Category: God in a whisper

The Road Less Travelled

I’ve been thinking about this poem by Robert Frost a lot lately. It is one of the first poems that I was introduced to in a great books program in elementary school. I saw myself then as a road less travelled girl, one who wanted to see things for the first time instead of following the masses. It also reminds me why I always wanted to be independent, embrace my curious nature and tackle the unknown, and become an adventurer, of sorts…hence all my exploits, both physical and spiritual. But as I look back…my choices were often more rooted in escaping the restrictions my world at the time had imposed upon me. I came to realize that running away from something isn’t the same as choosing something purposefully. Thankfully, I had a little divine help to guide me back toward more purposeful meanderings when I had no idea where to go, and had the foresight to ask for help (and an overpowering voice in my head that wouldn’t let up until I did). Slowly, especially along my journey here, as I embraced clarity and released illusions, opened my eyes and ears and broadened my perspective, and focused on love, truth, leadership, hope, how to be joyful and push the limits on faith, the road less travelled has lead me here to this higher plane. I also learned to trust myself and my instincts whenever life presented situations where I had to decide who and what to trust and when to say yes, that works for me and when to say no, that doesn’t work for me and move on. When I look around at where I am standing now on this higher plane, it is much higher up than I ever thought, because my focus on this journey was always on what was presented on the path directly in front of me at the time where the effort was so continuous and consistent that the incline didn’t feel noticeably all that steep. Now when I look around I see where all the uphill work has brought me; an elevation high enough to see not only the flatter paths below me, but more of what lies ahead, and that view is very encouraging.

The multitude of paths below I see create a three dimensional world, one that is good, regardless of how well travelled they are. There are also dark and barren areas where the paths stop or decay, but that is an observation for another time. What I see from this vantage point is how all the paths below intertwine with each other creating a network of humanity and culture…and that is a good thing and gives me hope. When I look forward, however, I also see multiple paths less travelled aligning or merging together making this journey of mine wider and directed toward a common goal. What is most comforting and exciting for me at the moment, is to let go of the idea that I have to be alone on this less travelled path. I see now that there are a plethora of others who are moving in the same direction as I am, guided by love and the commitment to bring our full blueprints to fruition, and I am so looking forward to learning from all your perspectives to expand my own. The New Testament is focused on the like minded uniting together and supporting each other as well, and I anticipate meeting so many new people, just as Teilhard foretold, where the intuited world embraces and manifests in the physical one and for the second time in the history of the world we discover fire, the fire of love.

I would like to end with a caveat…When I speak of being on higher ground and having a vantage point of seeing paths below, I am shifting to living on a higher plane more as “up” rather than simply being “out” on the water…that is intentional. I am not saying in any way that my placing is any way hierarchical, or “better than”… because I’m not saying that at all. What I am saying, however, is that I did the work, often with great effort and commitment and the results of that effort brought me to where I am standing right now…and I will never apologize for that. I earned this vantage point, which is a very unique one for that matter,. There are plenty of others who chose an easier path, and I take no issue with that, as Paul says when he speaks about the different gifts necessary in building the body of Christ. I always wanted to push the limits of present reality and make the most out of every adventure, that has always been my prayer and I believe to the depth of my soul that that prayer was and will continue to be answered. And as evolution pushes us all forward, I will continue to be the God of Love’s whisperer, sharing all that I learn through words and art, regardless of how it sounds to anyone else…time will tell, I suppose, and I am fine with that too. To those of you who have put in the effort of forging new untraveled paths, you know my words are true and consistent and I will continue to pray for you and send you love. Love is the way…the only way we can all reach our destinations, and I plan on helping to lead the way in any way the God of Love deems appropriate for me. I also promise to those I send love to, that will I strive to become an even stronger conduit for you all to become shining lights to the world.

Faith in a Whisper

Then the LORD said, “Go outside and stand on the mountain before the LORD; the LORD will be passing by.” A strong and heavy wind was rending the mountains and crushing rocks before the LORD – but the LORD was not in the wind. After the wind there was an earthquake – but the LORD was not in the earthquake. After the earthquake there was fire – but the LORD was not in the fire. After the fire there was a tiny whispering sound. When he heard this, Elijah hid his face in his cloak and went and stood at the entrance of the cave. A voice said to him, “Elijah, why are you here?”

The above verse came to me the other night when I woke up just after 1 a.m. and I saw a light under my bedroom door, I thought “why is he still up?” I got up, went downstairs and I realized that Steve had already gone to bed, but this little lamp was left on…which literally hasn’t been on for more than two years. (I used it when Steve was confined to the living room after his accident, and I had to wake him up to give him medication and take care of the commode) When he got up the next morning I asked him about the lamp, and he said he didn’t touch it, it was completely dark when he went up to bed. Of course I wasn’t surprised in the least, given, well, everything lately…but anyway, I digress.

After working zealously for God, Elijah, in fear of his life and with the help of an angel, escaped into the desert and ended up in a cave. He felt alone and defeated especially after all he had accomplished for God, and that was the context of the above quote. Sometimes I think we only give credence to the large and flashy moments that grab our attention as proof there is something powerful and sacred going on, and that God works more powerfully in the miraculous and in the form of powerful humans. While those things certainly can be and are true, I was reminded in the dark, where I sat for a few moments after turning off that stupid lamp, and in quiet silence remembered the verse above. God was not in the wind, the earthquake and the fire, but in a gentle whisper requiring silence in order to hear God.

So, I sat in the dark and quiet and listened. As I become more untethered to form and convention of the world on this journey and the more solitary this road has become the loneliness I feel is becoming more and more palpable. Then my heavenly voice spoke to me and said, “Mary Frances, just be content with being a whisper and all will be well.” And like I do often these days, I cried. I spent so much of my life trying to be the wind, an earthquake or a scorching fire for God because I suppose it was what I thought I was supposed to be doing for God, when actually, all those “things” led me here, to be in a place where I am comfortable, for once, not being a movement or a force to be reckoned with (although don’t get me wrong, I am still and will always be a badass butterfly), I am content with being a whisper, sending out love and hope, in the form of words, prayers, art and simple actions.

A final caveat…during COVID, when my eldest got a job outside of Chicago, they sent me a link to a song from the 1975’s “You know the sound of my heart” They meant it as a loving gesture, thankful that someone on the planet knew their heart and they found great strength in that. I believe the same goes for all of you out there, I hope you know the sound of my heart, and that, in the rhythm of its small whisper brings you joy.