A Palm Sunday Thought

Hey friends,

I've got several half-written blog posts in limbo currently, but for now I just want to share some words I read in Common Prayer, which if you aren't familiar is a great book of prayers and liturgy put together by Shane Claiborne, Jonathan Wilson-Hartgrove, and Enuma Okoro. As I digested these words on Sunday afternoon in the company of a nice breeze on our balcony, I found that this take on Palm Sunday was one that really resonated with me. And if you are here reading, you're probably at least a little interested in the things that resonate with me. So without further ado, I give you 8th century martyr Andrew of Crete...

"Let us say to Christ: Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord, the King of Israel. Let us wave before him like palm branches the words inscribed above him on the cross. Let us show him honor, not with olive branches, but with the splendor of merciful deeds to one another. Let us spread the thoughts and desires of our hearts under his feet like garments, so that he may draw the whole of our being into himself and place the whole of his in us."

Even though Palm Sunday has passed and we are approaching the more somber events of Maundy Thursday and Good Friday (of course to be followed by the joy of Easter), I'm hoping I can remember these words and carry them with me far past Holy Week.

Confession: I'm not the best at keeping up with spiritual practices like regular prayer and personal devotions. And by "not the best" I mean I'm kind of terrible at it. Granted, my journaling for Lent has been a good practice that I hope to continue, but it isn't always spiritual, per se. I go about my life and each year, Lent and Holy Week come around and I'm like "Oh. Right. This is a huge deal." Similar to a New Year's resolution, I become determined to be a more regularly spiritual person, whatever that might look like. And similar to those New Year's resolutions, not a month after Easter I'm right back where I was, all caught up in whatever's happening around me.

I think it's okay to be caught up in what's happening around us. To be present in the moments we're living. More than okay. I think that's kind of essential to living life. But maybe the key is to be just as caught up in the inherent spirituality that is in each of those moments. For me, part of that means being merciful towards others because Jesus is merciful towards me, and being honest with God about my thoughts, hopes, and worries. And by "being" I mean "trying to be." I fail frequently.

But it is my hope that I can carry with me this new (to me) figurative view of Palm Sunday. I don't know if that means journaling more often about overtly spiritual things, or remembering God in acts of kindness, or something entirely different that I've yet to figure out. But here's to a week that's inspired me to try.

Love,
Allison

A doodley little palm branch from Sunday's journal entry.
(The words are a song frequently sung at YAV gatherings...sanna is a shortened form of "hosanna.")