Solemnity of the Annunciation of the Lord

Waterhouse

She did not cry, “I cannot, I am unworthy,”
Nor, “I have not the strength.”
She did not submit with gritted teeth, raging, coerced.
Bravest of all humans,
consent illumined her.
The room filled with its light,
the lily glowed in it,
and the iridescent wings.
Consent,
courage unparalleled,
opened her utterly. An excerpt from “Annunciation” by Denise Levertov

Today's solemnity, this great feast, marks the seventh year since I received the habit, the fifth anniversary of my first profession AND the second anniversary of my Solemn Profession. It is an anniversary day I share with two others in our community of contemplative nuns. The nature of the feast, its celebration of a movement of heart so faithful, so humble, so receptive provides so much for meditation that it almost takes the breath away.

And Denise Levertov's mystical poem touches the mystery and the personal challenge; "...courage unparalleled, opened her utterly."