spiritual journey | Reflections on the Teche

Posts Tagged ‘spiritual journey’

Fly

Posted in Spiritual Growth, Writing, tagged Canva, fly, OLW, Reach, spiritual journey, thesaurus on January 22, 2015| 4 Comments »

Click here to read more #spiritualjourney posts. Thanks Holly for hosting this roundup!

Holly invites us to reflect on our spiritual journey. For the next several weeks, we will be writing about different little words. Today is Michelle’s word, FLY. I made a Tagxedo image with my thesaurus. com search. My own little word, Reach, came up a number of times. I hadn’t made the connection before. When I selected Reach, I was thinking more about goals I want to strive for. But isn’t that like learning to fly, trying to pick up the tail winds and soar?

Discovering synonyms is a good way to ruminate on a word. I watch the birds when they fly. The hawk that glides across the highway in search of hidden prey. I am not like the hawk, a hungry hunter.

The hummingbird comes to the feeder, fluttering wildly to sip sweet nectar. I am not as desperate as a hummingbird who is so quick and finicky.

The seagull came up in my search a few times. Am I a seagull, like Jonathan Livingston, tired of materialism and conformity, looking for meaning in perfecting his flight?

With a wing for understanding and a wing for influence, my flight will be balanced. I will rise to awareness. I will strive toward space, a place to be me. A place to know I am loved.

With God as my compass.

Created on Canva.com

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Attention

Posted in Spiritual Growth, Writing, tagged Episcopalian, focus, OLW, spiritual journey on January 8, 2015| 11 Comments »

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Holly leads the Spiritual Thursday blog round-up. Many of us have chosen a word to guide us for the year. We will be writing each week about a different blogger’s OLW. Holly’s word is Focus, so today we are writing about focus.

I get a few daily inspirations in my email. One of these is Eknath Easwaran’s Thought of the Day. Recently, he wrote, “As an experiment, try to work cheerfully at some job you dislike: you are training your attention to go where you want it to go. Whatever you do, give it your best concentration.” As somewhat of a New Year’s resolution, I decided to be more friendly to service people like the Walmart or grocery clerks, those people who we take for granted each day. These people have a thankless job to do and usually I am either in a hurry or distracted by worry when I am checking out. Lately, though, I have said, “How’s your day going?” or started a conversation. For some people, this comes naturally, but I am an introvert. I prefer to stay in my own little shell. But as Easwaran’s advice says, I should turn my focus on others. I need to focus on the job at hand and do it with joy and generosity. This little act of attention makes everyone’s day brighter.

I am an Episcopalian. My church is a liturgical church. Our tradition is for vested clergy to lead the service that includes community prayers such as The Nicene Creed and The Lord’s Prayer, lighted candles, and a shared Eucharist or communion. Within the liturgy, I find solace. While saying prayers that I have said all of my life, I can focus in a meditative way, keeping Christ at the center. Focus during this service may seem like distraction. My mind will wander. I often reach for a little notebook in my purse to write. This week, I jotted this question from the sermon, “What is your instrument of hope?” My attention, my intention to focus.

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Light on a New Word for 2015

Posted in Spiritual Growth, tagged One Little Word, spiritual journey on January 1, 2015| 22 Comments »

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Almighty God, you have poured upon us the new light of your incarnate Word: Grant that this light, enkindled in our hearts, may shine forth in our lives; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you, in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen.
The Collect of the Day, Dec. 28, 2014.

I am struggling to find the just right word for 2015, my One Little Word. I scribbled on a nearby notepad all the words I wanted to consider. Then I went online to Canva and found an image I liked. I typed out all the possibilities. The little word is in there somewhere.

I am attracted to both Bloom and Reach. Both can be interpreted to mean “Be the best you can be.” A friend gave me an amaryllis bulb yesterday, so maybe that is a sign. I’ll watch the bulb grow and bloom while I try to live my OLW. However, Bloom can shine too brightly, focus too much on itself. While Reach can move outward toward others.

I took a walk out in the new light, the sun high in the sky warming the cool day, and I looked up into the live oak. These trees are so much a part of my life. They give me strength and hope. The sun was shining through the evergreen leaves clinging to the branches. In that moment, I knew I had to be one of those branches REACHing for the Light.

