Seven Prayers for Every Day

SEVEN

PRAYERS FO

EV

ERY

DAY

R

With gratitude to my chevruta, Mickey, for introducing me to this book of prayer-poetry by Kate Bowler and Jessica Richie. Through it, and from you, I have learned to find spiritual sustenance all around me.

this indicates a poem which borrows heavily from, or adapts, poetry in The Lives We Actually Have this indicates a poem which has been inspired by The Lives We Actually Have but which is essentially original work

for when you’ve given into a bad habit

Breathe in.

I am here.

Breathe out.

I am okay.

There is the person I want to be And there is the person I’m angry with And in between Is the person I am Breathe in.

My past does not determine my future.

Breathe out.

Recognizing the problem is part of the solution.

Till in me compassion for yesterday’s self Cultivate in me awareness of my triggers Water within me the seeds of strength Sprout within me the first seedlings of better habits.

Breathe in.

Perfection is not achievable.

Breathe out.

Better is a process.

Two steps forward one step back still gets you there in the end.

for when you want more Here we are, holding incompleteness.

We strived, earnestly, to change ourselves and the world around us.

With the wind of hope at our back, we did what we thought was right.

And yet.

Now, we feel the drag and pull of what won’t budge.

The weight. The inertia.

We carry it with us.

Blessed are we, the hungry, willing to tell the truth to ourselves and to each other.

To be fully known, and fully loved, to fix the world, to reach every person, to right every wrong, that is a God-sized project.

Blessed are we for our human-sized lives, our brokenness, our vulnerability, our wanting.

Blessed are we, remembering that the world is not ours to shoulder alone.

Help us put one foot in front of the other as best we can.

We will not desist from the work.

Let us remember that we are not obligated to complete it.

for the animals in our home Bless these tiny creatures

Bless the kitten in them

with whom we share our lives.

The biscuits made when they feel happy The wet spots left on fuzzy blankets

Bless the wild in them

The little mewls that ask,

That climbs and jumps and scratches

“Where are you?”

That chases and wiggles and hides

And come running when you answer.

That cannot be tamed and cannot be forced The unknowable creature they are

And bless their growing older out of their cutest baby selves.

Bless the way their bodies change.

Bless the fierce in them The snarls and hisses The protectiveness over resources They do not know are endless.

Space, food, attention Whatever they want,

How light they used to feel, like baby birds.

Now they are heavy on my chest, on my shoulder.

Bless their bigger paws, their hanging pouches,

what a gift to be able to give.

their gray hairs, the bright eyes

Bless the gentle in them

the heartbreaking beauty of a whole life

The purrs and licks

happening before our eyes.

that one day will dim,

The settling down on an arm, or back, or lap

Bless the radical now-ness of them

The slow blinks from across the room

Their inability to plan, unwillingness to

that say, “I feel safe with you.

bow to the demands of work and school

You have made this home

That forces my attention away

feel safe for me.”

from the book or screen and firmly onto their

Bless the loving in them

little bodies and faces

The head butts and flops

insisting that the most important thing

The love-bites and licks

right now is this, right here.

The secret, coded language

Bless their unawareness of time

that teaches us to listen.

the complaint at getting up -

Bless their internal clocks.

forever

just five more minutes They sleep when they are tired and run when they’re restless, and pad around the house at night, exploring, each day a new adventure.

for an unexpectedly beautiful day

This day has been simply wonderful.

I didn’t know when I woke up this morning the joys this day would bring.

It appeared the way a wildflower does, suddenly, showing its bright face to the world, vibrant colors blossoming unexpectedly.

But a flower doesn’t grow from nothing and neither has this day so I‘ll try to remember that this beautiful, perfect day was growing all along.

On shitty, miserable days, this day was unfolding underground not hiding, just not yet ready to burst through the hard earth and present itself to me.

A gift.

for those who love adults who were once hurt children Sometimes, the grief rises like bile in my throat when I look at their precious face and see the scared kid inside.

They have suffered so greatly, and weathered so much.

I am too late to save the child they once were.

I feel helpless in the face of the past.

Help me / help them / know the past is past.

Help me / help them / feel the love within the grief.

Help me / help them / stay rooted in the now.

Blessed are those who go through hell and live to tell the tale.

Blessed are their small victories.

Blessed are their coping strategies.

Blessed are the setbacks and the steps forward.

And blessed are we, who hold their hands as they chip away at the hardened mortar and dismantle the fortress that once protected them.

Bless us with patience.

Bless us with hope.

Bless us with strength.

We cannot change the past, but we can tend to the present and plant seeds that will bloom next year, too.

They have come through the storm.

Alive.

What a miracle.

for a body that has changed

When the muscles in the body speak their tight reminders, listen to them long enough to give them release.

Yes, things have changed.

It would be silly to imagine they wouldn’t.

You are not who you once were.

Bless that old self.

They did such a great job with what they knew.

And blessed are you - who you are now.

You who doesn’t pretend things are the same.

You who continue to grow and stretch and see your body as it really is.

Kindle your awareness of what your body was made for and all the things it can do.

Welcome one sweet thought.

Follow it as it grows into genuine gratitude.

Until the stirrings of enoughness come.

Hold yourself gently.

You are loved.

You are loved.

You are loved.

for an unfinished checklist

Blessed are the unmatched socks, the dishes, the paperwork.

Blessed is the closet in the hall.

Blessed is the laundry and the dust on the windowsill.

Blessed are you, who cannot do it all.

Blessed are the books that you will never read, Blessed is the podcast you won’t finish.

Blessed is the carpet that will never be clean.

Blessed are you, who stays in it.

Be still for one moment and feel your heart beating Saying what’s sacredly true: Sheer effort alone won’t put the puzzle together Please know that you’re just one you.

Take yourself off the hook for perfection.

For gathering every last thread.

Bless what you‘ve done, and call it a day, And bless “good enough” instead.

Earth is so thick with divine possibility that it is a wonder we can walk anywhere without cracking our shins on altars.

- Barbara Brown Taylor