Socially Isolated but Spiritually Connected
On Beauty

Dear Mayfield,

I enjoyed these branches on a magnolia tree down the street earlier in April. They made me think of Vincent Van Gogh’s painting titled Almond Blossom. The Van Gogh Museum in Amsterdam tells us that branches against a blue sky with large blossoms were a favorite subject for Van Gogh and showed the late 19th century artistic influence of Japanese printmaking. Almond trees bloom early in the spring and are sturdy symbols of new life.  Van Gogh’s Almond Blossom painting was a gift to his brother Theo and sister-in-law Jo on the occasion of the birth of their son Vincent Willem, a time of new life in the Van Gogh family.

Vincent Van Gogh’s legacy includes not only dozens of paintings but also an abundance of words, many of them in letters to Theo. Fortunately, after the death of both brothers, Jo saved their correspondence. One of my favorite quotes from Van Gogh is about beauty. He stated that he painted the way he did because he so wanted to share with others the beauty he saw in the world.

In The Prophet, Kahlil Gibran describes beauty in this way:
            …beauty is life when life unveils her holy face.
            But you are life and you are the veil.
            Beauty is eternity gazing at itself in a mirror.
            But you are eternity and you are the mirror.

So when you and I share with others the beauty we perceive, we are generously sharing a piece of ourselves. And we are also mirroring the sacred or holy presence found in the ordinary — the branch of a tree, the face of a child immersed in play, a helping hand, persistent green pushing up through the rich soil of the prairie or the crack in a city sidewalk, a quilt pattern expressed in just the right fabric, new unexpected friends and partnerships, a shift in understanding, the opening of a formerly closed door, a morning of birdsong, young owlets in the nest, a perfect picture book, a reflection caught in a puddle, enough food for everyone waiting in line, sunrise and sunset over broad land, the teaching of an elder carried to the next generation, the fragile beginnings of recovery, and on and on.

Today we begin a new month, and the third stay-at-home order in Illinois. The pandemic is wearing on everyone. Unemployment is high. Current limitations along with uncertainty about what lies ahead with this unfamiliar virus are demanding for all. One of the ways to be gentle with ourselves, to be supportive of others, and to be able to lean into the now is to focus eye and heart on glimpses of beauty. Especially powerful are the glimpses experienced when and where we least expect them. And the joy of beauty discovered multiplies when we pass it on. May this be a month for you and me to pay exquisite attention. Beauty will be waiting for us.  Peace, Martha

Note for Sunday:
Since this is a first Sunday, there will be a brief communion time in this week’s reflective materials. You can prepare and have bread or crackers and wine, juice or water ready to participate in the sacrament.