For the beauty of the earth …

This winter on Long Island was particularly rough. We went months without seeing the grass – months! I have friends on Facebook who live all over the country and I remember seeing their pictures of kids playing in the grass in March, and I was so jealous. That experience of hunkering down through all the snow and ice accumulation left most of us here on Long Island feeling weary and listless.

But this past week, I feel like I have been brought back to life. Daffodils are in full bloom, the forsythia finally emerged, tulip trees are opening, and not only is there grass, there is also that bright green grass that only comes out in spring. I feel like I can finally breathe. There is a lightness that comes with spring, and that lightness is even more potent after a long, arduous winter.

This morning at Eucharist we prayed, “For seasonable weather, and for an abundance of the fruits of the earth ... For the good earth which God has given us, and for the wisdom and will to conserve it, let us pray to the Lord.” Having just had Earth Day yesterday, watching our church’s community garden slowly sprout its early crop, and seeing spring unfold has given me a new appreciation of the gift of God’s creation. Snow can be beautiful in its own right, but after a long winter, I am especially amazed at the bountiful and beautiful gift of God’s earth that one sees in spring. And I am honored that God has invited us to be stewards of that earth. As God’s earth is bursting forth with life, I find myself bubbling with new life and joy. But mostly I feel grateful: grateful for this beautiful earth, our island home; grateful for a God who entrusts that earth to us; and grateful for how each new color and bloom reminds me of the beauty and grace surrounding me every day. Thank you Mother Earth. Thank you spring blooms. Thank you God, for forming this beautiful earth out of a formless void. We are blessed beyond measure and we promise to be the good stewards You would have us be!