TWO GRACES

Grace Before Meals
As we begin this meal with grace,
let us become aware of the memory
carried inside the food before us:
the quiver of the seed
awakening in the earth,
unfolding in a trust of roots
and slender stems of growth,
on its voyage toward harvest,
the kiss of rain and surge of sun;
the innocence of animal soul
that never spoke a word,
nourished by the earth
to become today our food;
the work of all the strangers
whose hands prepared it,
the privilege of wealth and health
that enables us to feast and celebrate.

Grace After Meals

We end this meal with grace.
For the joy and nourishment of food,
the slowed time away from the world
to come into presence with each other
and sense the subtle lives behind our faces,
the different colors of our voices,
the edges of hungers we keep private,
the circle of love that unites us.

We pray the wise spirit who keeps us
To change the structures that make others hunger
And that after such grace we might now go forth
and impart dignity wherever we partake.

—  John  O’Donohue
To Bless the Space Between Us: A Book of Blessings, 2008

John O’Donohue (1956-2008) was an Irish poet and Catholic scholar who lived much of his life in both Connamara, County Galway, and his birthplace, County Clare. He received his PhD in philosophical theology from the University of Tübingen, and through his bestselling books and recordings, introduced the living essense of Celtic wisdom to millions. See johnodonohue.com.