My new post at dotMagis reflects on an image my friend, Peggy Leblanc, shared with me years ago.

Many years ago, a wise friend shared with me an image of the two rails of a train track. One rail represents all the good things in life and the places we easily experience God. The other rail represents the places in life we struggle to name as “good” and the places where it seems hard to find God.

The reality is the two rails run alongside each other simultaneously to make up the track. At times, one rail may feel more obvious in our life. Perhaps we are overwhelmed with love, with joy, with kindness, with beauty, and it is hard to notice that the other rail exists. Other times, we may find ourselves overwhelmed with pain and suffering in our life or in others’ lives, so that we cannot see that the other rail exists.

What connects the two rails? On a train track, it’s the crossbeams that make sure the two rails are connected securely so that the rails come together to serve a larger purpose—providing a train the capability to continue on its journey. What about in our lives? What provides a connection between joy and suffering?

To read the rest….

Becky Eldredge

Becky is an Ignatian-trained spiritual director, retreat facilitator, and writer. She is the author of the Busy Lives and Restless Souls (March 2017, Loyola Press) and The Inner Chapel (April 2020, Loyola Press). She helps others create space to connect faith and everyday life through facilitating retreats and days of reflection, through writing, and through spiritual direction. With nearly twenty years of ministry experience within the Catholic Church, Becky seeks to help others discover God at work in the every day moments of people’s lives by utilizing St. Ignatius’ Spiritual Exercises and the many gifts that our Catholic faith and Ignatian Spirituality provide.