麻豆社

A spiritual comment and prayer to start the day with Mariama Ifode-Blease.

Good morning.

For those of us born in June, it can be a reflective time of year. For me personally, I get to this mid-point of the year, and look back as well as forward. What did I think I would have achieved by my birthday say, and what is there still to do before the end of the year? Have I managed to clear out that junk room, I鈥檝e been meaning to do since moving in? No. Am I still persevering with weekly driving lessons, agonising though they may be? Yes. Have I given up my mild addiction to crisps and moved onto healthier snacks? No.

At this point of the year, we may also start to see patterns. What has worked well so far this year? What hasn鈥檛? Who has shown up when it really mattered? Who has disappeared slowly, or perhaps rapidly, into the background of our lives? Where has there been growth and deep learning?

The shape of the year, if it hasn鈥檛 already started to do so, becomes a little clearer after the first six months. And that clarity can offer new possibilities, and options, for your patterns of living. This mid-year MOT can be a wake-up call, or a gentle affirmation that things are going in the right direction.

As the years have rolled by, I鈥檝e learned to be less hard on myself. Rome wasn鈥檛 built in a day, I remind myself. It鈥檚 about the direction you鈥檙e facing, and whether what is before you, inspires hope in you.

So today, at the start of a new week, may I be granted the grace, to accept what has been, and to anticipate with joy, what is to come.

Amen.