The Old Hwy.2

a.k.a.  the Apple Trail, the Wine Route, the 1000 Island Parkway, the Heritage Hwy.
There is something to be said, about maturing in nature, such that one chooses to take the slower road of a long distance journey.  It was 11 hours of bliss; grace.  400 series highways, good-bye!
The lime-green Ford Fiesta pulled a U-haul trailor today, from Owen Sound to Cornwall, ON.  It possed a bunch of questions, the biggest being, does one dare to take it on the 401 at speeds of 100k/hr fighting transport trucks and many lanes of fast moving traffic?  The answer was "no".
The choice of leisure and more time, translated into beautiful God-filled scenery, meeting lovely people, no traffic, seeing flowers, old houses, heritage sites, quaint villages, animals (wild turkey mom and young, oodles of Canada Geese, hens in yards, goats, sheep, lots of horses); alone time between two people who love each other...it was a happy trail.  One that showed life, was full of life, and renewed life.
Today's lesson: slow down, choose leisure and take more time; it equals renewed life! Grace.

OnTree

www.ontreepark.com

This is a fantastic adventure.  I found grace in the challenge. It happens so often that I have trouble finding a physical challenge that is not only exhausting but creative and full of the need to solve problems/puzzles.  This met all these criteria and more.  The other part of the adventure was going with an awesome friend!
I also know that grace will happen in the future when I share the experience with my teenagers.

Spiritual Formation; Following the Movements of the Spirit -Henri Nouwen

The reading  of this book gives the reader a new perspective through lectio divina and visio divina. It has the reader practice both as "A Way of the Heart". 
One of the visio divina exercises had the read focus on two images: one was a mosaic cross, with all four arms the same length and placed in the centre of a circle; the other image was of a wagon wheel.
In both images the arms/spokes were the same length.
Once upon a time crosses were drawn with equal lengthed arms.  The book says, "The horizontal beam points left toward the Jewish people, the right toward the Gentiles.  The vertical beam points toward God above and to the earth below.  This is the mystery and promise of the cross- the crossbeams grounded on the mounatin where Jesus brings all divergent points together into one circle of God's great love."
Over time the vertical beam became longer, on the earth side; human beings concentrating on themselves.  When this happened the circle of God's love couuld no longer encompass the cross.
It meant and means that there are people left out, in fact pushed out by so called Christians.
The grace in the exercise of visio divina with these two images, is the inclusive character and nature of God's love. It is a reminder, a wake-up call, that humans need to act in such a way that the God's love can encompass, include, and "wheel-y" be uninhibited by us.

"Soul Friend", by Kenneth Leech

This book is about Spiritual Direction in the modern world and offers poignant thoughts, academic knowledge, and helpful lists.    Today's piece to  meditate on comes from the definition of prayer as "the mind in the heart".
"Prayer then is not essentially a work but the manifesting and flowering of God's grace in us."