James Baillie, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons
Waking up to the day that marks the middle of my seventies, the muse beckons me to a brief thematic review of each decade – its wound and its gift. So here goes!
Decade one sees a fawn emerge
Timidly testing boundaries
Seeking safe borders
Decade two summons brittle courage
Trading safety for adventure
Finally discovering a set course
Decade three packs so much in
Equipped, wedded, and set loose
To see what makes this man
Decade four lights the fire that refines
Battles fought and skirmishes won
Revealing wounds that heal
Decade five changes landscape
A vineyard to tend
Its wine rich and flavorsome
Decade six calls forth a reluctant chief
Steering tribes through daunting change
While ever seeking one’s own stability
Decade seven sees broken shards
Releasing exotic bouquets
Bringing endings that are yet beginnings
Decade eight is not what it might seem.
Service ended that yet begins
Still in the fray of battle
Each decade has its four gospel paths
Winding change, suffering, union and service
Christ’s Celtic knot!
Wondering Pilgrim 