Prayer for when the World is too Heavy to Hold

Divine Mystery,

Today is much the same as

 any another other day.

So why is today a day that the world

seems too heavy for me to hold?

Why is there an ache in my chest…

a shallowness to my breath?

Why does my heart flutter from feeling to feeling,

my mind race from thought to thought

 like a bird trapped inside,

frantically trying to find its way back out to the sky?

Like Elijah,

 I pull my cloak over my face,

stand at the mouth of the cave

and strain to hear

God’s whisper?

There are days when I stand firm in faith.

Days when I am able to hold

the world’s pain

and the world’s beauty

in a delicate balance.

Those days are like the beach at low tide,

with gently lapping waves

and stretches of soft sand to wander.

Today, it’s high tide.

 The waves crash heavily.

 They claw at the sand,

 leaving behind tangles of seaweed

 and the bones of bleached tree limbs.

Divine Mystery,

On days like this

how do I give

 anyone who asks me

a reason for my hope?

Dearest Claire,

You need to come home to yourself.

Give your soul the care it needs right now.

You'll find home

wherever you feel secure and at peace.

Stay in that security

until the steadiness you find there

 allows you once again

to trust in things of faith.

There are headaches and heartaches

for which there are no cures;

but your soul doesn’t need to be cured,

just properly cared for.

Go home.

Find those people,

places,

prayers,

and books

that caress your soul.

And remember Barbara Brown Taylor’s words:

“New life starts in the dark,

Whether it is a seed in the ground,

a baby in a womb,

or Jesus in the tomb,

it starts in the dark.”

You are simply living the Pascal Mystery,

my dear girl.