STEP ONE: BREATHE

Take a deep, cleansing breath. Allow the air to fill your lungs and expand your body. Exhale and empty yourself into the room. Repeat three times - once for the one who Created you, once for the Incarnate One who walks beside you, and once for the Spirit whose life fills your being.

STEP TWO: DWELL IN WORD

Transforming the Yard: Digging Into the Dirt

The snow is finally gone—melted into oblivion. A collective sigh can be heard as spring arrives in reality and not just on the calendar. The time of waiting is over. Now the work begins. So much needs to happen in the backyard. I need to take the items out of winter storage, brush them off, and set them out. The deck needs another coat of paint. This is just the start of the backyard to-do list. Time and necessity will add things to the list. There will be family discussions and debates about what should and should not be listed. Resources, energy, and diplomacy will all come into play as agendas, dreams, and ideas are sorted out.

For now, however, I just want to stand on the deck (the seat cushions are not yet out—haven’t checked that one off the list) and breathe. In early spring, if you breathe deeply enough and inhale with intent, you can smell the dirt itself. It is a thick, earthy (no pun intended) aroma. Musky. Hints of decay mingle with the promise of new growth. It is exciting to smell the first whiffs of dirt after winter’s passing. I reach down into the raised garden plot and run my fingers through the ebony soil. Grabbing a handful, I think ahead. As soon as we clear frost’s danger, the garden will need to be planted.

Holding the fertile soil in my hand I can’t help but think of the divine admonition: remember that you are dust and to dust you shall return. Remember that you are dirt!

Your body contains minerals and nutrients. You are part decay and part promise. You need word and tending. Over time and with nurture and care, you will produce. You have an inkling of harvest in you. In season, you will return enriched, productive, and available to offer yourself in God’s ongoing work of creation.

Adam—the name given to the first human creature—means “soil” or “dirt” in Hebrew. According to our ancient stories of creation, the soil is a part of human identity. By the very act of our creation, we are connected to the earth.

Sadly, the human creature has disavowed this biblical truth each time we disregard the earth. We declare ourselves to be more valuable than the sacred soil upon which we tread. We “own” land and property. We destroy mountains and pollute the very ground of our being. We forget that we were created from the dust and to dust we shall return. Failing to remember, we don’t show the proper and necessary respect. We shrug off the role of caretaker. Creation moans from our blatant disregard and blasphemy.

Not only have we been harsh on our home planet, but we have mistreated our fellow human creatures. We forget to honor common “ground”—pun intended. We don’t see in the other God’s soil shaping work. Tribal instincts flare. We demonize, vilify, and disregard those who are different from us. We don’t bother taking the time to get to know what lies beneath the surface in another’s heart; fear and ignorance subvert this process.

Perhaps it is time for us all to get our hands a little dirty. What if we dug into the soil, sans gloves, and allowed the dirt to remind us of our created being? From the earth, God created you and me. We are connected in our created-ness with each other. We are part of creation, not separate from it. Like the dirt in our backyards in early spring, we wait for the seeds of potentiality to burst open with blossoms celebrating new life.

STEP THREE: PRAY

Gracious God,

You formed humanity from the soil and breathed life into us. Remind me that I too am the work of your hands. Make me aware that each breath that I take comes as a blessing from You. Let me find in my created self the desire to care for other creatures and for this earth on which we live.

Through Jesus Christ, Amen.