Blogpost in a Plague Year
There is a very real sense in which the coronavirus epidemic is an overturning of the world. Most people are aware—even if only subliminally—that our world has changed forever. Nothing, I suspect, will ever be quite the same again.
The death of one’s child gives a profound perspective on the fragility of human existence—a fragility now being borne out to us (as it has throughout history) in a time of plague—so I understand how disorienting the unfolding catastrophe of the pandemic is for so many people.
However, the terrible truth is that we are not promised “happy endings” in this mortal life. We are given a small moment in time to become fully ourselves. We must use it well.
I know that this is what Sophia believed—and this is what she did with her 22 years, she used it well.
But Sophia also believed that there is an ultimate reality beyond the world, which we glimpse in moments of spiritual intensity.
Since her death, the deep certainty of this has been made clear to me.
Let me share it with you. . .
The Realm of Angels
Mal’akh in the old tongue
Angelos in Greek
On metaphored wings
The words sing into imagining
The thinnest wall
Separates worlds
From worlds
Its shimmering otherness
Delicate as frost on glass
Dreams to us in perilous
Immaterialities
There is a light in things
Lived momently
Don’t be afraid
We live in the realm of angels
And do not see
by r. nugent
Thank you so much Rob. Soph is very close to you. Prayers as always – Philippa.
Thank you Philippa. My prayers for you too.
And yes, Soph is always close to me–a clear, steady light in a dark world.
I still have on the fridge the little magnet of a Cross that Soph was given on the day of her baptism. It says: “Shine as a light in the world.”
It is a wise saying. Never more so than now.
Dark times need bright souls in answer.
Most profound and so true Roby. Thank you for sharing. Xxxxx
Thank you, dear Kaye.
Thanks for those words of comfort, Rob. We are never alone.
We are meant to keep a physical distance, so words must take the place of a comforting touch (real and virtual at the same time, perhaps)—and as you say, we are ultimately never alone, even if we must be alone.