Yielding Beautiful Treasures
Table Talk
Setting the Table
You are welcome here. Come just as you are, bringing whatever is on your heart today. Take a few moments and allow yourself to just be. Take a couple deep breaths, grab yourself a cup of coffee, light a candle, do something that brings you comfort. Allow yourself to be present in this moment.
Imagine all the folks in our world as tiny plants growing from the soil of our communities. Do we all have what we need to thrive?
“So let us be marked
not for sorrow.
And let us be marked
not for shame.
Let us be marked
not for false humility
or for thinking
we are less
than we are
but for claiming
what God can do
within the dust,
within the dirt,
within the stuff
of which the world
is made
and the stars that blaze
in our bones
and the galaxies that spiral
inside the smudge
we bear.”
― Jan Richardson
Matthew 13:1-9
And he told them many things in parables, saying: “Listen! A sower went out to sow. And as he sowed, some seeds fell on the path, and the birds came and ate them up. Other seeds fell on rocky ground, where they did not have much soil, and they sprang up quickly, since they had no depth of soil. But when the sun rose, they were scorched; and since they had no root, they withered away. Other seeds fell among thorns, and the thorns grew up and choked them. Other seeds fell on good soil and brought forth grain, some a hundredfold, some sixty, some thirty. Let anyone with ears listen!”
Food for Thought
My grandparents and dad grew up on farms, growing almost all of their food from the earth. The past couple summers I have traveled with my dad to the farms – to the soil – of his youth. The earth gives us life and identity. It calls us back to pay attention, to remember, and to honor our connection to it and what has grown from it. In quarantine I found myself called to the earth, to dig up the fallow ground of my own garden, and to plant new life and possibility – not vegetables in my case, but ryusen maple and sango kaku, russian sage and weeping atlas cedar, hydrangeas and creeping thyme – myriad beautiful treasures.
It is easy to overlook the dirt, we do it every day. We walk on it without a second thought, shake it off our shoes as inconvenient, avoid the mess it makes when it rains. However, I have found it difficult to work closely with the earth without appreciating its wonder: how the soil of all that has been continues to give way to new life and all that will be. And the way that the earth holds together the complexity of creation – the trees, the water, the warmth of the sun, and all God’s critters – yielding life-giving ecosystems that are sustainable and flourishing.
Of course, the health of the soil determines what can grow from it. But even unhealthy soil can be amended; it can be changed and cultivated, enriched to a new possibility of life.
In scooping up the handfuls of dirt in my garden, I am reminded of all that it holds, all that has enriched it, and all that it has the potential to nourish. We are but dust, and yet all manner of things are given life through us – love, healing, and flourishing community among them at our best and most miraculous – the wideness of God’s goodness, mercy, and compassion embodied within and grown from the dust of humanity.
As we move through this summer season, let us remember that tending our soil – our hearts, our homes, our communities, our world – is a blessing we offer toward the flourishing of creation and humanity as we know it. We have the potential of yielding myriad beautiful treasures if we are willing to take a little time to tend to the conditions of our soil, and if we allow God to amend us a bit – to work in our lives and in our hearts toward a more loving, compassionate, and life-giving purpose.
Take some time to be grateful for the things of the earth. If you are feeling motivated to grow something, you can plant seeds indoors in a cup or an egg carton, or other creative container, or outdoors in your garden. Great seeds for late summer planting are peas, lettuce, beans, kale, radishes, or beets.
If your Summer schedule is already in full swing and you are in need of a fun way to stay connected with friends and loved ones through meaningful conversation, check out The Traveling Table! This FREE downloadable eBook series, can go with you wherever you go this Summer, and there is something for everyone!
For a printable version of today's reflection Click Here!
Blessing
Nurturing God,
Who enriches our hearts toward loving our neighbor, who calls us to flourish, cultivate in us a spirit and commitment toward a thriving community. Lead us in intentional care and concern for our world and the people in it, including ourselves. Remind us again and again that in the dust of who we are exists the life-giving source we can become.
Amen.
A little Table Talk for your table...
Take a few moments and reflect on ways the soil of your community is in need of tending. How can tending these things in your community work toward the greater goodness of our world?
What are the circumstances that have shaped you and made you who you are right now?
Think about what would be helpful toward your personal flourishing. Perhaps it’s as simple as rest, hydration, or connection. Write those things down and let at least one other someone know what you need. Don’t be afraid to care for yourself, or to seek help toward that end.
Try taking it to the Kids Table...
Go for a walk together outside and take some time to be grateful for the things of the earth together.
Together with your kiddo, plant seeds indoors in a cup or an egg carton, or another creative container, or outdoors in your garden. Great seeds for late summer planting are peas, lettuce, beans, kale, radishes, or beets.
Make a list of ways you can help provide food in your community.
Meet our Welcoming Voice!
Rev. Daryn Stylianopoulos is originally from North Carolina, but has called Boston, MA home for nearly twenty years. She is a graduate of Wake Forest University and Boston University School of Theology and serves as a Baptist pastor in the Boston area. Daryn is an advocate for the marginalized and works against injustices in her community. She believes in creatively cultivating a spirit of cohesion, welcome, and healing in the world. A lover of art, music, gardening, and, most of all, family, she often looks to these for inspiration in her work and ministry.
To hear more from Rev. Daryn throughout the week, follow along on our Instagram!
Here are Five Things to Remember When Setting Your Own Welcome Table!