Mystery, Miracles, and Magic

Last week was a tough one, but with God pushing me along and giving me strength, I made it through. My parents also came to town so that fed my spirit immensely, and a special celebration with my daughter and other relatives was enough to carry me through for a while.

My Auntie Claire in D.C. sent me a card with a simple message that just broke me down. The outside says, "I Believe In You." In the inside she wrote, "Hope to see you soon," and she wrote "2007" on it four times. This really hit me because I've been writing "2007" on all the cards that I've received this year so that I can remember the givers' messages to me during the most difficult and challenging time of my life, thus far. But it was the simple printed message in Auntie Claire's card that really moved me to tears:

I believe in mystery
and miracles
and the magic of a new day ...

Man! Did I need to hear that, and how grateful I am that she's sending those magical powers my way.

Thank you Auntie Claire! May God bless you forever.

Love,
Lisa

Ask and it Shall be Given to You

I'm asking a lot from God right now so I am meditating on these words from the Bible:

Luke 11:9-10

"So I say unto you, Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you. For everyone who asks receives, and everyone who seeks finds; and for everyone who knocks, the door will be opened."

And here are the words in that beautiful Gullah language that I love to read, hear, and dream about:

"A da tell oona say, aks God and e gwine gii ya wa ya aks fa. Look ta God, an ya gwine find wasoneba ya da look fa. Knock ta God door, an e gwine open um ta ya. Cause de poson wa aks, God gwine gim wa e aks fa. De poson wa look ta God, e gwine find wasoneba ya da look fa. An de poson wa knock ta God door, God Gwine open de door ta um."

Amen and alleluia! Praise God.

Poem: A Flutter

A Flutter (Praise Dance)
by Alicia Benjamin


First, a flutter.
Then I felt her shake and roll.

She shimmied--
vibrated her house,
my womb,
better than Billie Holiday’s vibrato.

She quivered and wiggled like she was at her first
camp meeting--
like she already knew how to praise and shout
with her Indian red,
flickering body.

GiGi was a dancer in my dreams
before she was born.