As she wonders over the deep cracks in the dry earth around her, poet Rosemary Wahtola Trommer realizes that we, too, can crack in times of drought:

I have felt it, drought of love,
drought of touch, drought of death,
drought of compassion and justice.
And I have known, too, the miracle
of how when the drought is over,
the clay of my soul expands again.

Many of us are experiencing drought these days, especially those who have lost their jobs or their funding, as Dave Denny noted when he shared his struggles to stay grounded in these uncertain times. He gave us links to three inspiring resources that I’ve found really helpful.

“What are we going to do?” asks Diana Butler Bass, who offers us “ten Ws,” so simple that we may miss how vital they are: wake up ( don’t hide under the covers), welcome the day, walk, (be) with others, work (but take Sabbaths, too), write (or do something else creative to work through your doubts and fears), watch the news (without overdoing it), wide-sight (broaden your perspective), weep (and don’t feel guilty about joy), and wonder (embrace awe and the mystery of not-knowing).

Forty years ago, I came up with my own ten suggestions for living a whole, human, balanced life. Lent is a good season to practice the ten “contemplative rhythms” I outline: Live in tune with the rhythms of the earth. Begin and end the day well. Live each day deliberately. Live mindfully in the present moment. Work well without worry and fret. Nurture the whole human person: body, mind, and spirit. Carve out “quiet time” every day. Slow down and live more leisurely. Break the pattern of the day with poetry and play. Celebrate Sabbath.

Among the “ten ways to stay grounded” Dave recommended from Daniel Hunter, I find the tenth most imperative: “We’ve all imagined how bad it might get,” Hunter writes, but we need to “envision a positive future…. On the days when I can’t imagine good political possibilities, I zoom out to the lifespans of trees and rocks, heading into spiritual reminders that nothing lasts forever. All the future is uncertain. But a more hopeful future is likely if we keep thinking of creative solutions.” If, as Trommer claims, we remember that cracking is natural and an integral part of the life cycle:

Of course, the cracking.
And of course, the healing.
I am awed by its force
and how little it takes,
even a small bit of rain,
for deep healing to begin.

I’ve quoted farmer-poet Wendell Berry often before, but we can’t hear his “manifesto” from the “Mad Farmer Liberation Front” often enough (he gives us eleven suggestions here):

So, friends, every day do something that won’t compute. Love the Lord. Love the world. Work for nothing. Take all that you have and be poor…. Ask the questions that have no answers…. Put your faith in the two inches of humus that will build under the trees every thousand years…. Expect the end of the world. Laugh. Laughter is immeasurable. Be joyful though you have considered the facts…. Practice resurrection.

So, friends, this year, even though the forty days of Lent are just beginning, I’m practicing Easter resurrection now!