Susan LaffertyPeople look at where you’ve been. Or where you’re headed. Noticing which trials have whipped or trudged through your life.
And then decide you’ve got unusual fortitude. Courage. Perseverance to endure.
“You’re so brave. I could never do that.”
I’m not so brave.
Colorful skeins of thread surround him. And neutral strings on the loom show no pattern to follow. As far as I can see.
But the old carpet maker knows.
Thread by thread. Hour by hour. Day by day.
He works the loom, creating a rich pattern. A map of threads he already had in mind when he started.
Seasoned servant. Leaving, after spending many years in the dark city by the river. Her parting advice to one of our colleagues is borne out of long experience in the spiritual battle.
Those insightful words reach my ears at a retreat in the Himalayas.
One phrase sticks in my heart. And comes to mind, from time to time.
“Do you want to seem holy? Or be holy?”
