Welcome to December's Spiritual Journey Thursday. I am so honored to be hosting today.
Little did I know that when I signed up in January how an event earlier this week would modify what I was planning to write. On Monday, I awoke to news that three shining stars on earth moved to the heavens. This Mom and her two wonderful daughters (my former students) were victims of a mass shooting by their husband/father. Their uncle also was shot and then the shooter turned the gun on himself. It made me think of this quote by Fyodor Dostoevsky (1821 – 1881): The darker the night, the brighter the stars. The deeper the grief, the closer is God. We are in the season of darkness and waiting for the light to return. My grief is a bit deeper this week. When I look at the night sky, three stars will be shining in remembrance of these three souls. 
Husband and I had a reservation to lo have dinner and enjoy the Christmas ships Monday night, I saw this.
“Hope is being able to see that there is light despite all of the darkness.” -- Archbishop Desmond Tutu Finally, I discovered this site and found this blessing at the Unitarian Universalist. (Linking is not working well.) A Blessing of Darkness and Light Delicate branches, at night, surround the light of the moon Blessed is the dark, in which our dreams stir and are revealed. Blessed is the dark of earth, where seeds come to life. Blessed are the depths of the ocean where no light shimmers: the womb of all earthly life. Blessed is the light into which we awake, the light that sparkles on the waters: that calls the tree forth from the seed, and calls the shadow forth from the tree. Blessed are we as we move through darkness and through light. Amy Zucker Morgenstern How do you honor/embrace this time of darkness? Where do you find the points of light in your life? In a few weeks, winter solstice will be here, how do honor this and Christmas? How do you use this time of year for self-reflection? 12/7/2023 04:09:45 am
Jone, there is so much tragedy in the world, and it has hit home for you. How do we go on in the darkness? How do we move forward? I don't believe that God causes darkness or tragedy, but I believe God sits with us in grief and holds us a little tighter, a little longer. May you feel held at this difficult time.
Karen Eastlund
12/7/2023 07:34:04 am
Jone: For some reason I can't make Mr. Linky work for me. My post is here:
Jone MacCulloch
12/7/2023 07:52:27 am
I got it into Mr. Linky.
Karen Eastlund
12/7/2023 07:16:09 am
Dear Jone: I'm so sorry for this dark event and subsequent grief. It is so hard to realize, much less understand. I wish you hope and light, and I thank you for this prompt and for hosting today.
Jone MacCulloch
12/7/2023 07:54:25 am
What I realized today rereading my post, that I only shared quotes and poems and nothing original. It shows me to sit with the sadness and know it's enough. It is not what I thought I would post.
Linda Mitchell
12/7/2023 12:37:12 pm
Absolutely, Jone. This is worth some grief. What loss.
Linda Mitchell
12/7/2023 12:33:09 pm
Jone, what tragedy, what loss. 2023 has had such darkness. These deaths are heartbreaking. I'm so very sorry to read of the event in your post. Several years ago, a similar event rocked my small hometown (that I hadn't lived in for decades). The pain ripples spread far and wide. I will certainly hold this community in my prayers. I'm fusing my SJT and PF post together this week. Covid has hit and I'm just out of energy. That's the dark...more dark but really light is the love new kittens bring me as I recover. Thank goodness for science and vaccinations, I'm not going into any hospital any time soon. I'll publish in just a few minutes. 12/8/2023 03:27:38 pm
Jone - my heart is breaking for your friends' deaths, for their families, for you. So much dark to absorb - it strains the heart. Thank you for the brave - to share this. And thank you for Dostoeskvy's quote: The deeper the grief, the closer is God. I'm banking on that right now. -- I'll add my link on Monday once Poetry Friday is past. 12/9/2023 10:07:41 am
Jone, death seems to be all around us. It is hurtful and sad, especially at the holidays to hear news like this. Prayers are being lifted. Great Quote and Reminder: "The darker the night, the brighter the stars. The deeper the grief, the closer is God." May God surround you and the family living with grief. Jone, such sad news to greet the day. It seems that darkness is overpowering the light, but in our hearts we know that darkness dissipates in the light. Archbishop Tutu's quote, "“Hope is being able to see that there is light despite all of the darkness.” is what we must all hang on to. 12/11/2023 02:38:59 am
Jone, I sat staring at this empty comment box at a loss for words and with a feeling I could not shake. Gun violence and the darkness it causes breaks my heart. I am so very saddened by your loss. "three shining stars on earth moved to the heavens." Comments are closed.
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AuthorAll photos and poems in these blog posts are copyrighted to Jone Rush MacCulloch 2006- Present. Please do not copy, reprint or reproduce without written permission from me. 
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