Consolations

In the midst of draining and difficult days, consolations emerge. Today I had a conversation with a woman whose years of lay ministry have gone generally unacknowledged by the church. Another person discussed the possibility of going to another part of the country to undergo a rare and difficult surgery. All that in the midst of my own discernment, my mother's move to assisted living and well, it's burdening.

And then, the unexpected occurs. We have a congregation of four for evening prayer (first time in a month, I think). I receive an email from someone I deeply respect, but have never met, which offers encouragement and joy. Consolations as small a the breeze sneaking in my office window and as great as the rolling green hills of CT summer.

I reckon it's best not to look for consolations or to lean too heavily upon them. They might just evaporate or dissipate. They might never appear again. Or maybe, I could become an agent of consolation.