As a child, I loved October as the fall foliage in New England transformed from tender green to fiery crimson and gold.
But seasons change and so do we.
Two years ago, on Oct 24th, my father died, letting go, like a leaf, falling gently to the earth. In his memory, I had planned to attend a retreat, starting the evening of Oct 24th, in Geyserville. That very same morning, Oct 24th, a PG&E transformer ignited a fire, during the deadliest of the Diablo winds. The epicenter, of all places, was in Geyserville. Had it been a day later, we would have been among the evacuees. The child within me asks, “was Dad watching over me?”
This time we were spared, while others were not. The Kincade fire is only 5% contained at the time of this writing, while others have started… and the Diablo winds continue, with more to come.
- Evacuees… 180,000 people and rising,
- Power outages for millions,
- California is in a state of emergency.
It feels as if we are living in a war zone. We try to carry on… as best we can… yet we are living with a sense of foreboding… because the Diablo winds will get worse. They say this is becoming the new normal for us.
We are glued to the news… or trying to limit our intake of it.. worried that the fires may ignite here, haunted by memories of ever closer encounters with fires…
I find myself haunted by the recurring dream that our beautiful Skyline church has burned down…that we are standing at the foundation in prayer, grateful for our lives, looking out over a charred East Bay Regional Parks, sharing photographs of this once beautiful place, filled with so many happy memories, where so many couples have come to get married and preschool children once played, and people once worshipped. Haunted by the reality that our beautiful sanctuary looks out at Mt Diablo.. We must face it… the Diablos..
God of life, we come again to this terrifying season of fires..
We pray for those who have lost their homes and businesses,
We pray for the people evacuated and those who shelter them,
We pray for those whose power has been cut off,
For those in nursing homes, and children with school cancelled, and life disrupted.
We pray for the firefighters.
We pray for ourselves,
to have the courage to face the diablos of the world,
the forces behind the winds of war, violence and destruction.
Give us the courage to do our part.
Inspire us, with the breath of life, to transform these diablos
into the winds of healing and peace.
Inspire us to transform this world into a place
where all people are safe from harm,
now and forever
amen.
The words “breath,” “wind,” and “spirit” are used interchangeably to remind us that God is always coming to us. Become aware of your breath. Notice how breathing more deeply calms you. Notice how long you can hold your breath to remember how essential it is for your life. The Living God, or the God of Life, seeks to come to dwell within us and to give new life to us and through us.
