Creation: a Sabbath rest

God, we need peace – so we come to creation for quiet.

We need joy – so we come to creation for our senses —
the green of leaf,
the rich crumbling smell of soil,
and the scent of pine needle,
the sounds of small life, of squirrel and bird,
that come and go in all places natural,
the rough texture of gravel, the delicacy of a flower petal.

We need to let things go – so we come to creation for rest,
and we need to let people go,
so we come to creation to remember them.

We need hope – so we come to creation to watch things grow

Parks and gardens remind us to be planters
and to enjoy what others have planted.

We need space where we can begin to let Sabbath in our lives.
We need paths to help us recognize our own journeys.
We need a justice commitment to environment,
a global commitment that calls us to action,
but we also need a small square of real earth
to root our lives and to get our hands dirty.

We need community – so we come to creation, parks and gardens
to give and receive a shared blessing,
to give and receive a shared blessing
from the hand of the Sower of seeds. Amen