I watched a gull with a large fish in his mouth bent over at the edge of the beach. He seemed worried that I would steal the fish from him, and so tried to pick it up and fly, but the weight made flight almost impossible. Again and again, the fish fell from his beak, once almost slipping into the ocean and escaping. I stopped my walk so the bird could eat the fish in peace, but he was convinced I would grab it, still trying to hurry it to safety. I felt sorry for the gull; I didn’t want his fish and would have avoided him if I could. Sadly, I am sometimes like that gull, so worried that others will take from me what is “mine”, that I risk losing it in the very act of protecting it! In church I sing that all I have is a gift from God, and yet in my daily life I label “Mine!” too often, spending my energies, like the gull, protecting what is in no danger of loss and losing what is most valuable. Forgive me, Lord, when I worry more about what is mine than about what is yours. Help me share generously as you have so richly shared with me. Amen.
