John O'Donohue...a wise Irish teacher

I have been reading O'Donohue's To Bless the Space Between Us, a book of blessings that are inspired from Celtic spiritual traditions. I am learning that Christian Celts have/had a prayer for EVERYTHING, for the senses, for the unknown self, for failure, for solitude, for the threshold of womanhood/manhood, and even on passing a graveyard! John O'Donohue explains "blessing" as a way of life, as a lens through which the whole world is transformed. Here is one that has caught my eye! The bold words and stanzas are ones that have beautifully disturbed me. Enjoy!

A Blessing of Angels

May the Angel of Awakening stir your heart

To come alive to the eternal within you,

To all the invitations that quietly surround you.

May the Angel of Healing turn your wounds

Into sources of refreshment.

May the Angel of Imagination enable you

To stand on the true thresholds,

At ease with your ambivalence

And drawn in new directions

Through the glow of your contradictions.

May the Angel of Compassion open your eyes

To the unseen suffering around you.

May the Angel of Wildness disturb the places

Where your life is domesticated and safe,

Take you to the territories of true otherness

Where all that is awkward in you

Can fall into its own rhythm.

May the Angel of Eros introduce you

To the beauty of your senses

To celebrate your inheritance

As a temple of the holy spirit.

May the Angel of Justice disturb you

To take the side of the poor and the wronged.

May the Angel of Encouragement confirm you

In worth and self-respect,

That you may live with the dignity

That presides in your soul.

May the Angel of Death arrive only

When your life is complete

And you have brought every given gift

To the threshold where its infinity can shine.

May all the Angels be your sheltering

And joyful guardians.

~John O'Donohue

© John O’Donohue. All rights reserved

If you would like to know & learn more about John , check out www.johnodonohue.com

Sabbath Reflection

Here is my latest reflection in regards to Sabbath. This video reflects remembering, people, nature, and more...all of which I was created to delight with and in. I am learning that the practices of Sabbath are intended for more than my personal rest. So far on this journey I have experienced Sabbath as an intentional encounter with God's delight...I am still working out the significance of such delight. More of my thoughts are posted here if you're interested!

505 days later...

According to our "knot" website, we have been married 505 days. This morning I found a mix CD that James made for me when we were dating. Yep first track...Foxy Lady! I couldn't help but smile and begin to reflect on this relationship we've committed to. It is important to reflect, to remember. Here are are some of those (always more):

1. no matter how much you prepare, there is always mystery and things that can only be understood by experience.
2. at the end of the day, there is the comfort of his warm body under the sheets.
3. love and pain both exist...it is inevitable that we hurt each other as well as extend grace.
4. it is a choice to communicate my internal world.
5. laughter cuts through defenses.
6. we are companions, not saviors.
7. i do trust him!
8. the smallest disagreements speak to a larger picture.
9. sex is always more than sex.
10. a wedding is also a funeral...each day i am faced with dying to my selfishness...and that is hard.

I love this video. It reminds me that I married a silly nerd just like me! Laughter is essential and good food for the soul :)

conversations

Hello Lord. It's me your child. I have a few things on my mind. Right now I'm faced with big decisions, and I'm wondering if you have a minute. Right now I don't hear so well and I was wondering if you could speak up. I know that you tore the veil so I could sit with you in person and hear what you're saying, but right now, I just can't hear you. I don't doubt your sovereignty, I doubt my own ability to hear what you're saying and to do the right thing, and I desperately want to do the right thing. Somewhere in the back of my mind I think you are telling me to wait, and though patience has never been mine, Lord I will wait to hear from you. ~Sara Groves

Taylor Family

Elis, Tracy, Isaac, and Aiden...what a treat it was to endure the rain and capture the joy this family brings into the world! We had a great time on our"adventure" through downtown Tacoma, as Isaac's curiosity pointed out the simple things around us that offer mystery and excitement. Thanks to the Taylor family for letting me have a peek into the patience you have for life and your beautiful children.

The Warrior Song of King Gezar

Our earth is wounded. Her oceans and lakes are sick; her rivers are like running sores; The air filled with subtle poisons. And the oily smoke of countless hellish fires
blackens the sun. Men and women, scattered from homeland, family, friends, wander desolate and uncertain, scorched by a toxic sun...
In this desert of frightened, blind uncertainty, some take refuge in the pursuit of power. Some become manipulators of illusion and deceit. If wisdom and harmony still dwell in this world, as other than a dream lost in an unopened book, they are hidden in our heartbeat. And it is from our hearts cry that we cry out. We cry out and our voices are the single voice of this wounded earth.
Our cries are a great wind across the earth.
~ From The Warrior Song of King Gezar