Grief is a Thief
By: Katie del Bosque
11/30/2009
Grief is a sticky messy thing
With all of the faces and stages it brings.
It's the elephant in the room no one's talking about.
Or the subject matter everyone could do without.
In a day you wake up and
life has changed as you know it.
It's like your wearing a clown suit
and nobody notices.
Or people don't want to see
and you really can't blame them.
They don't know what to say
and theres no need to shame them.
Because it's ice no one really wants to skate upon.
It's Water no one really wants to tread.
It's a hard class no one's signing up to take.
Or a book no ones vouluntarily read.
Grief is a thief on a bright sunny day.
Ignoring it doesn't make it go away.
If only it did then misieries would be solved,
Addictions healed, and ill relations resolved.
Theres no way around grief but to walk on through.
And to choose to believe God will carry you because,
Greif is a sticky messy thing
With all of the faces and stages it brings.
Sunday, November 29, 2009
Wednesday, September 2, 2009
Pondering the Symbolic Meaning of the Peacock
Why you say is she pondering the symbolic meaning of the Peacock...? Isn't that some kind of sacrilage? Good question! Let me tell you a little story....
I used to live and work at a group home that housed pregnant teenaged women and it was a very rewarding and God filled time in my life that was just too sweet and special to ever forget. This home that I worked at was more than a job...it was a ministy and the young ladies that I served there were part of a calling that God had placed on my life.
At this home there was a huge back yard and there was a certain peacock that would from time to time make its way through a hole in the fence and strutt around in our backyard, showing the full glory of his feathers to me, and all of the girls in the home. I always admired this birds beautiful feathers which had colors of incandescant blue and green and considered this peacock to be one of Gods more asthetically pleasing creations. I am big on asthetics by the way.
So lets skip to the present....here we are 5 years later. I was feeling a little discouraged in the very recent past... particularly in regards to my career progress or instead I should say lack thereof. I was wondering why I havent made more of a breakthrough in this area of my life and feeling a little down on myself and then all of the sudden I remembered this Peacock... I envisioned the peacock in my mind and I remembered this precious season in my life when I was living and working with these girls at this orginization and it gave me hope that God really does still have a plan for my ministry and my professional future... I am not one who places much meaning in the symbols themselves but it occured to me that perhaps this peacock was symbolic of something deeper that I was meant to meditate on for a moment. I found myself googling "The Symbolic Meaning of the Peacock" and was surprised when there were actually many postings regarding this very thing.
What follows are some explanations which I found to be quite uplifting and encouraging!!!
1.)In general, the Peacock is representative of glory, immortality, royalty, and incorruptibility. It is a possessor of some of the most admired human characteristics, and is a symbol of integrity and the beauty that can be achieved when we endeavor to better ourselves and better our lives.
2.)Christians adopted the symbol of the peacock to represent immortality. This came from an ancient legend that the flesh of the peacock did not decay. It is also associated with the resurrection of Christ because it sheds it old feathers every year and grows, newer, brighter ones each year. If the peacock is portrayed drinking from a vase it symbolizes a christian drinking the waters of eternal life. In addition the " multitude of eyes" upon its stunningly beautiful fan tail, suggested the all seeing eye of God.
3.)Peacock feathers are a symbol of renewal. The entire tail of feathers is renewed each year and they lose the previous batch over the season naturally.
4.)The distinctive eye-like pattern of the peacocks regal tail feathers symbolizes the all-seeing power of God to many Christians. The peacock is also a symbol of immortality and resurrection, for it was believed that the flesh of the peacock never spoiled, and the fact that old feathers were replaced with even more colorful plumage.
5.)In Christianity the peacock represents the "all-seeing" church and the holiness & sancitiy associated with it. Additionally, the peacock reprsents resurrection, renewal and immortality within the spiritual teachings of Christianity.
6.)It is believed that a peacock (sometimes a pair of peacocks) stands guard at the entrance to the Gates of Paradise. They are also a symbol of the immortality of Christ.
All of this talk about the Peacock reminds me of the scripture that says, "The gift and calling of God are irrevocable". In otherwords... "God calling on your life (and mine) can't be taken back...and here's another scripture... "He who began a good work in you will carry it through to completion until the day of Christ Jesus." You see the peacock is a symbol of Renewal and it is a symbol of immortality... It is a symbol of something that every year sheds its old feathers and grows new and glorious feathers....and also some thing thats though it passes from this world on...its flesh does not decay.
