God-itude

Sometimes, I have great difficulty

dealing with other people's God-itude.

Of course, I also struggle

to name and claim my own

delusions of grandeur.

This was the ticket out of Eden;

yet it is also the invitation

to the incredibly difficult

and painful gift of community

for which we both long

and are created.

Every life worth living

is spent tightroping the chasm

between hubris and humility. 

Photo by Todd Jenkins

© 2015 Todd Jenkins

Settled

Maybe it's the way

an argument is

supposed to end;

or a description

of the human conquering

of a piece of real estate;

or the excuse given

for the excessive air

in a bag of chips.

But it could also be

a pining resignation over

circumstances beyond our control.

What if I told you

that our perspective

on certain uses of this word

is what determines

our level of contentment

with life itself?

When we shift the energy

of our labor away

from trying not to settle

for anything but exactly

what we want in life,

and direct it toward settling

into the joy of what is

with us in the here and now,

we will experience the deep peace

of being truly settled;

we will learn what it means

to live and breathe

comfortably in our own skin.

© 2015 Todd Jenkins

Lent 2015

A lot of phones have cameras, and many have ways to share those images. Here's what I want you to try for the season of Lent (February 18-April 4):

As you go through your day and week, you zoom right past a lot of amazing things. Commit yourself to slowing down, paying attention, and taking a picture of at least one extraordinary ordinariness every day.

If you don't think your world has any of these in it, think again: a child's well-worn toy in a yard; pretty much ANY animal; an old barn or building; something abandoned on the side of the road like a chair or an old TV; the sun, moon, or stars; a sleeping child or other loved one; an old sign; a car with lots of character; a bumper sticker that makes you laugh or ponder; a flower, tree, or plant; that randomly ordinary thing that's extraordinary for you because of where or whom it came from; something brightly colored that's randomly situated against a muted background; something that reminds you of a happy time; something that reminds you of someone you love... That's just a drop in the bucket.

Why am I asking you to do this? Because doing it changes both your focus and your attitude for life. Looking for visual connections and affirmations in life helps you pay better attention to the verbal, tactile, olfactory, culinary, and spiritual gifts that are yours for enjoying and sharing.

That's right. Sharing is the next step. Send it to a friend, show it to a coworker, or post it to social media. You don't even have to comment on it for now; just let the photo speak for itself. We'll worry about words after Lent is over and you've created your photo collection.

Todd

If Only

History is much colder

than you ever imagined,

far warmer than you’ve dreamed,

more dangerous than you ever thought,

less glamorous than we’ve written it,

and even more boring

than the latest generation sees it.

To be sure, there are many lessons

to be learned from its study;

but we dare not fool ourselves

into believing that the version currently playing

at the Rialto of Memory Lane

is any less a fairy tale than the stories

we read to our grandchildren.

When we see ourselves

as its preservationists,

we would do well to remember

that the thing to which we naturally cling

is mostly a figment of skewed reminiscence;

that our own constitutions

would likely wilt beneath the weight

of its actual ancient burden;

and that its primary purpose

is to give us wisdom and courage

to move forward, not to seduce us,

siren-like, to wistfully turn back.

 

Crystal Springs Campground, Kelso, TN

© 2015 Todd Jenkins

Distraction

In Oz's temple, when Toto,

with perception firmly grounded

in four-footed creation,

pulls back the curtain

on the professor's charade,

the truth of our deception

is clearly revealed.

The universal questions

for flummoxed humanity:

What monsters do we hide

behind our drapes?

What anxieties do our shades

keep us from facing?

Fear is a fog that hides

the mountain named Love.

His anxious clouds hang low,

obstructing our view

of the truth of who we are.

However large and imposing

our apprehensions may be,

there is a simple plan for peace:

allowing the sun of hope to shine,

burning off our blinding dread.

Rise and shine; and rise again,

O beacon of grace!

© 2015 Todd Jenkins

Unflappable

This is a season for which

I have no reference,

but it has come at a time

when I feel untethered

in some kind of holy way,

which is hard to describe.

It's like being on the water

in a sailboat, with no clue

how to trim the free-flapping sail,

yet being held firmly

by a deep underlying feeling

of peace about the wind's heart.

It feels like “Peace, be still!”

would be an unwelcome command

preventing a sacred destination.

© 2015 Todd Jenkins

Softening

Life has a way of wrinkling us,

not just the external ones

visible to the naked eye,

but also the deeper ones

that hide; sometimes in our shoes -

socks that bunch-up

and blister our feet so much

we can't take another step;

sometimes much deeper,

where our soul gathers

in broken fragments

and uncomfortable patterns

we never hoped for.

We spend our entire lives –

our whole selves even –

patching, dyeing, pressing,

ironing in attempts to match

the storybook dreams

read to us as children.

And then we come across

a wrinkled, comfortable soul

who wears her scars

and patches so well,

as if her life isn't about squeezing

into yesteryear's dress blues

with no breathing room,

but the patient flowering

of a forth and back story

meandering wherever love

and passion lead in each moment,

with hardly a concern for path or ETA,

trusting that the author knows

how the narrative unfolds.

And the little voice –

the one who has often seemed

so critical and harsh –

turns as soft as a well-worn

comforter and whispers,

"Welcome home my precious child!

Welcome to this beautiful patchwork

of wrinkled life that is your story!

Take my hand, and let us

live out of today's joy

and walk into tomorrow's hope."

© 2015 Todd Jenkins