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God’s Smile

Posted in Spiritual Growth, tagged Christmas reflection, spiritual journey on December 25, 2014| 2 Comments »

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The house is quiet.
There is the faint smell of gumbo from last night’s dinner.
An echo of voices from family and friends lingers.
The dogs are pacing. They know this day is different. Someone else is here.
The presence is palpable. The gifts piled high under the tree, all touched by loving hands hoping this is the one special gift. Waiting.

I am still singing the carols from last night’s Christmas Eve service. St. Nicholas made his annual surprise visit during the children’s sermon. He left candy in all the shoes outside the red door. Greetings from extended families, hugs all around.

As the years go by, Christmas changes. The girls are in their twenties now, so they sleep most of the morning. I am an early riser. I’ve finished coffee number two. The stockings are all filled and waiting. Even though there are changes, there is one thing that remains, love. Christmas is love. Christmas is receiving the love of Christ into our hearts.

Our priest expressed it well last night. As he held a baby in his arms, he talked about how the mother must smile at the baby for her to learn to smile. God smiled on us in the form of Jesus. His smile sends love into our hearts. May you feel the warmth and love of God’s smile today and every day.

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Grace Comes

Posted in Gratitude, Spiritual Growth, Writing, tagged God's love, grace, nature, spiritual journey on October 24, 2014| 3 Comments »

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We know from Alexander that some days are terrible, horrible, no good, very bad days, even in Australia. And I’ve had those days. I’ve had the days where nothing seems to go right. The days where the ice cream falls off the ice cream cone, and the plate crashes to the floor, flying out of your hand like someone else is in control. But I have learned that even on those days, there is Grace. Grace comes when we least expect it. The grace in the eyes of the veterinarian who says your dog is fine. The grace in an email from a friend who says you’re a blessing in her life. The grace from the chattering birds on a wire. The grace in the clear sky. The grace in the sunrise over the sugarcane. The grace in the abundant fruit on the tree. The grace in the reflection of the sun on the bayou. God’s grace, God’s loving embrace holds me every day.

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This Peace

Posted in Gratitude, Poetry, Spiritual Growth, Writing, tagged nature poem, spiritual journey on October 16, 2014| 5 Comments »

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May the peace of God which passes all understanding keep your hearts and minds in the knowledge and love of God and of His son Jesus Christ our Lord.

This peace
cannot be understood,
creeps in my heart
when the sun rises
throwing a beam upon the oak,
her arms spread wide to welcome the light.

This peace comes from knowing
a creator who makes the heron fly
on wings breaking dawn
with stealth and strength.

This peace is a chant I sing,
your name over and over
while the yarn draws over and under
this golden G hook.

This peace transforms holy spirit
into sprays of fresh water
as close to me
as tears.

This peace as fragile as the hug of a child,
egg in a robin’s nest,
sweet scent of your clean skin.

This peace eases my breath
like child’s pose
letting go
letting out
letting in.

This peace
centered in words
prayerfully spoken,
I am here.

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Dreams. Hope.

Posted in Gratitude, Spiritual Growth, tagged hope, spiritual journey on October 9, 2014| 8 Comments »

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I have spread my dreams under your feet;
Tread softly because you tread on my dreams.
–W.B. Yeats

We teachers have dreams laid at our feet. We should be careful. We need to remember to step with a light foot, like a feather brushing by, a slight wind to give direction, an uplifting to the wings of our tiny birds.

Ann Voskamp

Hope holds us together.

Hope is the thing, the one with feathers,

the thing we all wish for

in the darkest night of despair

when our hearts are breaking.

Hope holds on

to the thin line of your mouth when you smile,

to the circles under your eyes,

the sparkle of tears on your cheek; Hope paints a rainbow there.

Plant hope in the hole in your heart.

Open to the sound of His song–

the hoot of the owl, the cry of the hawk.

His voice carries

across wild fields

over storm clouds

into your hands.

Get ready.

Open your palms when you pray.

