This is the Place
If this is not a place where tears are understood, where do I go to cry?
If this it not a place where my spirit can take wings, where do I go to fly?
If this is not a place where my questions can be asked, where do I go to seek?
If this is not a place where my feelings can be shared, where do I go to speak?
If this is not a place where you will accept me as I am, where do I go to be me?
. . . this is the place.
Years ago I found this poem tucked inside a hymnal in a church near Fort Collins, CO. It was not signed so I don’t know the author. That day as I read it, I remember wondering if the person who wrote it was a member writing their experience of the church or a visitor seeking a place of safety and refuge.
I was reminded of this poem (which took some time to locate in my files!) when I returned to church from leading the morning book study at Hillside UMC on Wednesday, April 25. The book, The Turquoise Table, shares the experience of a woman, Kristin Schell, who responds to the human desire to connect and belong. An idea started taking shape for her when she read the Bible verse, “Take every opportunity to open your life and home to others.” (Romans 12:13)
Every opportunity? What if my house is messy? What if I have a bad hair day? How can I find the time? Through a variety of events, a turquoise picnic table found a home in her front yard. Quickly the turquoise table became a “place” for conversation, not just the usual surface stuff but instead the deep conversations of life. Schell writes: “Without thinking about it, we skipped past the shallow and dove right into the deep end. We had gone from strangers to friends in zero to 60 seconds flat. Maybe the art of conversation isn’t lost after all. We just need more practice at it.” (p 76).
That Wednesday morning our conversation focused on some questions: What makes you feel like you belong? What does it feel like to be invited into someone’s life through conversation? Is it easy or difficult for you to be vulnerable, to share deeply? What happens when we “show up for people”? Do we allow people to “show up” for us?
As communities of faith we are called to be a “place” that provides compassion, listening, belonging, understanding, accountability, forgiveness, and hospitality. We are called to be the “place” where God’s love is found and experienced ~ within us, among us, and made known through us. We are called . . . and this is the place!
Peace, Pastor Cindy