Through meditation I have found that while I don’t have ADD or ADHD, I do for certain, have what’s called a monkey mind. It swings here and jumps there and just when I think I have it focused, “Oh, look over there. It’s a banana.”
Because of this rather random attention span, I have found I do better if I write my prayers every morning. It keeps me focused instead of starting with prayer, thinking about what to cook for lunch, wandering into the kitchen to see if we do indeed have any spicy mustard, and then leaving for the grocery store all before I can even realize my mind has wandered. That scenario just flowed out because it’s happened more times than I care to recount.
As of late my prayers have been full of requests for the Ukrainian people. These have not been tame, rational pleas. It’s been praying for big, miracle-sized things. Maybe even irrational, fantasy things. “Please put a bubble of protection around the Ukrainians. Help the artillery to bounce off of them, to miss them completely. Let the Russian army desert and refuse to fight and kill innocent people.” I’ve thrown the whole kitchen sink into these prayers.
As I was writing this morning, some words popped into my monkey mind, and it took me a while to place them. I said them over and over, realized a tune went with them and finally realized they are from a Christmas song of all things. “I Heard the Bells on Christmas Day”.
Although it’s not one of the most popular Christmas hymns, I must have heard that song and sung it myself a hundred times. In fact, in elementary school, I sang it as a solo in the Christmas play. I had to memorize all 5 verses. Apparently the teacher was tone deaf and couldn’t tell that I couldn’t carry a tune.
The melody is a little haunting, and the words are poignant but never to the extent they are now.
And in despair I bowed my head:
“There is no peace on earth,” I said,
“For hate is strong, and mocks the song
Of peace on earth, good-will to men”.
Then pealed the bells more loud and deep:
“God is not dead, nor doth He sleep:
The wrong shall fail, the right prevail,
With peace on earth
Good-will to men.”
It doesn’t have to be Christmas to want, to desperately want and not just say the words, peace on earth, good-will to men.
