I was asked to give the prayer at our Council on Aging’s major fundraiser when neither the chaplain nor the rabbi could do it. Much to my surprise, it turned out to be a lovely, unexpected lesson in “passing on the inspiration.”
Wednesday evening, I Googled “nondenominational prayers” and was shown a long listing. However, they all turned out to be books, not the individual prayers I had hoped for. After several bad tries, I gave up that night, feeling the anxiety rising over the looming deadline. Hundreds of people would be attending Friday, so I wanted to represent COA well and do something thoughtful.
On Thursday, I attended an event at which a friend, John, gave the prayer. I listened with a different ear, told him why as he walked past me, and he promptly gave me his copy of it. A gift! Something to start with and rework to my needs. When I got home, I typed it in my computer, started fiddling with it, and eventually felt comfortable with my revisions and edits. I looked it over one more time Friday afternoon, then put the copy in the car so I wouldn’t forget to take it.
That night, I delivered the prayer to a hushed room. I read it with as much feeling and passion as I could, then walked back to my seat. Much to my astonishment, people came up to me for the rest of the night, telling me what a good job I had done, how meaningful my words were. One man, nearly in tears, whispered, “I’ve never been a religious person, but your prayer really touched my soul. Thank you.”
John had inspired me, and it seems I inspired others. It’s impossible to predict when things like this will happen; I only know that sometimes when we give of ourselves, like John, we end up “passing on the inspiration.”