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A spiritual comment and prayer to begin the day with Canon Anne Easter

Good morning!

When I was Chaplain of our local maternity hospital, I often met women who had made friends with others at ante natal clinics and I know of some of those friendships that, years later, are still going strong.

I remember sharing with other women about all the preparations I was making for the new baby, the problems of choosing the right names and our wondering together if life would ever be the same – as if!

Today, May 31st, is when Christians remember and celebrate the Visitation, when Mary, who was expecting Jesus, went to see her cousin Elizabeth who was also expecting a baby. Both pregnancies were unusual; Elizabeth was well past child-bearing age and thought she and her husband would never have a baby but her son John later prepared the way for Jesus. Mary was very young and just engaged.

The story in the Bible says that Elizabeth felt her baby jump in response to the arrival of Mary and her bump and that, in the privacy of their home, Mary and Elizabeth could marvel over their condition and wonder at the blessings that had so unexpectedly come upon them. And that story foretells the meeting, some thirty years later, when John the Baptist recognised Jesus as divine and baptized him in the river Jordan.

God our Mother, thank you for those around us with whom we can share our hopes and fears. Encourage us to dream dreams and to do what we can to bring light and joy into this world.

Amen