Transfigured

Yesterday was the Orthodox Feast of the Transfiguration. Unfortunately, we weren't much able to participate in the festivities, but it's on my mind.

Five years ago on this feast, I was chrismated into the Orthodox church. And I'm thinking a lot about personal change. Being changed is sort of a theme in my life. The weekend I was chrismated...we didn't exactly plan it that way a long time in advance. I told my priest I was ready to join the church, and he was like, cool. Let's do it next weekend. And there it was.

That's item #1. I'll explain it later.

Item #2: My name is Maura. Now, this is the sort of thing that would only happen at an evangelical primary and secondary school, but I used to get made fun of as a kid because of the supposed biblical meaning of my name. In the book of Ruth, Naomi tells her daughter-in-law to call her Marah, which means "bitter," because her life has been ruined and she's kind of annoyed about it.

Now, a name sort of defines a person, and I spent much of my growing up wondering how to reconcile my personality to the meaning of my name. But once I started looking, I found something so beautiful.

Marah does mean "bitter." But it's so much more than that. It's a place that always had bitter waters. It wasn't usable. It couldn't fulfill its purpose. People were thirsty. When Moses cried out to the Lord on behalf of the people, he showed Moses a piece of wood to throw into the water, and miraculously, it was changed.

It seems that the process Marah went through to be transformed was a little less arduous than mine, but okay. I get the message. And anyway, I'd take my process over Naomi's any day of the week.

It was about three summers after that particular realization that God transformed me again on the Feast of the Transfiguration. And every year, He's changed me again: 2005, I was chrismated and engaged. 2006, I was married. 2007, I became a mother and 2008, I became a mother of two. 2009, I moved a state away from my family, and 2010 I've discovered that I may be the mother of a special needs child.

May God ever, ever change me. I just pray that he grants me the strength to get through it. Here's the Troparion from yesterday's feast.

You were transfigured on the mountain, O Christ God,
revealing Your glory to Your disciples as far as they could bear it.
Let Your everlasting Light also shine upon us sinners,
through the prayers of the Theotokos.
O Giver of Light, glory to You!