShowTheWayToGo 

('The Calm Within the Storm' © NovaSpiritWolf)

YOU and ME and WE

In all of my silliness,

you've laughed with me.

In all of my sullenness,

you've sat with me.

In all of my madness,

you've centered me.

In all of my sadness,

you've comforted me.

And through it all,

you've reminded me

in all of our seasons

all of the reasons

we have been given

for Joyfulness and Gladness

and helped me see

the Ever-Presence

of the Greatest

Present of All...

the Love of Christ

that gives us Life

the Light of Christ

that gives us Hope

the Spirit of Christ

that lives in us

and through us

that guides us onward

into whatever is next

while inviting us

to pay attention 

to whatever is right

in front of us.

Thank you

for Being YOU

and helping me

to Be ME

journeying more deeply

into what it means

to be WE.

i Love you

for Eternity

to Infinity

and Beyond...

bri

(for Kir)

#150wordsongs #ValentinesDay2026 #LoveIsLessSenitmentalAndMoreSubstantial #InLoveThereIsNoUsAndThemOnlyWe

Dream Into Reality (MLK Day 2026)

amidst all the forces

surging from Our

love of power

that make it seem

like we are destined

for endless divorces

through apoplectic derision

into permanent division

and apocalyptic destruction 

the fear and hatred

saturating our senses

like poison that courses

through what remains

of our system that 

shrivels and strains 

life-giving causeways

into varicose veins

threatening impending fatality

in ultimate finality...

Thank You, Brother Martin

for eternally urging Us

to remember Our

love of power

is no match for

the Power of Love

and reminding Us

from beyond the grave

(and within our Hearts)

that the Beautiful Dream

is still infinitely Alive

as an imminent Vision

of One People

with countless Expressions

and bountiful Character

and despite all appearances

and inhumane interferences

It is being birthed 

into more than 

a beautiful Dream

but a Beloved Reality...

Let It Be.

#140wordprayers #MLKDay2026 #WeAreOne #WeAreTheBelovedCommunity #TheDreamIsStillAliveAndIsBeingBirthedIntoReality

('Power to the People ' (detail) © John August Swanson)

Compartmentalization as Integration (New Years 2026)

within the dawning chill and thrill

of this first New Day of the New Year

(which We meet and greet 

with yawning and yearning)

may All Beloved Creatures and Creation

(the Ones flailing in frantic fear enacting trauma 

and the Ones incurring and enduring it)

both be inclusively

Seen and Cherished

Accepted and Embraced

Nourished and Nurtured

Housed and Hallowed

Clothed and Celebrated

Precious and Protected

Held and Healed

from discrimination and disease and despair

as We All buzz around and amongst Each Other

amidst our churning in frustration

and our serving in faithful Loving Care

like the busy Bees We can

sometimes obsessively be

may We remember that We Are Each 

a Part of the same honey-creating Hive 

with Gifts to share

Vitality to create

Wisdom to teach

along our Eternal Journey of learning

how there is Love burning 

within each Blessed Heart

and with all Our differences 

of conviction and perception

may We realize

that We remain 

One Beloved Incarnation

Whose Hearts all Beat the same

Whose Lungs all Breathe the same

and yet Who each are embodying

a unique Story

adding essential Beauty

to the Whole

sentient Beings set Free to Be

less concerned about Who isn't Loving Us 

and more compelled by Whom We are Loving 

and Living less towards Hope 

like a resolution merely to be kept

and more like a Way of Being and Breathing

when everything else leaves us believing

that there is no Hope left

Emptiness and Absence 

that reveals Presence

empowering Us together

in Our distinct yet interdependent compartments

to interrelate and emanate the Glory

of Being Alive...

Let It Be.

#270wordprayers #HappyNewYear2026 #HopeLessAsWishingForAndMoreAsLivingInto #WisdomFromSamKeenAndStevenKoskiAndDavidDeStenoFTW

(Art: Back side of my favourite Xmas gift this year...a long sleeve t-shirt, created by Kirsten and gifted by Ian. :)