The Rough Road
I don’t remember the context of this. It was second-semester-of-grad-school stress for sure, and probably prompted by a brief stretch of doing a poem a day.
Regardless of the original situation, it’s still true. I may not be led into many circumstances that scare me (debt, imposter syndrome, whatever), but I still hate doing things I don’t want to do; I still hate change when it disturbs my comfort.
The one real difference is that now, at least, I have the benefit of looking back at some of those troubled times and catching a glimpse of what God was doing in them. Not a full picture, of course. But sometimes just a glimpse of God’s plan is enough.
The Rough Road
Originally written February 26, 2007. #114.
You know, God, all I wanted was to live
A quiet, simple life according to
Your precepts—learn to love and to forgive,
And walk in humble justice my life through.But sometimes, You divinely see it fit
To lead me somewhere that I feared to tread
And in Your grace these trials You’d permit,
And take me to the places I most dread—And how do I respond? Not gracefully,
Not with a pleasant word and faithful heart,
But with a rage that’s terrible to see,
Not heeding the instructions You impart.Oh Lord, give me the strength now to endure—
To listen patiently, and remain pure.