Weathering the Storms of Life

Those who know me best, know that I've been in a bit of a stormy time lately. Nothing overly bad per se has happened directly to me (the world around me is constantly full of tragedy), just a lot of unrest.  I'm sure my parents would testify to that...they probably got more phone calls from me in the last week or so than they get in two to three weeks when things are going well.
I've moved to more a place of peace now.  Not everything is solved and there is still a lot of unknowns (nothing has really changed as far as what I know or don't know about what comes), but I'm more at peace about what I don't know.  I'm going to plant some tulips on Saturday (I have to buy tulip bulbs at market before I can plant them).
As I was going through some old files other night, looking for something, I stumbled across this prayer that I had marked as coming from Thomas a Kempis.  In my original note, I'd notes that I had no idea who he was or what he'd done except that he was an important dead guy (he had to be important, he was in a textbook).  For those of you who care, he was a monk who lived a long time ago (died in the 1400's).
Anywho, I wanted to share this prayer with all of you.  Right now, it's giving me a lot of comfort.

"Lord, I know that you sometimes permit

trouble and temptation to come to me.

I cannot escape them

but, driven by my need,

I must come to you for help

that you may work this out for my good.

O G-d, I feel uneasy and depressed

because of this present trouble.

I feel trapped on every side,

yet I know I have come to this hour,

so that I may learn that you alone

can free me from this predicament.

Lord, deliver me,

for what can I do without you,

helpless as I am?

Lord give me patience in all my troubles.

Help me, and I will not be afraid,

no matter how discouraged I may be.

Let me bear this trouble patiently

until the storm has passed

and my heart is calm again.

Your power, Lord, can take this trouble from me,

as you have done many times before.

No matter how hard it is for me,

it is easy for you, O Lord."