As parrots go, I’m a bit of a thinker. An observer and a philosopher.
But as I sit here on my perch, looking out at the world beyond, I often wish I could also be a reformer. A catalyst of change. So that I could somehow make right what I believe to be so wrong within the world around me. Because although there is also a lot of goodness and kindness around, I also see injustice, unfairness, cruelty and self-interest. There are days when I simply want to wave a magic wand and make it all right. So that we no longer have a world full of “haves” and “have nots;” a world obsessed with money instead of moral and spiritual values; a world that’s focussed on worldly status instead of our status before God; and a world in which creation is disrespected and recklessly destroyed instead of being valued, treasured and revered.
There is so much that I see around that I simply can’t change. Because I’m only one small parrot in the middle of a mighty machine called humanity. And there are some days when all this could make me feel helpless and insignificant. And that’s when I turn to a famous prayer written by the American theologian, Reinhold Niebuhr. Because it could have been written just for me…….
God,
Grant me the serenity
To accept the things I cannot change;
Courage to change the things I can;
And wisdom to know the difference,
Living one day at a time;
Enjoying one moment at a time.
Accepting hardships as a pathway to peace;
Taking as He did, this sinful world
As it is, not as I would have it;
Trusting that He will make all things right
If I surrender to Your will;
So that I may be reasonably happy in this life
And supremely happy with You forever in the next.
Amen
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