Steel Roots

Steel Roots
I’ve moved many times in my life . . . perhaps too many times. I have not stayed in one community long enough to put down deep roots. The call of ministry has led me to be uprooted and replanted over and over again. With the death of my parents, I find I’ve lost my connection to my past in the home in which I was raised. My children are teenagers and I am preparing for them to leap into the future with independence. I find myself longing for permanence and connection, and I plan to be deeply rooted at First United for many years to come.
How can I envision these deep roots that give life, that provide stability? They may look a bit like the sculpture pictured above, part of the Steelroots exhibit by artist Steve Tobin currently on display at the Morton Arboretum in Lisle.
His steel roots dance. They sway. They curve and curl. They are elegant and sensuous. One is titled, “Tango.” His steel root sculptures are white, black, red and rust colored. They look like partners dancing, and like racers preparing to run, like toddlers at play and like swirling arms and legs. The largest is 40 feet high. The smallest is just six feet tall. They catch the sun and reflect the moon. They are impervious to the wind. You can walk through them. You can stand beneath them and feel their shelter.
They capture a vision of being grounded and connected, standing tall while reaching out.
“As you therefore have received Christ Jesus the Lord, continue to live your lives in him, rooted and built up in him and established in the faith, just as you were taught, abounding in thanksgiving.” – Colossians 2:6-7
This is my anchor. I am rooted and grounded by the shared faith of this community. What a joy to know that our roots not only provide a firm foundation, they also offer a dance floor, a launching pad and a protecting shelter.
“What is the greatest commandment? Love the Lord your God with all your heart, all your mind and all your strength, and your neighbor as yourself.”
Julie