Spring is Sap time.

This is a picture of my uncle working in the sap house that he has spent years tending.  

As a child, spring meant mud and time at the sap house.  I remember my mothers homemade donuts dipped in warm, fresh maple syrup.  I also remember the big rubber boots that we called, mud boots, that were traditional wear for that time of year.  

We would head across the road from my grandmothers house.  The road was moist and very muddy.  Sometimes, we would take a step and our feet would go far into the mud . When we went to take the next step only our stocking covered foot came to the surface.  As kids, we thought this was the most fun.  

Spring is a time that is fresh with new beginnings.  The buds really will start to come out on the tress, and crocus will  eventually feel sure enough of the weather to poke through the soil.  

Lent begins when the days are still short and the snow covers the ground.  Most years, the hope is that by Easter we can see green.  The days are longer and the air will change.  

This has been a long winter, but there is light at the end of the tunnel.  The days are longer and there is more light.  We have two weeks of lent and Holy Week ahead of us.  Jesus journey to the cross is approaching.  How are we going to prepare?  What are we preparing for? 

In the picture above, my uncle is carrying wood for the stove.  No new fangled gadgets there.  Preparation.  

Wood provides the heat necessary for the sap to boil.  Someone must gather the wood, someone must feed the fire.  Someone must prepare the cook top.  Preparation.  

Buckets hang from trees.  Each one has a spicket that is hammered into the tree and a clear substance flows out, when the weather corporates.  It must be cold at night and warm during the day.  The buckets need to be hung.  Preparation.  

Holy Week and Easter are times in our tradition when we are invited into the life of Jesus.  We are invited into the story that is foundational to how we make meaning of our lives.   Jesus has spent time and attention trying to prepare the disciples, trying to prepare us for the truth of this story.  

When the preparation is done, the work begins.  On a regular basis, someone must go around and gather all the sap from the buckets.  Someone must hope and pray that all has gone well and there will be something to gather.  Each bucket is dumped into a large container.  

When one small person stands alone, sometimes life can feel overwhelming, but when we gather together, when we come together, we remember we are far more together than we are alone.  

Daily gathering of the sap, driving from tree to tree, somedays getting more than others is the patient discipline required to make maple syrup.  Patient, daily discipline of showing up to each tree, each day, for whatever it has to offer that day.  

Lent is a time of reflection and prayer.  A time to push back some of the cob webs and dirt that may have gotten in our way.  A time when we can reflect on the light that is God's grace within us.  It is a time to remember the gift that Jesus gave us.  It is a time to remember Jesus life, death and resurrection.  

The smell inside the sap house is sweet and special.  The air outside is still chilly and when you enter, the heat and smell of the wood stove, welcomes you in.  

Outside the building there is a big container that holds the sap that is collected.  The operation is set up so that it comes in and runs into the boiler.  I do not remember the way it all worked, I just remember seeing the sap go from clear to that beautiful golden brown.  I remember the smell, and the donuts.  

A life of faith calls us to prepare room for God to be present in our lives.  We pay particular attention to that during Advent.  Lent is the time when we open up the doors to the space and wonder where we've been.  Lent is the time we remember how important the cross, those hard and painful times are.  Lent is the time we remember that God is always with us.  How can we prepare yet again to do the work God is calling us to do?  

Spring is coming.  The buckets are up and some people are boiling.  You will be hearing about Holy Week and opportunities to worship. Preparation continues in whatever lenten practices you have taken on.  Remember that preparation, time and attention are all ingredients for a rich life of faith.

Remember just as the trees need to be visited every day, and the bucket emptied of whatever it has to offer that day, so must we spend time with God each day.  God welcomes whatever we can offer that day, with praise and thanksgiving.