大象传媒

A spiritual comment and prayer to start the day with Hope Lonergan

Good morning.

As a piece of experimental theatre I鈥檝e always wanted to gather a group of people from my life 鈥� disparate, unconnected people who hold little significance; people who play a walk-on part in my memories (rather than the key players) 鈥� under the pretence of a party. So a few examples from the guest list would be: my dental hygienist; the man who tried to sell me dodgy World War 2 memorabilia in Estonia; the stranger who roped me into walking with him from Chelmsford to Southend at 3 in the morning while he recited a short story he鈥檇 written about a reincarnated John Belushi managing a K-Pop band.

It would be a bad party. A wash-out. A night of awkward, syncopated chatter that crunches to a halt at unpredictable intervals, further compounding the awkwardness.

Just maybe 鈥� an unexpected thing happens. Connections are forged. Real conversations begin to sprout. And soon people are finding stable ground underneath their common humanity.

I was reminded of this unrealised 鈥渁rtwork鈥� while discussing the interconnectedness of people; the close spiritual bond integral to all of us (if you know where to look for it). And how this prevents us from being truly self-centred, self-sufficient or self-contained. (Though some make a good go of shining a spotlight on such personal qualities!) The friend I was sharing with is a fellow Quaker, so they鈥檙e adept at recognising the value of community outreach and civic participation.

To some greater or lesser extent, we鈥檙e all community. And if my party ever comes to fruition, I鈥檒l serve cheese strings at this party. That鈥檚 it. That鈥檚 your lot.

So, today I pray for the big I and the big us of community.

Amen.

Show less