Blogiversary! (I'm back early from my break.)

Dear Friend,

Classical Quest is two years old today!

My little blog is a toddler now.

I wish I could spend this day with all my wonderful blog-friends in person. I'd love to celebrate with a slab of The Best German Chocolate Cake in All the Land from Yammie's Noshery. *

I keep thinking about how this second year of blogging has turned out to be "The Year I Learned How to Guest Post and How to Host Guest Posts." 

Karen Swallow Prior was here in March. Oh my goodness. So exciting! Karen is the author of Booked: Literature in the Soul of Me -- a book which really struck a chord with me. Hosting her here was delightful.

In April I hosted a moving post by my friend Tim Fall, who blogs at Just One Train Wreck After Another. (Psst . . . Today is Tim's birthday.)

My friend Jeannie Prinsen is a writing instructor for Queen's University in Canada. She shared one of her stunning poems here in November. Jeannie blogs at Little House on the Circle.

Also in November, I was offered a post by award-winning author Anita Mathias -- which I accepted with joy! Anita blogs from Oxford at Dreaming Beneath the Spires.

And finally, I read a poem by Sheena Señara which she wrote in response to the devastation caused by Super-Typhoon Haiyan. I felt honored that she was willing to share this tender post with my readers and me. Sheena blogs at Tabulyogang. 

I was a guest at other blogs twice this year.

I was a nervous wreck until each of the posts went up . . . and then, once they were posted (and there was no turning back) I had a blast! (Thank you so much for the experience, Jeannie and Tim!)

My historic first guest post was "Embracing the Gospel Through Racial Reconciliation" which went up at Just One Train Wreck After Another in October.

The second was "The Story of a Life in Three Quilts" which was posted at Little House on the Circle.

So that's it for the guest post links. I'm glad to be back to blogging again. I've missed it.

Hope you are well!

Love,

Adriana

* Twenty-one year old Yammie cooks for her large family. She's a charming blogger and a culinary genius. She was recently acknowledged by the Huffington Post.You're going to love her blog.

Silent Retreat: Part Two -- How to Use a Labyrinth as a Prayer Tool

Dear Friend,
If you missed my last post, go here. I'm writing about my first experience at a silent spiritual retreat. I left off at the point were I had just settled into a quiet spot by the river and I was checking out the labyrinth handout that our director had given us before the retreat began.

The labyrinth is described here as "a defined path, a physical journey inward to a sacred space." I've re-written the rest of the instructions to show you how it works step-by-step:

The goal: To discover your deepest, truest self while encountering peace and rest in the company of your ever-present God.

1. Pause. Breathe slowly. Begin when you are ready. Trace your finger along the path.

2. As you enter, leave distractions behind.

3. As you move forward, embrace what God brings to you. Pay attention to any words, thoughts, or feelings that come to you.

4. When you reach the center, linger there with God. Meditate on "Christ in you, the Hope of glory." as He reveals Himself to you.

5. The way out is the same as the way in -- just follow the path. The return journey offers space for reflection as you move back toward the exterior world, transformed at the core of your being. Carry with you the peace of Christ, which is with you always. 

"Meditation is not so much concerned with thinking as with being. And in contemplative prayer we seek to become the person we are called to be, not by thinking about God, but by being with Him." ~John Main

After tracing the pathway on the handout with my finger and entering into a moment of pure stillness in center of the labyrinth, I felt an urge to pick up my pencil. I recalled our director's prompting: Ask God for one thing.

I wrote that one thing down.

Mercy.

Because I feel overwhelmed

And hopelessly flawed.

I can't live up to my own ideals;

I'm weary of trying to get it all just right.

I ask for mercy

Because I've let others eclipse Your Light. 

When I look to them for approval,

Your Light appears dim

And I wither.

But here, Lord, Your mercy is washing over me,

Making me feel brave.

I am Your little child, drawing scribbles on this pretty paper -- do You like them?

I kiss Your hands and touch Your face.

Here in Your presence, 

I'm safe and free! 

During the next hour by the river I read various Scriptures and devotional materials. Each time I was struck by a passage, I wrote it down on my labyrinth. My copy-work curved all the way out of the labyrinth and into the white space beyond. This helped me to reflect on the experience and carry the peace of God with me into the exterior world. 

"The fruit of silence is prayer, the fruit of prayer is faith, the fruit of faith is love, the fruit of love is service, the fruit of service is peace." ~Mother Teresa 

I hope you will make some time for meditation today. Perhaps the labyrinth will help you go deeper in prayer than ever before. In my next post, I'll wrap up this series with some photos from my prayer-walk around the Spiritual Center property.

Peace & Joy,
Adriana

Silent Retreat: Part One -- Learning the Ropes and Getting Settled

Dear Friend,

I promised I would tell you all about my silent retreat! I have more pictures and thoughts than I can comfortably fit into one post, so I believe I'll made this a "Silent Retreat Series."

