One day in June my car turned left instead of right and I traveled down highways and over marshy bridges to the shore, to the very peninsula of New Jersey, the place of my birth. There is a nature wetlands preserve there by the sea, a restorative point of rest for migrating birds and butterflies and humans seeking respite.
I was walking back toward the lighthouse when a dreamy view drew me down off a gravelly road. A circle of swans stood quietly in the shallows and I was transfixed by the heavenly aura around them. Mist softened the scene like a Monet yet the feathery white creatures, serene and preening in one accord, reflected exquisitely on the placid water. They were like angels convening in the Holy Presence and I wished in that moment I were immersed with them .
Later I would tell a dear friend of this day and she talked of the retreat center nearby. Two months later I was in that heavenly house, gathered in worship and sublime silence for eight days. I gathered with women who love the Lord, seek Him, whisper His name and listen for His voice.
Are my close relationships ones in which I share and delve in the Divine? If not, I walk a dry, dusty road of dearth, going the way of distractions, disregarding the sweet dew of grace. God wants me bathing in His holiness in the midst of His saints.
Walk with the wise and become wise, for a companion of fools suffers harm. Proverbs 13:20
Meeting God at the Park 