an exploration of caritas

Through a Glass Darkly by Henry Fraser

An Exploration of Caritas

She tries the known and unknown tongue,
clashing and clanging;
it sounds like dissonance;
she, standing on the corner soapbox
screaming love,
echoing imperfection.

Knowledge past and future
beats at his soul;
released left and right
the words flow like a torrent,
drowning love,
like an authentic counterfeit.

She cut her hair,
he sold his watch;
they gave it all away
for empty pockets
and bottomless cups;

So she chose the burning building,
and he ran in to save the cat on the third floor;
they became food for worms—
"meaningless, meaningless," blazed
the scorching disco ball.

Fresh breezes renew what once was,
evanescence removes the blotted cloth
and love's voice is heard again;
ashes swirl
and the clay molded;
he is made new,
she is made new.

He offers her his watch, she combs his hair;
a honeysuckle vine guards and sweetens their bed
under the great ancient oak—

love never promised rosebushes daily blooming,
but promised long suffering;
charity did not offer velvet cushions
but offered the cool spring of kindness;
unconditional love did not vow golden crowns
but vowed humility and grace.

Thistles and thorn bushes he bore
to save the snowdrops planted
in the scorching heat;
she gave the keys and her pearls to his able hand;
they ran a marathon through a sea of broken bottles
with the horizon setting in their eyes;
they held a ticker tape parade
in honor of words that withstood the fire.

Through a glass, darkly;
an impoverished reflection,
skinny and malnourished,
the picture is not whole but
dimly shaded,
corners darkened gray;
our view is poorly framed—
someday soon
perfect love will no longer cast shadows
and we will see face to face.

Copyright ©2010 by Micah McDonald

good words, one.

Two are better than one, because they have a good reward for their toil. For if they fall, one will lift up his fellow. But woe to him who is alone when he falls and has not another to lift him up! Again, if two lie together, they keep warm, but how can one keep warm alone? And though a man might prevail against one who is alone, two will withstand him—a threefold cord is not quickly broken.


after a year in an anglican church stateside and a year overseas, i have a new love for the english standard version.

quite contrary

how does your garden grow?

we planted seeds on the inspiration of a friend's garden. i wanted zucchini plants but none of the stores carried the plant, only the seeds. i have always been afraid of planting seeds. it can be disappointing when nothing comes up. sometimes you have bad seeds and they don't sprout. sometimes the gardener doesn't have the discipline to raise seeds. sometimes it's difficult to have the patience to wait on the seeds. i worried, did i do it right? did i plant the seeds too deep? two and a half weeks i waited. i wanted to see fruit. i wanted to see plants. neal saw his basil a lot earlier than my zucchini. i was getting discouraged and frustrated, thinking i would never be any good at this seed-raising-gardening-green-thumb thing. but i kept on watering. and i waited. well, wednesday morning i checked. number one zucchini plant rising through the potting soil, lovely green. new. still carrying it's seed. and deeply rooted. very strong roots. and yesterday, two more.




in this fast food culture of drive-thrus and microwaves, waiting is not valued. but there is much to gain in the waiting. in the waiting, you can choose to worry. you can choose to get frustrated and throw a fit. you can even choose to give up because the results you want to see aren't happening in your timing.

or you can just breath. relax. trust. keep on watering, keep on caring for the seeds, finding the right amount of sunlight. the right amount of exposure. and in time, the right time, you will see the fruit.

there's a little dirt between my toes

A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another. By this all men will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another.

this scripture stuns me in many ways. the night before he dies Christ gives this commandment. right before he made this commandment, he was serving his disciples by washing their dirty feet, a task usually performed by the lowest servant or, if you are an honored guest, by the host. it was not performed by the honored guest! but he does it; he showed them the full extent of his love. he gets on his knees, removes their sandals, wipes their feet clean with a towel around his waist. he washes all of their feet including judas, who jesus already knows will betray him. and still he extends his love for judas.

i am watching many people i care about focused on a desire to be loved, desire to be sought, a desire for relationship, a desire to be wanted. so many wanting friendship, wanting companionship. but how will it happen if we all sit on our hands and wait for others to come to us? i do this too. i want to be liked, to be needed, to be called. but it won't happen with my hands tied behind my back! and sometimes, it takes more than one phone call, more than one time sitting down with a coffee. sometimes it takes a good foot washin'.

neal and i had a funny incident a couple of weeks ago. i decided to pack him a lunch to take to work. and while i was doing that, he was getting a lunch for me. when i arrived at his house, we handed each other our lunches, both surprised by the simultaneous gesture. can you imagine if we were all washing each others feet, serving each other as Christ's example, not for our own reward? we might indeed be known by our love rather than what we are known for.