One measure of vibrancy is "passion for life." This fall our congregation is looking for signs of this passion within and around us.
Mark offered to share his passion with us. He is a member of a Florence family. And he is in prison.
But his imagination is not.
Through words, collages, drawings, and selected music, he gave us a whole new picture of what hope looks like for him, from behind bars.
Here are his words:
Passionate Light
To me passion is priceless. Paid for by living life. I was in prison -- so I never paid to go see passion of the Christ. True passion is always right. Fueled with white light. Which we can only visualize -- through holding our hopes tight.
My passion probably came to me through infinite veins. Long before my soul took hold. Long before I became a name. While in the womb hearing the rain. Internal patterns linked like chains.
Our passion often gets cut down to limited lover’s tales. The excuse for such things as Jarreds, De Beers, and Zales. True passion can fill sails. And free mental ships from docks. Trust me -- it’s been my passion, for life -- while I’ve been locked, that keeps me creating my happiness -- with the limited tools I’ve got.
True passion never announces itself. Instead you find it there. In the part of your true being -- that is as delicate as air. .
My passion
In the last five years I have learned that prison is very much part of the reality of rural life in the counties around Florence Church. So much humanity, locked up and hidden away. I have much to learn about the power of imagination that sustains and stretches hearts and minds behind bars, but toward a future of vibrant possibilities.
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