Blessed sister, holy mother, spirit of the fountain, spirit of the garden,
Suffer us not to mock ourselves with falsehood
Teach us to care and not to care
Teach us to sit still
Even among these rocks,
Our peace in His will
And even among these rocks
Sister, mother
And spirit of the river, spirit of the sea,
Suffer me not to be separated
And let my cry come unto Thee. - from T.S. Eliot's Ash Wednesday
It's a beautiful day, cold and windy, but the sun has finally come out. I have my smudge of ash, from the noon service at Grace UMC, to remind me that I come from dust and will, eventually, return to it.