I am no expert on prayer. But I believe in prayer’s power as much as I believe that the sky is blue and water’s wet. Further, I think that prayer can restore a person’s spiritual center and lead to a more healthy human experience. However, even though I believe strongly in prayer, I would tell anyone how to pray or that there is one right way to pray.
Prayer comes to through me in many different ways. Whenever I do something in which I feel divine presence, I consider that action a prayer in and of itself. For example, on late Friday afternoons when I’ve finished my work responsibilities for the week, I like to play my sax on the Santa Fe River’s edge. I don’t think much about what I’m going to play. However, I do know that when I start to blow, I feel connected to my instrument and to everything around me. I am just as much a part of the ecosystem as the trees and the rocks jutting out of the water.
The week can bring stress with its deadlines and obligations. Playing outside where the wind carries the notes brings me to a place where I lose myself. I heal when I play, regardless of whether or not I’m a “good” sax player.
I am not the second coming of Coltrane. Nor am I worthy to carry Miguel Zenon’s case. However, playing along the river’s edge allows me to connect with God and His creation. The prayer that emerges is a non-verbal way through which I can relate with all that’s good and strong and beautiful. Maybe it sounds good. Maybe it doesn’t. But it doesn’t matter to me; what matters is that I have the privilege and luxury to carve our an hour to just be a part of something far bigger than me and my ego.
I am no expert on prayer. But I have no doubt that we can all find our own ways to communicate with our higher power. When we do, our humanity frees itself from the bounds of time and space. We can heal and feel the healing when we say, Amen.
