At bedside and dining room,
through physical frailty and spiritual richness,
in the exhaustive and
sometimes exhausting detail of the everyday,
in the graced intensity of celebrations and of death-time,
we are privileged to accompany those in our care.
We pray for one another:
The blessing of surprise be upon us–
surprise that every so often delights us anew
with the truth that each person is mysterious and unique.
Response: Bless us, great God of life and death.
The blessing of patience be upon us–
patience that enables us to hear generously
the same story over and over
as if for the very first time.
Response: Bless us, great God of life and death.
The blessing of empathy be upon us–
empathy that knows keenly
the perspective of the other person
from within their shoes and inside their skin.
Response: Bless us, great God of life and death.
The blessing of humility be upon us–
humility that whispers gently to us
of our own blind spots and reminds of our need for forgiveness.
Response: Bless us, great God of life and death.
The blessing of attentiveness be upon us–
attentiveness that graces the other with a sense
of how much they are loved
and respected right at that moment.
Response: Bless us, great God of life and death.
The blessing of memory be upon us–
memory that holds as precious the life
and story of each one when her own memory
may have deserted her.
Response: Bless us, great God of life and death.
The blessing of self-care be upon us–
self-care that insists on space
and fun and time for rest and leisure.
Response: Bless us great God of life and death..
God, you are the source and the aim of our lives.
You are our joy and our hope.
We thank you for your infinite and wondrous mercy.
Response: Amen.
