a lenten blessing for palm sunday

O God, why do the days feel so short and the minutes so long?

Oh God take hold of time, and order it once again.

God have mercy,

Christ have mercy,

Spirit have mercy.

On this Palm Sunday,

time is marked

as one small donkey

plods toward Jerusalem,

and one with a face set like flint

walks forward

toward the eastering of all sorrow

—not in the power of horses

and swift victory,

but in small steps.

Blessed are all those

walking forward

into the great small work they do

in hospitals, homes, grocery stores, and trucking companies.

And blessed are we

joining the crowds waving palm branches

to shout ourselves hoarse:

“Hosanna! save us! save our world.”

Blessed are those who have learned to walk in the light of your presence.

Psalm 89:15

God have mercy,

Christ have mercy,

Spirit have mercy.

Sit still. Wait. Until the deep sigh comes, and the next step is possible.