Bless

 

A Garden of the Heart

Bless, O God, the pure ideas of the heart that come

on sympathetic winds and germinate on fertile ground

within. Help us nurture them; protect them from a

summer day too hot, a storm too violent… and make

them sturdy, to withstand a well-intended cautionary

cropping by a relative or friend who wants us to be

safe and means to spare us disappointment.

Make in each of us a garden well supplied with sun

and rain, and teach us husbandry. May we be strong

and clear of sight, and thus not lightly swayed from

our designs; if we are convinced that you began the

planting as a gift of work and purpose, may we not

abandon it.

How will we know a grand idea from a flight of

fantasy? If heaven-sent, it will be eager and

exuberant. Its fruit will heal the sick or feed the

hungry, shade the weary, school the would-be

wise, or simply yield delight, a place of beauty

radiant with love, a feast for pilgrims’ eyes.

Amen.