When he was at the table with them, he took bread, blessed and broke it, and gave it to them. Then their eyes were opened, and they recognized him; and he vanished from their sight. They said to each other, “Were not our hearts burning within us while he was talking to us on the road, while he was opening the scriptures to us?” Luke 24:30-32 (NRSV)
Sometimes we have our own Road to Emmaus experiences, where the Lord is walking with us and we don’t even recognize him. For the disciples on this particular road trip, the recognition came in the breaking of the bread. One of the most profound of these moments, for me, happened while playing a game of funny faces with my autistic son. The recognition of Jesus’ presence came through my son’s eyes. I wrote a poem, “Emmaus Eyes,” about that experience:
Emmaus Eyes
Finished with our game
of funny faces
Joel cups my face
between his palms
An offering of praise
Thirteen going on three
his childlike eyes
arrest my gaze
burn with new intelligence
Search me
Know me
Forgive me
Love me
Remembered words drop
like pebbles
in the pond of our play
The foolish
shall shame the wise
Funny chipmunk face
his favorite
startles meditation
My heart ignites
(FIrst photo: Fontaine Selby)
