"Remember you are dust and to dust you will return."
This morning the sky is a clear blue and there are no clouds to be seen. The sun is shining. The frost is melting off the grass as the sun hits it. We have had such a wet and dismal winter that today seems a new start! So today I stood outside gazing upwards, thankful to be alive, thankful for all that God has given.The Ash Wednesday prayer said during the ashing ceremony about returning to dust has a particular poignancy this week as a friend died suddenly and unexpectedly. Ash Wednesday is the day the church reminds us that we’re mortal and that someday we’re all going to die. We remember death as a way to affirm life. Meditating on mortality helps me to live more fully in the present.
The Revd Stephen Brown and I studied together at Luther King House in the 1980s and sat together in some BD classes at Manchester University. Though we did not see each other for over 20 years, we re-connected about five years ago. Stephen was only 58 and married with two adult children. He was a creative, talented, spirit filled person who gave much joy and hope to all he met. He was also a brilliant musician, composer and hymn writer. His family, friends and congregation at Helensburgh United Reformed Church are all in a state of shock.
So in the warm spring sunshine of Ash Wednesday I meditated on life and death as I remembered Stephen and prayed for his family.
This year my lent discipline is to write a thought each day on my blog.
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