Ending Well: A Liturgy

It has been a long journey, nothing like expected.
So many detours from a pre-planned route.
Potholes, accidents, missed signs—

Decades ago I started out,
destination unknown, but expectant and hopeful:
Somewhere things settled into a rhythm.
Rhythms help us press into the mist;
we live in familiar cycles.

The pilgrim in me leaned into the predictability of
Advent, Epiphany, Lent, Resurrection, Pentecost
and ever the “Ordinary times.”
Where did my soul travel in this pilgrimage?
What places did I discover, within and without?
Which relationships were nurturing, and which not?

When did I brave the dark places in me
and when did I avoid discomfort, and default to a lesser me?

When the path was steep and rocky
how well did I push through?

What did I learn?
How earnestly did my heart seek my Shepherd
and find the quiet waters?
How well did I listen to my companions?
What messages did they hear from me?

My thoughts meander back over years:
How I have grown, the changes I see in me.
Show me, LORD, to focus my thoughts
on the passage to come:
Help me to discard anxiety, to displace fear
with Love—not exchange it for anything less.

Thought reflections glitter on the sea ahead.
Help me rest in Your calm.
Show me moments of Holy with You—
the intimate glimpses of what You are about
in the Project that is me.

Let me work together with You
to finish creating this artwork of Beauty
from the raw material of my life.

Let Truth and Goodness blend the
textures, colours, words, dance steps,
and songs of lament and laughter.
Let Gratitude guide my heart
as I approach the end:
Finally knowing
my destination is Home.
Show me the place
where I take off my shoes
to spend time with You on
Holy Ground.

Amen.

---

Karen has just embarked on her eighth decade of life. After lifelong learning, teaching and mentoring in Eswatini, China, Moçambique, Zimbabwe and South Africa, she coaches young people for cross cultural work in southern Spain. Approaching the “end” is an intriguing concept at this time of life.