Reflection by Joyce Rupp, from her book ‘Rest your dreams on a little twig’.

Joyce Rupp’s book demonstrates how nature can become a spiritual teacher for us. She holds up a mirror so that we can see more clearly the ongoing processes of growth, renewal, and transformation in our lives. She marvels at the transformation of a tadpole to a frog and wonders why she is so impatient. A green shoot growing out of as tump becomes a sign of resurrection ‘things in me that have died, the worn-out and the worthless, they are waiting to give rise to some green shoot of a sister.’ Joyce vows to nurture herself so she can better carry on in the long span of her lifetime:

‘I saw how parts of my inner story were reflected in nature: wildflowers swaying in the breeze and little birds winging their way in the wide sky drew me to recognise the caged places in my own spirit. The aged frame of an old tree beckoned to my ongoing struggle with aging and bodily demise. A brown, speckled sparrow sitting trustingly on a tiny twig taught me to have confidence in the fragments of my future until they were able to gather and take shape.

How I love it

When what I’ve known

As a weed in me

Suddenly becomes

A beautiful flower.

How I delight

When the rejected part

Of me

Becomes my friend.

How I cherish

The struggles that change

My inner enemies

Into my beloved friends.

The next time you are out in nature, look around until one part of God’s creation catches your attention. Then ask that element of nature what she has to teach you.