April 1, 2024

Beyond Easter…and the Clouds

It’s been a hard week here in our community.
The tragic death of a vibrant and talented 16-year-old high school student has shaken everyone💔
It was close to home for me, layered by so many other losses of various kinds that have crossed my path in the past few days.

I made my way this morning to the Easter service at the Cottam church where Cynthia and I were married many years ago. I was anxious and tentative, worried that it would bring back memories too painful to bear.

The homily was fabulous. In essence, it was a pointed message…all of us are called (like Mary Magdalene at the empty tomb on Easter morning) to be messengers of hope, life, and encouragement in a world where there is SO much sadness, pain, and brokenness.

I was reminded as I drove home of the following fable. It has a rabbit in it, but so different from the Easter bunny. And…it might be inspiration for us moving forward ‘beyond Easter’ today, as we face the pain in our lives and that of so many others🌄💔🌅

A Fable

It was raining in the forest. It had been raining for days, and all the birds and animals were drenched. The eagle, too, was drenched, and his spirits dampened as well, for his mate lay with a chill, a victim of the constant rain. There was no way to keep her dry, and the eagle looked on with despair as her life slowly drained away. His tears mingled with the rain when she died.

It was raining in the forest. The eagle could not stand the rain. It brought back memories too painful for him to bear. He rose up from the trees, hoping in flight to escape his thoughts. Higher and higher he climbed until finally he broke through the dark clouds into the dazzling sunlight beyond. As the warm sun dried his wings, he suddenly realized that the healing sun had been there all the time his mate had needed it. The pain of knowledge learned too late was more than he could stand, and there were tears for the sun to dry.

It was raining in the forest. It had been raining for days, and all the birds and animals were drenched. The rabbit, too, was drenched, and her spirits dampened as well, for her child lay with a chill, a victim of the constant rain. She poured out her sad tale to all who would listen, but the other creatures, too, were victims of the rain, and none could help. An eagle happened by, and the rabbit began to tell her tale to him. But she has hardly started speaking when the eagle suddenly lifted the rabbit’s dying child onto his wings and began to circle quickly up into the dark and stormy clouds on an errand he did not take time to explain.
Our pain may teach us how to heal.

- Anonymous