Lane to the Spiritual Center

Last Saturday I arrived at the Spiritual Center for breakfast. I was glad to meet up with a couple of my friends -- including my prayer partner, Beth, who had invited me to attend this event. We enjoyed an hour or so of "community time" during which our director, Linda, gave us some helpful tips on how to make the most of the silent hours we were preparing to enter.

"You are all busy people; you have a lot to do. There are ministry leaders here, some of you are missionaries, some are teachers, etc. You have a long list of things you'd like to accomplish today. But I want to encourage you to set your list aside. Allow yourself to become still and listen to God. Think of one thing you'd like to ask God for during this time of silent prayer."

 

Linda gave us a labyrinth handout. She explained how to use it as a prayer tool. This was new to me. I thought a labyrinth was an elaborate hedge maze in which a person could get hopelessly lost! But it turns out -- there is only one path in a prayer labyrinth; if you use it correctly, you will only get lost in God.

Then there were breathing exercises. Before our lesson, I thought of breathing exercises as a New Age/Eastern practice for attempting to reach a state of Nirvana! But I learned that Christians can (and should) breathe too. The difference is in the approach. 

Since I had just recently read Sacred Pathways, by Gary Thomas, I felt eager to try some of these methods for enriching my prayer life.Through this silent retreat at the Spiritual Center, I was able to experience at least seven of the nine pathways that Thomas defines:

Naturalist: Loving God out of Doors

Sensate: Loving God with the Senses
Traditionalist: Loving God through Ritual and Symbol
Ascetics: Loving God in Solitude and Simplicity
Enthusiast: Loving God with Mystery and Celebration
Contemplative: Loving God through Adoration
Intellectual: Loving God with the Mind

The theme for our retreat,"Landscapes of Prayer", was inspired by the book by Margaret Silf. Inside the pavilion there were prayer stations based on this theme. For example, a person could gaze at a large photograph of a desert scene while running her fingers through a tray of sand. She could chose to "walk" with Jesus into the wilderness by reading Matt 4:1-11. She might also meditate on other passages which carry the "desert" theme such as Acts 13:17-18 and Isaiah 35:1-2. Many of the people who chose to remain inside the pavilion did so because of physical limitations. These stations provided calming landscape scenes, complete with sensory experiences for those who could not venture outside.

After a Scripture reading, a prayer, and a hymn, our time of silence began. I sensed a general eagerness as each pilgrim sought out her own quiet place. I carried a folding chair and a couple of light bags to a shady spot near the river. Since I had been one of the last to emerge from the pavilion, I was one of the last to find my place. I was surprised then to come upon an empty bench with an exquisite view of the river through a patch of trees. I once read that a view of water through trees is considered to be the most favored landscape of humankind. Either the women at the retreat did not share this opinion, or they were all too generous to take one of the best spots! I turned around to take in the full scene: I saw a couple women far in the distance, but no one was around and everyone appeared to be settled, so I began to unpack.

In my next post, I'll tell you about my first experience with the prayer labyrinth and about the thing I asked God to give me.

Hope you are well.

Until next time then. :-)

Peace & Joy,

Adriana

Summer Play: Ocarinas, Cards, Cup-Clapping, and Fried Chicken

Dear Friends, 

Today I'd like to share with you some really important things I learned how to do this summer.

Make an ocarina with my hands. 

I think ocarinas are neat. I especially like the ones that look and sound like birds. I own two: one sounds like an owl, the other sounds like a mourning dove.  My oldest son and I enjoyed learning how to create an ocarina with our hands via the You Tube video below. (We have some room for improvement. The kid in the video is amazing.)

I received this one as a gift. It was purchased from Ten Thousand Villages.

I bought this one in Eger, Hungary. It sounds just like a mourning dove. We like to "talk" to real doves with them.

Play "Slap Jack."

I don't recall playing this card game as a kid, but it was the perfect game to play with my 4yr old and 6yr old on vacation. I bought a special "Slap Jack" deck. Normally it is played with a standard deck of cards.

Sing while cup clapping.

My 9yr. old daughter and I had a blast learning to use cups in sync as rhythm instruments.

Watch the adorable Lennon and Maisy do it --

And here is Anna Kendrick singing the song my daughter and I learned --"Cup Song"--

It is so fun! I seriously can't be left alone with a cup and a flat surface. It's addictive!

Here is the chant to help you learn it:

clap-clap

1-2-3

clap

up-down

clap

side

hand

table

hand 

slap

down

If you haven't had enough yet, here is the same song in a music video. It starts with one lone cook rolling out biscuits and before long all of the customers in this restaurant are cup-clapping.

Make my grandmother's fried chicken.

Well, I hope I have learned how. While on vacation with her last week, I watched closely as she made it for dinner -- twice!  I bought the ingredients tonight and I plan to make it tomorrow.

Your turn! Have you tried anything fun and new this summer?

P.S. Don't forget: I'm starting Jane Eyre on August 26th. Grab an unabridged copy and plan to join me!

With Love,

Adriana