Tags
companion on the journey, Israel, Judeo-Christian scripture, leap into the adventure, Shalom, spiritual reflection, The Sophia Center for Spirituality, Thomas Merton
Here I am, home again, looking out at the frigid beauty of the dawning day in Windsor, New York. I dismiss the thought that it is 1:00PM in Israel as I try to re-acclimate to life in the United States. When I awoke in the dark nearly an hour ago, my first thought was a surprise. “Leap into the adventure of this day!” When I looked at my clock to see that I still had time to sleep before the alarm, I tried to convince myself to answer the call to wakefulness but I couldn’t quite manage it. Thankfully, when the alarm pulled me easily out of my dozing, I heard again the invitation to the day as an adventure once again.
The truth of today is that although I am now back in the cocoon of home, the “I” who is “back” is not the same. I have been forever changed by the experience of the past two weeks in ways that I cannot unpack as easily as I will unpack my suitcase. Thomas Merton was a worthy companion on the journey, drawing me deeper into the mystery that is the inner life, even while the learnings from Mike, our guide through the geography and history of Israel, have also left an indelible mark.
Who knows where it will all lead? More deeply steeped in the Judeo-Christian Scriptures now because of having experienced them in some of the places and the ancestors of people I met, I know that the foundations of my writing here will not change radically. How the influence of the physical journey will play into the spiritual reflections, however, remains to be seen. I only hope that each day in the eternal present I will leap into the adventure that awaits and find there what God has in store!
Shalom! May it be so!
The Sophia Center for Spirituality 
Welcome home, Sister Lois! May the Lord soon show you clear evidences that He’s drawn you deeper into His own life, entrusted you with deeper work, brought your heart closer to His own.