When Doing Nothing Is Something
Dear Church,
One year ago, we all hit pause. We bought all the toilet paper and two by fours. We made makeshift desks all over our homes. We zoomed. We foolishly told ourselves that this was temporary. Silly us. One year later, we are older. Seriously. I’ve got more wrinkles and rolls and grey hairs and I’m blaming it all on Covid. Join me in blaming it all on Covid. Perhaps my cheekiness seems callous to all we have lost. I assure you, it is not. Sometimes we need to laugh to release the tension and fill our lungs with fresh air. While you are breathing, I invite you to meditate, pray, or reflect on the following prayer. Over the next few weeks, as we remember Covid losses, I find a direct link to the journey Christians follow in lent as they reflect, grieve, and sit in remembrance. Lenten practice reminds us that in doing nothing, we do something. We must remember and grieve. We must create access points where pain can leave our bodies. You are not alone in this work. It is human and it is hard. We will pray this together during service on Sunday hoping to soften tense places, and warm the spiritual ground for new life, eventually. Knowing that while we may be lonely, we are not alone.
With Love,
Nikki Sauter
Remembering Our Pandemic Losses
For the disruption to our routines and rhythms
For the heartache of robbed dreams and plans
Enduring Love, Carry me
For the robbery of life by the viciousness of Covid
For sleepless nights, lost taste buds, aching joints,
Grief, Guide the Way
For the death of those we love,
For the sickness that changed our bodies,
Sorrow, be my Shelter
For the greed that consumes,
For the broken trust in desolate systems,
Hope of our Ancestors, come.
For the unspoken aggressions on weary shoulders,
For the fatigue that lingers,
Enduring Love, carry me.
For the alienation and withdrawal of physical distancing
For the ache of missing those we love,
Peace beyond understanding, come
For being misunderstood, abandoned, and rejected
For the panic and rage brought on by masks,
For all that cannot be undone, we cry:
Renew! Remake! Restore!