On this Ash Wednesday, I look out on a muted, gray-scale world.  Some patches of dull, brownish green are emerging on Northern Virginia lawns as late January’s formidable coating of snow-ice at last begins to melt.  Snow boulders still line roads and cover big expanses of parking lots.  The once pristine blanket of white is mottled with dirt and debris.  The mid-day sky is whiter than the snowy ground.

Oh, for warm rains to usher in the hint of spring.  To thaw the last of the dirty ice, to wash our surroundings clean, to refresh hardened hearts.  

Oh, for a healing power to revitalize the messy ashes of our fragile, mortal lives.  To offer the promise of new life, peace, and hope.

In a way, that’s what Ash Wednesday is all about.  

See my post from 2023: Beyond the Ashes.