Original photo (iPhonography) by Margaret Simon taken at Sugar Mill Pond, Youngsville, LA.

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Communion

Posted in Spiritual Growth, Writing, tagged communion, spiritual journey on September 25, 2014| 6 Comments »

Click here to read more #spiritualjourney posts. Thanks Holly for hosting this roundup!

Holly invites us to reflect on our spiritual journey. The theme this week is communion. This invitation pushes me to reflect on my spiritual self. Whether you write on a public blog or in a private journal, take some time to reflect, to know your heart a little better, to spend time with God alone.

Take this bread.
Take this wine.
Make it yours.
Make it mine.

We come to the table
palms up and raised,
opening our hearts

for nourishment,
for renewal,
for strength,
for comfort.

The unleavened wafer
presses on my tongue
an imprint of God’s precious love.

I gaze into the cup of wine,
see a reflection–
my eyes, your eyes,
bound together,
in union–
communion.
–Margaret Simon

Gian Lorenzo Bernini – Dove of the Holy Spirit (ca. 1660, alabaster, Throne of St. Peter, St. Peter’s Basilica, Vatican) Wikimedia Commons

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Truth

Posted in Poetry, Spiritual Growth, Writing, tagged Mary Oliver, spiritual journey, Truth on September 11, 2014| 5 Comments »

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Holly Meuller invites fellow bloggers to reflect on our spiritual journey each week. The theme this week is TRUTH.

I am not a true believer. I do not believe that everything happens for a reason. I do not believe that God has total control. I believe that God is real and true. I believe that we are given free will and with that gift, we can make the choice to nurture the God within.

Morning moon

Morning moon glow

I started the day thinking about truth. Looking into the sky before dawn, the full harvest moon looked down on me. My camera in my phone could not tell the truth. These photos do not show what I saw. Are these photos a lie? My husband and I discussed this dilemma. He said that now that he has had cataract surgery and has lens implants, everything he sees is a lie. Actually, everything we all see is only true to us, clouded by our vision or our perception.

The Bible is full of metaphor. Metaphor points to truth, but the message is not always visible.

The kingdom of God is…
a mustard seed,
a pearl,
a lost coin.

The Good Shepherd watches over his sheep,
knows them by name,
and goes out to look for the lost one.

One of my favorite poets is Mary Oliver. She writes with precise simplicity that speaks volumes. In A Thousand Mornings, she brings us into her daily morning meditations. Her poem “On Traveling to Beautiful Places” speaks of the search for God and for truth.

Every day I’m still looking for God
and I’m still finding him everywhere,
in the dust, in the flowerbeds.
Certainly in the oceans,
in the islands that lay in the distance
continents of ice, countries of sand
each with its own set of creatures
and God, by whatever name.
How perfect to be aboard a ship with
maybe a hundred years still in my pocket.
But it’s late, for all of us,
and in truth the only ship there is
is the ship we are all on
burning the world as we go.

–-Mary Oliver, A Thousand Mornings, New York: Penguin Press, 2012. 67.

As I contemplate truth, I realize that there is no real truth. We are on a journey of discovery, doing the best we can with what we have. Truth is blurry, hard to see, like the moon in a photograph. Yet, it is there waiting to be discovered.

(After I finished writing this post, serendipity sent me the message that it was Mary Oliver’s birthday.)

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Blessed Be

Posted in Spiritual Growth, tagged berakhah, blessing, spiritual journey on September 4, 2014| 3 Comments »

Click here to read more #spiritualjourney posts. Thanks Holly for hosting this roundup!

Holly’s theme this week for Spiritual Journey Thursday is “Glory to God Alone.”

Berakhah* to the Creator of all blessings,
the one in whom I trust.

Blessed be my every day,
even when the car needs repair
or the message is delayed,
Internet is down,
and computer displays an error.

May I praise God anyway.

When the four-year-old waves
and the special child grins,
I know in whose presence I am.

Blessed be.

Live oaks reveal God’s name,
open resurrection fern.
Rainbows wrap a blind man in color.
A sad man feels my embrace.

We are the human ones–
flawed, incomplete, holy.
Blessed be.

–Margaret Simon, all rights reserved