Rev. Garis is an honors graduate of Messiah College (1993) and Lancaster Theological Seminary (1998). She is an ordained pastor in the United Church of Christ. She is a visionary and contemplative, seeking to assist the Oasis community in serving the world through powerful prayer active in peace and justice. Rev. Garis believes that contemplation changes lives, enhances community, and brings deep healing to a hurting world. She works to make it accessible to all people, that spiritual health and wholeness is a necessity, not a luxury.
At a recent retreat, participants were invited to spend some time “exploring joy.” When I saw Play-doh on the table, my choice of medium for the exercise waseasy. Green play-doh—the color of prayer for me… the color of Oasis.
I let the squishy, soft dough roll around in my hand. Squeezing it, shaping it, smashing it, beginning again.
In the end (at least by the end of the retreat,) it had been shaped, actually flattened, into an oval, thin, smooth disc. People kept asking “what is it?” (People do that, as if your interpretation is the only valid one, the only one to give real meaning.)
I found myself smiling once the answer found me. There was an old cartoon(Bugs Bunny or Daffy Duck, probably) in which the characters could move a black hole. In that moment, that which was a two-dimensional illustration, that which seemed to be a fixed part of the scenery, was able to slide and/or be thrown… moved to wherever it was needed…for escape, for capture, for delay, for transporting the character or its adversary into another place.
That simple Play-doh shape became my green/black hole of Oasis: an invitation to be a portal into prayerful, mindful sanctuary any time it is needed. Or, as a friend mused, “to carry the Oasis green/black hole with me wherever I go and expose, invite, encourage, and awaken others to their own possibilities… wherever I might be.”
I hope you, too, will discover ways to “take Oasis with you” and unleash ways to “make the circle wide” so that other might find renewal and refreshment.