August 2016 – Margery Frisch

The Journey…or the Destination

It’s boating season and on some of our lengthy sailing passages, my mind begins to wander and ponder. (I apologize in advance for all the parallels I’m about to use in this piece – sailing vs. life.) We were once power boaters, getting to our destination with speed and efficiency. When we switched to sailing, our power boating friends were shocked and horrified. You’d think we had changed religions, ok, not so much religions, but philosophies. With power boaters, it’s all about the destination. It has to be. You can do nothing, not even carry on a normal conversation until you get where you’re going. When we made the switch, and it suddenly took us an entire day to travel what had previously taken a fraction of the time, we embraced the sailors’ code – It’s not the destination, but the journey that counts. Ah, how many times did we repeat those words to each other that first year, with gritted teeth?

This expression came to mind as my husband and I neared the end of a long day’s journey, recently.

‘Exhilarating,’ said the captain.

‘Nerve racking,’ said his first mate.

Perspective is everything, in sailing and in life. I don’t mind a bit of wind, but could I have calm seas, please, and lots of sunshine? No, sorry…rarely the case. So our crossing from Thornbury to Hope Island gave us tiny patches of blue sky and brief glimpses of sun, with longer stretches of dark, angry looking clouds and one metre seas. It was the first good sail my husband had had all summer and he enjoyed it immensely. I on the other hand, prone to motion sickness and an aversion to too much heeling in the wind – did not have as much fun. Once through the gap at Christian Island, and motoring into the wind toward Hope, the seas calmed down, my nerves calmed down and I thought about destination and journey again. I couldn’t help but compare the expression to life and not just life, but to our spiritual journey. How we approach life, how we live our faith, will ultimately decide our destination. And so, in my opinion, the journey and the destination are of equal importance.

My husband’s approach – to life and faith – is a constant reminder to me that I lack trust – in his sailing abilities…perhaps, but also in God’s plan for me. Our sailing adventures – an equal measure of anxiety over wind, waves and weather, and tranquil anchorages with lots of time for reading and reflection, help me to put things in perspective…put my life, my spiritual life in order.

When I look at my husband’s take on things, and then my own, I can’t help but see that I’m too cautious, afraid to take chances. Does that spill over into my spiritual life? Yes, I believe that it does…afraid to give, afraid to love, afraid to trust in God’s plan and follow it.

The good new is, it’s never too late to change direction, when we find ourselves drifting off the course God has set for us – sometimes it takes a life time. But, as long as we continue learning, seeking and growing, our journey will be fruitful…and the destination blessed.

Renew the Face of the Earth

Summer is here! The earth is fully renewed! So why aren’t I? “Come, Holy Spirit,” we sing, “renew the face of the earth.” Doesn’t that include me – all of us? I run, I bike ride with my husband, we sail on weekends…and maybe that’s the problem right there – too busy; no time to sit and think; no time to smell the roses; no time to rest. Summer comes and we try to squeeze as many activities into it as we possibly can. That’s understandable, of course, with six to seven months of winter behind us, we want to be outside, we want to celebrate warmth and greenery, water and light.

Is it my age then? Is that why I’m so tired? Is it my worries; are they what are exhausting me? Bingo! So, instead of renewing the face of the earth, renew my faith and trust. I don’t know about you, but I need to trust that God will handle those things I cannot change…I need to trust that those things I want changed are in his hands and he will ‘handle’ them according to his will. Clearly, I’m not always in sync with God. In my prayers I plead, bargain, cajole. Clearly I’m not paying attention when, in praying the Our Father I say, ‘thy kingdom come, thy will be done.’ There are times when I deliberately ignore that phrase, with a ‘yes but’ attitude. You know – ‘yes Lord, but I don’t think you quite understand where I’m coming from…let me just explain.’ Give it up. He understands our thoughts better than we can attempt to articulate them.

The other morning when I was out running, the sun was just coming up over the trees, birds were singing, insects were buzzing and I felt like I could run for miles and miles. I truly felt renewed. Everywhere I looked I was treated to his beautiful creation – nothing man-made, but for the hay bails in the fields, the barns and fences.

So, when we find ourselves drained of energy, bereft of spirit, we need to sit in the quiet of a church and talk to God. I picture him rolling his eyes and thinking to himself – you again! But I know that really he wraps his arms around us because we soon feel his love envelop us, calming our concerns. If the church is not easily accessible, find a place to sit and meditate on God’s caring nature, preferably in a place that’s filled with his beauty. Sit in a garden, a park, smell the flowers, listen to the birds…just let go and let God do the rest. Trust me, renewal will come.