Slowly,
She celebrated the Sacrament of letting go.
First she surrendered her Green
then the Orange, Yellow and Red
finally she let go of her Brown
shedding her last leaf
she stood empty and silent, stripped bare.
Leaning against the winter sky
she began her vigil of trust.

And Jesus said:
And why worry about clothing? Think of the flowers growing in the fields;
they neither have to work or spin;
yet I assure you that not even Solomon in all his regalia
was robed like one of these.

Shedding her last leaf
she watched its journey to the ground.
She stood in silence
wearing the colour of emptiness,
her branches wondering;
How do you give shade, with so much gone?

And Jesus said;
Do not be anxious or overly concerned.

And then,
The Sacrament of waiting began.
The sunrise and the sunset watched with tenderness,
clothing her silhouettes
they kept her hope alive.
They helped her understand that
her vulnerability
her dependence and need
her emptiness
her readiness to receive
were giving her a new kind of beauty.
Every morning and every evening
they stood in silence
and celebrated together
the Sacrament of waiting!

And Jesus said:
Now if that is how God clothes the grass in the field
which is here today and thrown in the furnace tomorrow,