It is August and we have made it halfway through the eighth month of the year. So there you have it, we have already begun our descent into the latter half of the year but where are we? Is the end of summer hanging on? Do you feel a little stuck or unsure of what is to come? That’s okay. We must remind ourselves that we don’t have to know or be prepared for everything. Honestly, 9 times out of 10, we have no idea or control of what the future holds and, even if we think we do, the unexpected has a way of welcoming itself. Prepared, unprepared, in control, out of control, stuck, or changing, the important thing to remember is that God is with us.

I found a beautiful prayer/poem called “Mary’s Good-bye Song” written by former Maryknoll Lay Missioner Vicki Armour-Hileman that embodies this idea. She wrote it upon leaving her mission work in Hong Kong. It brought about a feeling of lightness that I hope it does for you as well. Wherever you happen to find yourself right now, read this prayer, take a breath, let go and just allow yourself to be.

Former Maryknoll Lay Missioner, Vicki Armour-Hileman in mission in Thailand, where she was assigned after Hong Kong

Mary’s Good-bye Song

Go forth in peace
Don’t fear the darkness
Your life and ours
Are one in the Lord.
Though you don’t know this road
He walks before you
And waits ahead with open arms
To welcome you.
So lift your eyes
Set down your burden
Make your step light
And greet this day with joy.

You carried the light
And gave to all who met you
And take the same light home.
You live in our hearts
As you live in the love of the Lord.
Wherever you go
You’ll never be alone.

His is the peace
That passes understanding.
His is the way
That leads beyond the dark.
Though we don’t know the road
He walks beside us now
His cloak upon our shoulders
To warm us through the night.
So we leave the land
We’ve come to love
And follow his voice
Under the crisp new stars.

When we are weary
And cannot face the morning
He carries us safely
Within his loving arms.
Wherever we go now
We’re never alone.
Wherever we go now
We’re only going home.

Vicki Armour-Hileman
Former Maryknoll Lay Missioner
on leaving Hong Kong in 1990