A sense of blessedness comes from a change of heart, not from more blessings.
— Mason Cooley
The Catholic Church actually began as a splinter group from Judaism. Followers of Christ were really devoted, they kept two Sabbaths, Saturday and Sunday. That’s a lot of church in one week.
One of the traditions of Judaism is the speaking of the blessing over the children. In My Grandfather’s Blessings by Rachel Naomi Remen, she writes of the power of the blessings that her grandfather spoke over her. It’s still the same, we all want the approval/blessings of our parents, our friends, our families. For some of us, these blessings never come from our parents. Others must provide them.
Lesson 1 – Know Thyself
I was educated in grammar school by the Sisters of St. Joseph. Our school was 1st through 8th grade. We had no kindergarten. For that you went to the public school and since I started 1st grade when I was 5, there was no kindergarten for me. Eighth grade was the pinnacle. We were cool and about to become high school students so the principal chose to “have lunch” with each of us that year. One by one, we went to the principal’s office and “chatted” with her.
I don’t really remember my lunch with Sister R. I just remember the reaction.
At some point, during the lunch, Sister asked me Continue reading » Speaking Blessings
How do we do that?
I would maintain that thanks are the highest form of thought, and that gratitude is happiness doubled by wonder.
— G.K. Chesterton
In last week’s posts we celebrated the helpers who sprung up to assist an injured friend, a cornucopia of new beginnings for an off-the-track fitness resolution and the wellspring of hope that the habit of gratitude engenders. All of which got me to thinking about how to persist in the face of various challenges. Continue reading » Take Action — Show Your Gratitude
To love is to risk not being loved in return. To hope is to risk pain. To try is to risk failure, but risk must be taken because the greatest hazard in life is to risk nothing.
— Anonymous
Recently I received the following story in an email. I don’t know who wrote it as it wasn’t attributed to anyone when I received it. If you know who wrote it, please let us know.
I dreamt that I went to Heaven and an angel was showing me around. We walked side-by-side inside a large workroom filled with angels. My angel guide stopped in front of the first section and said, “This is the Receiving Section. Here, all petitions to Continue reading » From Gratitude Comes Hope
photo credit: psdIn this wintery month of February, what can you pause to celebrate?
Well, if you expected this to be another post about procrastination then you may be surprised to learn that, ironically, I’ve postponed it – I’d forgotten about Valentine’s Day and couldn’t let the holiday go by without this wee bit of a hurrah. More on procrastination is ready to roll, just not today, nor tomorrow either. Watch for it… and in the meantime, let’s celebrate February!
In the depth of winter, I finally learned that within me there lay an invincible summer.
— Albert Camus
February’s upon us… and this 2010 version of the second month roared in with the winter madness of an El Nino year – we’ve endured blizzards, rainstorms, floods and mudslides, just to name a few of the weather challenges so far. It’s been a cold, cold winter since the exuberance of Christmas, Hanukkah, Kwanza and New Years Day. Some (many?) among us are feeling the winter doldrums. While we wait for spring to be sprung, we need something to Continue reading » What’s to Celebrate? February, of Course!
What is your reality?
Today has been a writing day for me. And it has created two realities for me.
Reality #1
I spent most of the day working on three different pieces which never quite felt right. I deliberately took a break and came back to them a couple of hours later. They didn’t seem any better. I worked with them for another half hour and finally got myself so depressed that I decided to just leave.
Reality #2
Having given up in disgust, I grabbed the lead and took the dog for a walk. She’s pretty much always up for a walk and I just felt awful. I had worked myself into quite a state about what I would write for my next post.
Continue reading » The Blessing of Reality
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