“Dear God,
I am so afraid to open my clenched fists!
Who will I be when I have nothing left to hold on to?
Who will I be when I stand before you with empty hands?
Please help me to gradually open my hands
and to discover that I am not what I own,
but what you want to give me.

And what you want to give me is love —
Everlasting, unconditional love.”

― Henri J.M. Nouwen, from “With Open Hands.”

–Caren Swanson

Image by flickr user Michael W. May, via creative commons