For a while I got a little off track in my walk with God... but what seemed like a dead end to me... was actually a new beginning, a renewal, and a shedding of something old so that it might be replaced with something new...again. Something more vibrant and beautiful and something that even though one day it will die... will live forever.
So I guess you could say God spoke to me through a Peacock. God knows us personally and will use anything to get our attention...especially his own creation. And for all of you doubters out there...I really did have a devotional stemming from the Symbolic meaning of the Peacock. Go figure!
I used to live and work at a group home that housed pregnant teenaged women and it was a very rewarding and God filled time in my life that was just too sweet and special to ever forget. This home that I worked at was more than a job...it was a ministy and the young ladies that I served there were part of a calling that God had placed on my life.
At this home there was a huge back yard and there was a certain peacock that would from time to time make its way through a hole in the fence and strutt around in our backyard, showing the full glory of his feathers to me, and all of the girls in the home. I always admired this birds beautiful feathers which had colors of incandescant blue and green and considered this peacock to be one of Gods more asthetically pleasing creations. I am big on asthetics by the way.
So lets skip to the present....here we are 5 years later. I was feeling a little discouraged in the very recent past... particularly in regards to my career progress or instead I should say lack thereof. I was wondering why I havent made more of a breakthrough in this area of my life and feeling a little down on myself and then all of the sudden I remembered this Peacock... I envisioned the peacock in my mind and I remembered this precious season in my life when I was living and working with these girls at this orginization and it gave me hope that God really does still have a plan for my ministry and my professional future... I am not one who places much meaning in the symbols themselves but it occured to me that perhaps this peacock was symbolic of something deeper that I was meant to meditate on for a moment. I found myself googling "The Symbolic Meaning of the Peacock" and was surprised when there were actually many postings regarding this very thing.
What follows are some explanations which I found to be quite uplifting and encouraging!!!
1.)In general, the Peacock is representative of glory, immortality, royalty, and incorruptibility. It is a possessor of some of the most admired human characteristics, and is a symbol of integrity and the beauty that can be achieved when we endeavor to better ourselves and better our lives.
2.)Christians adopted the symbol of the peacock to represent immortality. This came from an ancient legend that the flesh of the peacock did not decay. It is also associated with the resurrection of Christ because it sheds it old feathers every year and grows, newer, brighter ones each year. If the peacock is portrayed drinking from a vase it symbolizes a christian drinking the waters of eternal life. In addition the " multitude of eyes" upon its stunningly beautiful fan tail, suggested the all seeing eye of God.
3.)Peacock feathers are a symbol of renewal. The entire tail of feathers is renewed each year and they lose the previous batch over the season naturally.
4.)The distinctive eye-like pattern of the peacocks regal tail feathers symbolizes the all-seeing power of God to many Christians. The peacock is also a symbol of immortality and resurrection, for it was believed that the flesh of the peacock never spoiled, and the fact that old feathers were replaced with even more colorful plumage.
5.)In Christianity the peacock represents the "all-seeing" church and the holiness & sancitiy associated with it. Additionally, the peacock reprsents resurrection, renewal and immortality within the spiritual teachings of Christianity.
6.)It is believed that a peacock (sometimes a pair of peacocks) stands guard at the entrance to the Gates of Paradise. They are also a symbol of the immortality of Christ.
All of this talk about the Peacock reminds me of the scripture that says, "The gift and calling of God are irrevocable". In otherwords... "God calling on your life (and mine) can't be taken back...and here's another scripture... "He who began a good work in you will carry it through to completion until the day of Christ Jesus." You see the peacock is a symbol of Renewal and it is a symbol of immortality... It is a symbol of something that every year sheds its old feathers and grows new and glorious feathers....and also some thing thats though it passes from this world on...its flesh does not decay.
For a while I got a little off track in my walk with God... but what seemed like a dead end to me... was actually a new beginning, a renewal, and a shedding of something old so that it might be replaced with something new...again. Something more vibrant and beautiful and something that even though one day it will die... will live forever.
So I guess you could say God spoke to me through a Peacock. God knows us personally and will use anything to get our attention...especially his own creation. And for all of you doubters out there...I really did have a devotional stemming from the Symbolic meaning of the Peacock. Go figure!
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