Thank U

Contributed by:  Stephen Wickman, St. Thomas Episcopal, McLean

The day after the Summer Solstice, Fr. Will Drosos, the Assistant Rector at my church, preached on this passage from I Kings: 

But [Elijah] himself went a day’s journey into the wilderness and came and sat down under a solitary broom tree. He asked that he might die, “It is enough; now, O Lord, take away my life, for I am no better than my ancestors.” ⁵Then he lay down under the broom tree and fell asleep. Suddenly an angel touched him and said to him, “Get up and eat.” ⁶He looked, and there at his head was a cake baked on hot stones and a jar of water. He ate and drank and lay down again. ⁷The angel of the Lord came a second time, touched him, and said, “Get up and eat, or the journey will be too much for you.” ⁸He got up and ate and drank; then he went in the strength of that food forty days and forty nights to Horeb the mount of God. ⁹At that place he came to a cave and spent the night there. 

Then the word of the Lord came to him, saying, “What are you doing here, Elijah?” ¹⁰He answered, “I have been very zealous for the Lord, the God of hosts, for the Israelites have forsaken your covenant, thrown down your altars, and killed your prophets with the sword. I alone am left, and they are seeking my life, to take it away.” 

¹¹He said, “Go out and stand on the mountain before the Lord, for the Lord is about to pass by.” Now there was a great wind, so strong that it was splitting mountains and breaking rocks in pieces before the Lord, but the Lord was not in the wind, and after the wind an earthquake, but the Lord was not in the earthquake, ¹²and after the earthquake a fire, but the Lord was not in the fire, and after the fire a sound of sheer silence.  

This reminded me of a song by Alanis Morissette, which is on the playlist I’ve prepared for my funeral (it’s too long, and I keep adding to it, and I won’t be there, so I often listen to it in the cool of the morning on my patio). 

 Thank U 

Song by 

Alanis Morissette 

How ’bout getting off of these antibiotics? 
How ’bout stopping eating when I’m full up? 
How ’bout them transparent dangling carrots? 
How ’bout that ever elusive kudo? 

Thank you, India 
Thank you, terror 
Thank you, disillusionment 
Thank you, frailty 
Thank you, consequence 
Thank you, thank you, silence 

How ’bout me not blaming you for everything? 
How ’bout me enjoying the moment for once? 
How ’bout how good it feels to finally forgive you? 
How ’bout grieving it all one at a time? 

Thank you, India 
Thank you, terror 
Thank you, disillusionment 
Thank you, frailty 
Thank you, consequence 
Thank you, thank you, silence 

The moment I let go of it 
Was the moment I got more than I could handle 
The moment I jumped off of it 
Was the moment I touched down 

How ’bout no longer being masochistic? 
How ’bout remembering your divinity? 
How ’bout unabashedly bawling your eyes out? 
How ’bout not equating death with stopping? 

Thank you, India 
Thank you, Providence 
Thank you, disillusionment 
Thank you, nothingness 
Thank you, clarity 
Thank you, thank you, silence 

Yeah, yeah 
Oh, oh, oh 
Yeah, oh, oh 
Yeah, oh, oh, whoa 
Yeah, no, oh, oh 

No, oh, oh, oh 
No, oh, no, oh 
No, oh, no, no 
No, oh 
No, oh, oh 
Oh, oh, oh 
Ooh 

Thank you 
Everybody, thanks 
Alanis Morissette 
We love you 

The parallels are obvious. I’m not sure at this stage in his journey Elijah understood what God was saying, but I think Alanis pretty much nails it, For those with Spotify, here’s the link, and a You Tube site as well:  

Bing Videos 

This blog post is the expressed opinion of its writer and does not necessarily reflect the views of Tysons Interfaith or its members.