It's raining really hard outside where I am. It started very quietly and softly before turning abruptly into a relentless downpour. Spring weather is now in full swing, and my mind is wandering.
The thunder outside calls to mind the heavens tearing open at the Incarnation; Heaven kissing earth with Mary's consent -- God and humanity made one. The rain reminds me of the Might of God poured out, the soil of the world mixed with the life of the heavens.
The Annunciation reminds me of the Resurrection. Jesus' first moments on earth were under the shelter of a womb; at what appeared to be the close of His life He was placed in the shelter of a tomb. From the womb He would emerge, be wrapped in rags, and go on to change the world; from the tomb He would emerge, shedding rags, having changed the world forever.
In my home state of Missouri, thunderstorms signal the arrival of warmer weather. Life will soon return to the trees and the ground and the atmosphere. I can't help but think how appropriate it is that our first big thunderstorm of 2015 falls on the feast of the Annunciation; the conception of Christ in Mary's womb, of course, being the event in history that would change everything; the announcement that death would soon become life. Winter is coming to its close, and Lent will be soon, too. And life is waiting at the other end of both.
Beautiful...
ReplyDelete