I’m up early as usual. There is no moonlight in the kitchen making coffee. Nor can I pray exactly. Last night I wrote for almost four hours, coming away with seven scrawny paragraphs. Nothing sits well; I feel rough and difficult. “What’s wrong?” he asks gently, there in the darkness. I can’t lie to him.Continue reading “Advent Journal: Edenic, Heavenly, Utopian, You Name It”
Author Archives: Sean
Advent Journal: Together We are Briefly Heavenly
The moon was impossibly bright this morning, a few fingers above Arunah Hill. The clarity was shocking in the still-dark kitchen; I brewed coffee with the lights off, finding my way, in order to keep the moon and its uncompromising light in focus. There are moments when the confusion subsides and identity settles and anContinue reading “Advent Journal: Together We are Briefly Heavenly”
Advent Journal: Wind in the Lilac
Bright sun on the sideyard lilac, snow buntings weighing down each branch. For years that bush didn’t bloom at all. Then, the year I planned to cut it down, it threw a couple of scrawny blossoms skyward. It has been blooming – awkwardly, sparsely, beautifully – ever since. Point taken, I guess. Angels abound. ItContinue reading “Advent Journal: Wind in the Lilac”
Advent Journal: Holiness Rose Like A Fierce Gorgeous Tide
I’ve been sick the past few days. Welcome to the body, yet again. Last night I sat in the dark coughing, waiting for the light to change, which it didn’t. I dozed off in darkness, chest aching but happy. Happy because I have seen the Lord, and he speaks to me from beyond the reachContinue reading “Advent Journal: Holiness Rose Like A Fierce Gorgeous Tide”
Advent Journal: Beyond the Sign
Projection is a defense against fear. It’s not a decision but a reaction; it’s a conditioned response to a perception of circumstance. It’s not personal, is what I’m trying to say. Noticing projection is healing, and is all we can do. If you notice the projection, and you know it’s a defense against fear, thenContinue reading “Advent Journal: Beyond the Sign”
Flower Power: Listening to Jesus, Listening to Black Women
Notes from A Retreat / 2025 1 Earlier this year, when the flowers started blooming in earnest, I began a long retreat. The expectation was that it would be brief – a few days, maybe a week. I was tired; the writing was meandering. A break, a rest – a respite of some kind –Continue reading “Flower Power: Listening to Jesus, Listening to Black Women”