A Prayer for Every Day Julia Fehrenbacher

Let me breathe only grace today, only
that which slows, steadies,
softens, sparks

only that which permits
and pardons and points
to the blossoms inside the broken,
the poetry inside the pain, the nourishing
newness inside the now
Let me breathe only grace
today, only that which invites
me to speak my very own
language for as long as I have breath,
only that which hums:

You can.
You will.

Let me breathe only grace today, only that which notices the tired
and says, lie back, Love—rest
for as long as you need to. It’s not
about how much you do
but how full you are.

And, my God, how beautiful you are when you are full.

A Prayer for Every Day

Serendipitously I came upon this gem while looking for another site – the wonders of internet rabbit holes! I admire Fehrenbacher’s work and previously posted Hold Out Your Hand back in December, 2018.

Here she offers us a prayer for grace which slows, steadies, / softens, sparks. A grace which permits / and pardons and points / to the blossoms inside the broken. Such deliciously inviting alliteration, a musical incantation. A grace which invites me to speak my very own / language, which says to You can. / You will. A language of confidence, of strength, of your own.

And then the permission, to breathe grace which notices the tired / and says, lie back. How might you breathe with relief to be given that invitation, to rest, to do nothing in a world that demands we be productive. She tells us what we all need to hear, that It’s not / about how much you do / but how full you are. What if you were to stop and consider your own rich fullness?

Is it not enough to be full of your own being, to listen and receive, not just to do and do more. Because as she emphatically reminds us, how beautiful you are when you are full. May you rest in your fullness today.