I stood by the mail room
waiting for Mom and Dad to come down on the elevator,
and she saw me again.
Yvonne smiled and said something funny–
I can’t remember what–
then she paused
and told me again
what a great job I’m doing
looking after my parents.
“I want to tell you something,”
I said and took a moment to breathe in courage
and find the right words.
“I can’t thank you enough
for the encouragement you’ve given me.
It’s meant a lot to me.”
“Well,” she said, “you have to know
what a precious gift you’re giving them
and what that says about you.”
Maybe those weren’t her exact words.
In moments like these,
I feel so loved
I can’t take it all in.
But I know,
if I asked her,
she would laugh
and maybe borrow one of Dad’s one-liners.
“Message delivered.”
And I would say, “Message received.”
Throughout the time of my showings, I wished to know what our Beloved meant. More than fifteen years later, the answer came in a spiritual vision. This is what I heard. “Would you like to know our Lord’s meaning in all this? Know it well: love was the meaning. Who revealed it to you? Love. What did he reveal to you? Love. Why did he reveal it to you.? For love. Stay with this, and you will know more of the same. You will never know anything but love, without end.
—Julian of Norwich, The Showings of Julian of Norwich (tr Mirabai Starr) Chapter 86
An Everyday Pilgrim 