Passing Guests

The psalmist's cogent lines that humans are both "passing guests" and "aliens like all of our forebears" (Ps 39:12) bind humans together in their lived experiences. This temporary status on earth is reinforced in the changing seasons, from winter . . . to spring . . . to summer . . . to fall, year after year. The seasons are both a physical reality persons experience and a metaphor for their spiritual journeys. The days are not all the same; as varied as the seasons, they come and go, carrying with them a mixture of calm and stormy periods, of pain and pleasure, of light and dark. The voyage of life is replete with the accompanying emotions and sensations, whether joyful or despairing. Attending to the seasons, with their own rhythms and colors, provides a helpful conduit for a journey into deeper things--a spiritual exploration, one might say. Passing Guests, a collection of fifty-two short reflections coordinated with the changing weather of the four seasons, seeks to support this exploration. Each entry centers on a quotation from a wise person who inspired the musings. Some entries are accompanied by photographs taken by the author, suggesting new avenues for meditation beyond the words on the page. Whatever season one is in, the hope is that through such attention readers will find themselves in concert with the Giver, Sustainer, and Healer of all that truly matters, to recognize they are valued, loved, and welcomed guests of the Creator and Redeemer God as they travel their days under the sun.