Noah’s Prayer

Lord, What a menagerie! Between Your downpour and these animal cries one
cannot hear oneself think! The days are long, Lord. All this water makes my heart
sink. When will the ground cease to rock under my feet? The days are long. Master
Raven has not come back. Here is your dove. Will she find us a twig of hope?
The days are long, Lord. Guide your Ark to safety, some zenith of rest, where we
can escape at last from this brute slavery. The days are long, Lord. Lead me until
I reach the shore of Your covenant. Amen.

The Ladybird

Dear God, I belong to Our Lady, Your Mother. That isn’t hard to believe; it’s written
in my name. Oh! May my midget thanksgiving, the small circles of my flight across
the meadow, gladden Her heart. How I love each blade of Your grass! I love to
land there, resting the happy whirr of my wings — dotted with small black eyes.
Thank you for having made me so that no one is afraid of me: a little toy, a penny
toy, a mite of comfort and laughter. Amen.Life asserts itself in great diversity.  In the silence, contemplate the human place in connection with all the creatures of the world.  I would ask you to picture and hold the space for the images of the following creatures which arise.  Can you feel what it feels like to be one of them?  Can you comfortably take on their energy pattern?

In your mind’s eye picture the great ponderous beasts:  rhinos, hippos, elephants, camels, or buffalo.  Can you imagine moving like one?  The weight with which you address the earth, the amount of space you take up?

Can you now picture the smallest mammals and how would you move now?  The weight with which you address the earth, the amount of space you take up?

Picture soaring raptors…

And then all winged creatures….which come easily to mind?

Consider fierce sleek predators…and then the soft and tender upon which they feed…

If I say humorous and unusual, which creatures come to mind?...

What about the small and industrious…

Those that are roly poly…

Those with diaphanous wings, the tiniest winged creatures…

Those that swim in fresh or salt water…and can you picture the smallest sea creatures upon which they feed?...

Can you now imagine the microbes in soil…the healthful microbes living in your intestinal tract?...

Which animals do you fear?  Which would you like to know more about?
Of all creatures with which do you most easily identify?  Which would you most like to be?  Which do you have images of in or around your home?

This morning we acknowledge the broader community in which we live.  From the ponderous to the microscopic we humbly bow to the complexity of biology, the magnitude of its diversity, and its unending proliferation with whom we share this, our mother, Earth.  Amen.

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