San Francesco
for the Feast of St. Francis of Assisi
You meet me in your nakedness, like a lily of the field. In soft-feathered humility, you sing, hop, fly, then perch in my soul. The wildness of Love dances in your eyes. The love of wildness lights your smile. Passion's Patron. Love's Lunatic. God's Clown. Your holy foolishness floods my feeble reason; washes me, and wraps me in Lady Poverty's rough-hewn robes. All the world's gold cannot compare with the peace of simplicity, and the presence of the Very Lowly who meets me here. ~Cheryl Anne Maris
A blessed Feast Day to you my dear Sister. One of my favorite memories of Francis was when Denise and I spent the Triduum at the Sisters of St Francis of Assisi of Philadelphia with a dear friend who had been an intern at my home church. Don and I reconnected via the denomination’s LGBTQ network. He was a part of The Mercy of God Community (an ecumenical Franciscan LGBTQ affirming community) and we got to take him to the retreat where we had a delightful time. He passed a couple of years later and I am so thankful that we were able to spend that time together 💖