Editorial
Bus ride becomes a spiritual practice, a service opportunity
In order to free myself from the stress of driving downtown and looking for a parking place which costs two dollars an hour, I ride the bus. It has become a spiritual practice for me, much to my surprise!
Do you know that just about every person who rides the bus calls out "Thank you!" as he or she gets off the bus? And every time, I smile.
Thank you
for the ride, for bringing me safely
for this community of travelers
for the gracious preparation for handicapped persons who need space in the front—
for seats put up and bars aside to accommodate walkers and wheel chairs
for the thoughtful passengers who leap up to assist the driver in preparing that space
for the day,
for somewhere to go, do, be
for life—here I am, part of a world on the move
for the diversity that includes us all—
bus riding is a great leveler
for acceptance
some smell good, some don't;
some are quiet, some are not;
some are mainly on this trip,
some on other trips inside their heads;
some are able, some are not;
some seem to think they are alone, they are not;
I have choices, some do not
—I have a reliable lovely blue Subaru!
I ride to serve others,
some ride to secure needed services
when I get off the bus, I am headed home,
some are looking for a protected corner somewhere to shelter
Riding the bus is a microcosm adventure, an opportunity to reflect on how very blessed is my life.
It is almost better than a book for inspiration, for pop-up reminders, invitations to enter into a wholeness that is not otherwise part of my very secure life. For the duration of the ride, we are an enclosed community of people. What we hold in common is our blessed humanity, and we are all doing our very best to be as fully our human selves as we know how. Our many differences pale before that one thing we hold in common. We are all human.
By what design, accident, sequence of circumstances am I so very blessed?
What do so many blessings ask of me?
Thank you! Amen.
Mary Ann Farley, SNJM
The Fig Tree Editorial Team
Copyright@ The Fig Tree, December, 2018
