There have been years of willow
bending, breaking, stretching
arms to sky and soul
roots to creek and dream
boughs to earth and prayer
The next years call out from the forest:
We are oak! We are maple!
We are sapling and song
ancient and new each day.
Come! Bring your books and songs.
We like to listen
and we like to sing.
Someday we will be cut down
and made into pews and walls
font and rail.
Will you remember the forest
when the water flows on your forehead in blessing?
When your knees creak with the effort of bending
will you remember the wind in our boughs?
Pause for a moment and give thanks
and we will be glad that together
we are being made into something new.
—Wendy Jean MacLean
Spend some time today imagining where the trees grew that have been made into your table, desk, chair (if they are wood!)Imagine the hands that were part of the process of timbering, milling, and doing the carpentry. Give thanks for the generosity of the forest. Pray for us all to practice faithful conservation and caring, respectful relationships with nature.
