Be Still*

Surgery on my foot, followed by a cast and crutches, forced me to sit more than normal for about two months. The time passed with ease at first as I enjoyed reading and watching movies.

But after a while everything annoyed me - the cast, the pain and the options I didn't have.

Photo by Janet - 2006

Then I read this quote … Some blessings will be ours only if we stop chasing after them and let them come to us, like the butterfly that eludes our grasp when we try to catch it, but comes to perch on our shoulder when we stop chasing it and sit still. - Harold Kushner

I wanted to catch butterflies of blessings so I pursued learning about being still. I mediated on the writings from centuries ago in the book of Psalms … Be still and know that I am God.
Other translations from the original Hebrew say ...
Cease striving and know that I am God.
Let be and be still, and know (recognize and understand) that I am God.

Cease striving and let be - those words spoke to me. Yes, the time was still long, but I choose to quit allowing the annoyances to rule my days. I quit striving to change what I couldn't change and instead focused on changing my attitude. I looked for butterflies to catch – more time in prayer, reading to my son, sending cards, making phone calls and long conversations with family and friends.

With time, I realized I was also catching other butterflies. Butterflies I didn't even know I want or need. Butterflies/blessings of truth, of compassion for others, of love and a deeper connection with my creator.

*Repost - written in 2006