“We stumble between extremes navigating pandemic, praying for a return to normal but fearing what will come. This is a bewildering era where everything has changed, norms are out the window and etiquette is uncertain.”
“The whole time, there had been these tiny lights illuminating my way. I just did not notice them before, as I stubbled, bubbled and fumbled in the dark. But now, I no longer needed confidence in myself to find my way back, I had the assurance of knowing that my path would be lit.”
“Looking back over these 40 some pages I see the same refrain over and over. After I’ve detailed our days and the updates that surrounded the pandemic, I ended every letter to Charlotte and Isaac in the same way.
You are loved. I love you.’
“Whereas the Genesis story begins in a garden paradise and ends in our present garden world of pain and suffering, the Easter story begins in the garden of pain and suffering and ends in a garden of wholeness and flourishing, a new paradise in which we are once more able to walk intimately with our God and find abundant provision.”
“For God so loved the world. . .
God does indeed love the world.
The world is God’s, entirely.”
“No mirror can show our soul and what is in our heart of hearts. A lot of what is there comes out in how we think, act, or talk. In this vein, the Pharisee would come out as someone who was vain and so sure of his status and appearance in the public arena that he didn’t mind reminding God of it. Some would call it out-and-out entitlement. Others might consider it narcissism and egotism.”
“Of particular importance to Episcopalians, he is an index ancestor in the story of Anglican Christianity. Gregory first encountered people from the British isles as slaves being sold at the Roman slave market. He was incredibly struck by their pale skin and fine facial features, and likened them to angels.”
“I began to wonder whether eyes and ears might not have a wisdom of their own.” – Joanna Field
“One morning at 4 am (I’m not sure this even counts as morning) I hear Isaac talking to himself. I find him awake and alert playing with his stuffed animals and blankets. ‘I’m playing library, mommy. My workers are busy.'”
“Thankfully, we do not all have the same gifts and, our Christian mission aside, we do not all have the same vocational calls. Not everyone is called to be on the front line of advocacy; not everyone is called to sit and listen deeply to traumatic events in others’ lives; not everyone is called to rouse the spirit with music and song; not everyone is called to gather groups together.”