The Goose Rests Quietly in His New Nest
In the thin margins of reality prompted by chemotherapy—they call it “chemo-brain”—the Wild Gray Goose, the cowboy fighter pilot, stirred awake with a tear. “Amazing love, how can it be, that thou my God shoulds’t die for me…me who cause His pain.” The words greeted me from the CD player as I ended my first wee little nap, now to be a routine.
There is something about the sendor of quiet, even if it’s forced upon me, that takes me to places my busy, productive, visionary life doesn’t provide for. Oh, and the hearing of things normally out of the hearts “hearing range.” While I’m not maudlin on an EOL(end of life) scenarios, I am addressing the reality that not all medical interventions fulfill their hope. There is a certain quiet pleasure, something like I reflected in posting the bonding image of my grandson—a belonging, a warm connection snuggled to God’s back—that suddenly is accessible. The small, less busy moments, like the overwhelming image of the God who died for me, can now come alive. I'm posting, below, the same grandson, different father (quite "grand"), different role. It's as if God were holding, comforting, giving a haven for quiet.
What does the Wild Gray Goose have to offer his comrades who are healthy, strong, busy and not so quiet? Don’t wait for “chemo brain,” should that day come for you. Take a walk with Jesus and David down the very rocky path that suddenly turns to quiet restoration: Psalm 23 (Msg)1-3 God, my shepherd!… You have bedded me down in lush meadows, you find me quiet pools to drink from. True to your word, you let me catch my breath and send me in the right direction. 4 Even when the way goes through Death Valley, I'm not afraid when you walk at my side." (or lay with me in the meadow or the office chair).