The prairie walk

posted on: Tuesday, October 04, 2011 by: rbauer

"It all started from a seed," kept running through my mind as a mantra while taking this extraordinary walk.  Yes, it is St. Francis Day and as a Franciscan it is a day of celebration.  So to celebrate I decided to take a walk.

At the Shalom Retreat Center in Dubuque, Iowa, there is a large prairie that surrounds the grounds.  It is former farmland that the Sisters have let revert to prairie for the last 15 years.  As I walked the path I saw so much beauty.  The fall flowers were in full bloom. The fields are filled with wild asters, golden rod, grasses and berries.  It was a field of purples, yellows, whites, and reds bordered by blue sky.  As I looked out from on top of the highest point it was like looking at a painting from Monet or Van Gogh. The colors ran together and created a beautiful watercolor.  All I could think of is that it started with a seed.  

As I end this summer season and begin to ponder fall and the coming of winter… what is the seed growing in my heart?  I am reminded in Scripture that the seed must die before it can be born again.  What is it that I must die to for new life to burst forth?