Little Roots

There's a scene in the movie "Black Sheep" where Chris Farley slips and starts to tumble down a rocky mountainside, head over heel over head over heel and at one point he lucks out and grabs onto a bit of shrubbery. And he pleads, "hold on, little roots...stay strong!" right before the roots give way and the shrub and Farley continue rolling down the mountain at lightening speed. His bleeding and broken body finally comes to a stop at the base of the mountain and he picks himself up, looks back up from where he came from and exclaims, "what in the HELL was THAT?!?"

I relate.

My rocky mountainside has been a lot of things. Life will be going along as is and then wham! One misstep takes me careening down a brutalizing path of sharp edges and hard knocks. Grace is found in those little roots that seemingly pop up out of nowhere. Sometimes the roots keep us from falling completely to the bottom and other times they just give us a chance to catch our breath but either way, they're a break. That's what grace is: a breather. A break. Respite. A chance at renewal. A bit of healing happens where we can regroup, self regulate, chin up, and keep going.

May your humble little roots hold you for a while, long enough for you to catch your breath, so that even when you find yourself in a puddle at the foot of the mountain, you'll still be able to get back up to see where you came from, and where you are now going.

Happy Easter.