We had our retreat this weekend. It wasn’t what women were looking for, but I do believe it was what they needed. Just like the books and movies that I continue to think about long after ‘The End’, the Christ Renews His Parish is staying with me. I keep thinking about my team and how we have grown stronger in our faith. I keep thinking about the women who came.
It occurred to me today that the retreat is like a spider web.
Picture a spider web with its fine lines and intricate patterns. It’s a beautiful work of art, a product of nature that is unequal to anything; no other animals or insect can create anything like it. Many animals create nests and burrows and the like, but spiders create the substance that makes the web and they have the innate knowledge that allows them to construct the webs.
I think the starburst web in the early mornings in spring are the most beautiful. The sun catches the tiny drops of dew and rainbows twinkle in the little globes of water. But the beauty turns to skin-crawling fear when the second thought enters my mind – “Where is the spider?”
It amazes me that such a creepy creature can make such a beautiful web – a web so beautiful that even God adds to it with the dew to make it sparkle! A few summers ago, a spider chose a window in our family as the location for her web. Luckily for me and the spider, she was outside. It was such a privilege to spend the day with her. She sat on her web and I sat at my desk on the other side of the window and we watched each other. She was amazingly graceful and careful as she made daily repairs on her web. Her long, slender legs moved with the ease and beauty of a prima ballerina. Despite her grace, her form still sends chills up my spine. I could never hold her in my hand, but I did miss her the day she left my window.
The retreat is the same – the spine-tingling stories that women share about their lives; stories of loss, tragedy, poor choices, pain and suffering – all turn to beauty through their acceptance of God’s love for them. The stories become windows to the reality of God’s love for us. Like a spider web, His beautiful bounty catches us like dew on its threads. God’s web extends the length of the world, glistening in the natural world, shining in the light of His Son’s sacrifice, for all of us.
Maybe we are the spiders, using what God has given us to weave a vast design that is only seen in its entirety at a distance. Hmmmm…
It occurred to me today that the retreat is like a spider web.
Picture a spider web with its fine lines and intricate patterns. It’s a beautiful work of art, a product of nature that is unequal to anything; no other animals or insect can create anything like it. Many animals create nests and burrows and the like, but spiders create the substance that makes the web and they have the innate knowledge that allows them to construct the webs.
I think the starburst web in the early mornings in spring are the most beautiful. The sun catches the tiny drops of dew and rainbows twinkle in the little globes of water. But the beauty turns to skin-crawling fear when the second thought enters my mind – “Where is the spider?”
It amazes me that such a creepy creature can make such a beautiful web – a web so beautiful that even God adds to it with the dew to make it sparkle! A few summers ago, a spider chose a window in our family as the location for her web. Luckily for me and the spider, she was outside. It was such a privilege to spend the day with her. She sat on her web and I sat at my desk on the other side of the window and we watched each other. She was amazingly graceful and careful as she made daily repairs on her web. Her long, slender legs moved with the ease and beauty of a prima ballerina. Despite her grace, her form still sends chills up my spine. I could never hold her in my hand, but I did miss her the day she left my window.
The retreat is the same – the spine-tingling stories that women share about their lives; stories of loss, tragedy, poor choices, pain and suffering – all turn to beauty through their acceptance of God’s love for them. The stories become windows to the reality of God’s love for us. Like a spider web, His beautiful bounty catches us like dew on its threads. God’s web extends the length of the world, glistening in the natural world, shining in the light of His Son’s sacrifice, for all of us.
Maybe we are the spiders, using what God has given us to weave a vast design that is only seen in its entirety at a distance. Hmmmm…
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