Feast Day of St. Lucia

Today's offering (directly from As I Lay Pondering) is a reminder of the brilliant St. Lucy. Let's celebrate her, because we could all use a little more light in our lives, right? 

Today is the feast day of my favorite saint, St. Lucia, or as I affectionately call her, St. Lucy—the patron saint of blindness. Lucy means “light” and comes from the same Latin root as “lucid,” which translates as “clear, radiant, and understandable.” Stories declare Lucia consecrated her virginity to God and refused to marry a pagan suitor. Lucy was martyred, but when she miraculously could not be burned, her eyes were gouged out. Some renditions proclaim her executioners took them. Other tales say they were removed by her scorned would-be husband. In one version, Lucy was said to have torn her eyes out herself and handed them to her suitor who had denounced her as a Christian. Regardless of the method of loss, Lucy wondrously was still able to see even without her eyes. While the stories announce this as miraculous, I wonder. Do we not all have this “miraculous” ability—to see without eyes, to hear without ears, to feel without touch? Is this not the handiwork of an extraordinary Creator? One who provides multiple pathways to unfolding, seeing, knowing, hearing, and seeking truth? Let us join in the celebration of St. Lucia and the gift of sight. ·       Today’s invitation is to meditate on the gifts of light and vision. ·       Begin by closing your eyes and then covering them with your hands or a blindfold. ·       Notice what you can “see” from this vantage point. ·       Remove your hands (while keeping your eyes closed) and observe the change in light quality. ·       As you open your eyes, offer gratitude for sight and light.