by Joanie Butman
During my hospital stay in February, I met a new friend. Hedda is 98 and probably weighs about the same. She’s a tiny woman full of peace and wisdom. I suppose you don’t live nearly a century without learning a lot about life. She was once a critic given the task of reviewing flamenco dancers in Spain. She was fired because she wrote that flamenco as an artform was dying since this generation doesn’t understand the dramatic effect of a pause. The art of the dance was being lost in (what she considered) frenetic movement.
It sounds a lot like life, I commented. Absolutely, she replied. More is not necessarily better. People no longer understand the rhythm of life. Flamenco is not necessarily learning steps. It’s more intuitive and fluid. The dancers instinctively know when to pause for breath. The world is too driven to achieve success, rushing through prescribed steps at a breathless pace, while their souls are suffocating.*
It may seem like a heady conversation for laps around a hospital ward, but we both agreed that our time in the hospital was an imposed pause we were meant to learn from without rushing onto the next step. We needed to sit with the pain before we could learn its lessons. The world is experiencing the same at the moment. Its own reconstructive surgery where the outcome is yet to be determined. I can’t think of a more dramatic pause than a global pandemic! Who knows what form our new dance is going to take? Certainly not me, but I do know WHO I want leading.
For now, the world is taking a breath. The air and water are cleaner, stillness abounds. Nature seems louder, or maybe we are just quiet enough to notice. Our current communal dance may require a 6’ distance, which the nuns of my youth would applaud. “Leave room for the Holy Spirit” was their motto and good general advice, though I didn't necessarily agree as a teen. A Bible-length away was their suggested distance. I would say the Holy Spirit has filled our social distancing gap with God’s grace in new and amazing ways during this crisis, connecting our hearts instead of our hands.
Though it was published in 2004, this morning’s devotional from Jesus Calling seems particularly appropriate today. Sarah Young writes,
Just as a spinning ballerina must keep returning her eyes to a given point to maintain her balance, so you must keep returning your focus to Me (Christ). Circumstances are in flux, and the world seems to be whirling around you. The only way to keep your balance is to fix your eyes on Me, the One who never changes. If you gaze too long at your circumstances, you will become dizzy and confused. Look to Me, refreshing yourself in My Presence, and your steps will be steady and sure.
Excellent counsel regardless of whether your dance is ballet, flamenco, the monkey, the jerk, or freeform. We may be dancing in the dark at the moment, but we can trust that He will lead us into the light.
Dance, dance, wherever you may be
I am the Lord of the dance, said He
And I lead you all, wherever you may be
And I lead you all in the dance, said He
Lord of the Dance, The Dubliners
My prayer for you this week is St. Paul’s blessing to the Thessalonians. May the Lord direct your hearts into God’s love and Christ’s perseverance (2 Thessalonians 3:5).