Would You Do It Again?

If we could roll back the time
And start at the beginning again
Knowing all we would find
Would we walk through it over again

Maybe it’s true
That we were out of our mind
cause oh would you would I
Have come to this table if we weren’t blind
To eat from this bread and to drink from this wine

Do you think we’d have the courage again
Knowing what we’d have to spend

~Steve Bell in Let’s Do It Again


Turning fifty is reason for reflecting back on one’s life. Tonight I went to a Steve Bell concert at Aqua Books. Steve is a local Christian musician who is always entertaining both as a singer/songwriter and a storyteller. You can click on http://stevebell.com to find out more about him and hear his music. This song is on the Romantics and Mystics CD. I used to attend Steve’s concerts annually but life just got too darn busy to fit them in. They were often just before a paper was due or an exam was to be written. Settling in to my chair as the first song began, I was keenly aware how much I missed taking time out for music. The evening was really worshipful (is that a word?) and entertaining. Nothing beats inspirational music, great friends, and funny stories.

When he sang the above song, my thoughts wandered through the difficult week I have had: a funeral, ill family members, hospitalization of two people, an abduction of a child, a peeping tom in my friend’s window, news of another friend’s miscarriage, and so on. Crazy, eh?? It is a good thing that we don’t always know what is ahead of us because I am not sure we would have the courage to go through it. Only later do we understand that all we needed was given for the task at hand.

I often admit that I would change very little of the 50 years I have lived. While it is true that I might not have come to the table to eat from this bread and to drink from this wine if I had known what was about to be asked of me, knowing all that I know now, I would walk through my life once again as it has unfolded. Yes, there are always little changes one might wish to do, but mostly in my reminiscing, I find a heart full of gratitude for all that has been.

In the craziness of this week, I marveled at the strength of my spirit. I sought solace in praying for people. I know they will need it. Prayer is the least I can do for someone. During weeks such as this past one, it is the most I can do—for myself and for the people involved. Coming to the table and offering up my—our—needs is the wisest act I can offer in trying times.

The photo is of a tabernacle I saw in Nairobi at Tumaini House,the Catholic Guest House I stayed at two years ago. I thought it was a perfect expression of the African woman who carried the weight of the world for those she loved, just as Jesus did for us. Come to the table. Don't be afraid.

Peace,

Suzanne