A few weeks ago at a prayer breakfast one of the participants shared part of a reading from the book May I Have this Dance? by Joyce Rupp. The writing that she shared piqued my interest so I took the information about the book along with the author's name and found a lovely second hand copy at the Amazon book store. It arrived last week just in time for my meditation group meeting. I shared the March reflection with the members present.
The imagery for March is all about the lean to. Depending on your understanding and use of a lean to then you can appreciate that it is attached to another building or trees. It can provide cover for wood piles or shelter for people and animals out of doors. A lean to is dependable. If you search for a definition of the leanto it is described as a shack or shed with a slanted roof. It is also described as a most popular dwelling for survival. It is not a permanent haven. The reflection went on to ask us to consider the lean tos in our lives and how God has been a lean to for us.
As with much of this kind of imagery I had to let it live in my thoughts and imagination for some time. Despite the fact that I am not a camper and most unlikely ever to avail of such an outdoor dwelling for the purposes of finding shelter I find this imagery quite beautiful. I can imagine the rustic image, the excitement of coming upon such a dwelling while in the great outdoors and it forces me to reflect on how the lean to has been availed of, when it has been used, the frequency of use and the resultant changes. The beauty is in the simplicity of the structure. Dependable, enables survival, has a definite purpose. When we apply that same imagery and description to our lives we realize that we all avail of the lean to. We find it in relationships with people and in relationship with God. We find it in areas that we like to go such as a park, beach or shady tree. We all have a lean to and suddenly with the beautiful description that Rupp gave you can see the lean to all around and in various forms, it all depends on what or where you need to lean. We all need that lean to, whether it is a person or creator or place to go in our lives for comfort and safety. Where do you find your lean to?
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