Turtle
I’m like a turtle
safe
protected
in a shell
impervious to the suffering in the world
comfortable
isolated
under-living life
When invited and challenged
to greater freedom, love and generosity
I retreat.
I retreat and join my turtle friends
and we huddle together,
we hibernate together.
Awaken in me oh God another animal,
a dog, I pray, carefree, playful,
generous, loving, living in the moment.
Awaken in me oh God the eagle
soaring, free, able to see more clearly
and with greater perspective,
able to see the whole.
Awaken in me oh God, the fully human,
the Christ, that I may fulfill my destiny,
that I may live the reality that all is connected,
that when one suffers, all suffer,
that none is saved until all are saved,
when love of self and the other blossom
into integration and fullness.