By Alexandra Lane
Inspired by the reflections of Johnston Service Corps 2021-2022 Cohort
It is noon and that is to say,
the sun will go no closer to heaven today
that is to say, the shadows are sparse here in this space
that is to say your prayers sit ultraviolet in the room—
burning through both halves of the day.
Humans create nothing that is eternal but that has never stopped us from trying—
in the spontaneous joy that bounces on your lungs;
in the communion of a late night at the kitchen table;
in the welcome of an open door and an open heart;
in the nudge of the spirit towards our most vicious captor, hope.
See, it is in the moments when we are not looking for it, that eternity brushes gently,
coaxing us out of our skin.
See, it is not our creations that are eternal but our being—
when we are stuck here between but somehow stretch to touch the before and the after.
It is the reach that is holy, not the grab.
We will never catch it, but we will not stop trying.
And what more could we ever do?
Than to enter into the prayer room,
this antechamber to eternity,
and keep looking for God
among the faces of enemies, strangers, and friends.