Virginia Brasier's poem, "Time of the Mad Atom," reads:
This is the age, Of the half-read page.
And the quick hash, And the mad dash.
The bright night, With the nerves tight.
The plane hop, With the brief stop.
The lamp tan, In a short span.
The Big Shot, In a good spot.
And the brain strain. And the heart pain.
And the catnaps, Till the spring snaps.
And the fun's done.
Here is Orin Crain's transparent prayer:
Slow me down, Lord. Ease the pounding of my heart by the directing of my mind. Steady my hurried pace with a vision of the eternal reach of time. Give me, amid the confusion of the day, the calmness of the everlasting hills. Break the tension of my nerves and muscles with the soothing music of the singing streams that live in my memory. Teach me the art of taking minute vacations -- of slowing down to look at a flower, to chat with a friend, to pat a dog, to smile at a child, to read a few lines from a good book. Slow me down, Lord, and inspire me to send my roots deep into the soil of life's enduring values, that I may grow toward my greater destiny. Remind me each day that the race is not always to the swift; that there is more to life than increasing its speed. Let me look upward to the towering oak and know that it grew great and strong because it grew slowly and well.
Consider God's remedy for stress: "Be still and know that I am God." Psalm 46:10 and Isaiah 26:3 "You will keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on you, because he trusts in you." Try it.
Pastor John Giesbrecht
