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

Dancing "The Charleston"

the road home

Dear Readers,

While driving home this evening, I rolled down the windows and tuned in to our local radio station for some Saturday evening big band and swing jazz music.

It was good.

There is something about big band in late summer. Crickets chirping between songs, curtains flapping in the breeze .  . .  I'm seventeen again and back home at my parents' farmhouse. It's a Sunday evening.

in Mom's parlor

I know it is a Sunday evening because I still have on my dress. (I always wore dresses to church then.) It's my favorite dress -- black with tiny lavender flowers all over it. I love how it flows when I dance "The Charleston." Such a goofy dance! But so fun! I giggle as I move forward then backward across the hardwood floor.

in Mom's parlor

My cousin is visiting. She is laughing at me too. I take her hands and show her the steps. She catches on quickly and before long, we are dancing together. As she moves forward, I go backward, then vice versa.

Watch George Bailey and his sweetheart Mary dance "The Charleston" in this famous scene from "It's a Wonderful Life":

George Bailey: "We must be good!"

Oh. I love it! 

I love how George and Mary laugh at their own ridiculousness. I love how they keep on dancing even after they fall into the pool!

Haven't we all been there?

I must be good!  . . . KERSPLASH! 

No matter how ridiculous we may seem, it is a soft, happy, childlike spirit that will keep us afloat.

Blessings to you, friends!

With Love,

Adriana

P.S. I'm looking forward to starting Jane Eyre with you tomorrow, the 26th of August.

A Rainbow-Themed Post in Which I Open a Discussion About the Effect of the Internet

"Slide down my rainbow into my cellar door and we'll be jolly friends forevermore."

Hello there friends! Hope you are have a lovely summer/winter!

After battling an illness for over a month, I am at last feeling much better.

Today I want to say a hearty thank you. I've been blown away by all of the love and care that my kids, my husband and I have received from friends and family. There have been days when I've received phone calls that I haven't had the energy to take, but simply knowing that someone was checking in to see how I was doing has meant a lot. Many of you have sent me kind emails. Thank you so very much. It may take me some time to get around to responding, but I've read each one with a warm heart. Our community group friends have watched our kids, they've taken them to VBS, they've brought us meals. I could go on and on. When you have five kids, it truly takes a village to pick up the slack when Mom is down! And the prayers! Oh my word. I'm humbled.

There is something about this experience that gives me a pang though -- and that is you. It seems like the kind of support system I have is in global decline. Is this true for you? What would happen today if suddenly you crashed and could not get out of bed for week?  When the rubber meets the road all that matters is knowing you are not alone. I want to know where you are with that. Do you feel like you are literally holding everything together all by yourself? I used to be more of a loner. I used think I'm fine. I got this. And as I said, I am humbled.

The road home.

In my last post we talked about the subject -- "I am your keeper and you are mine." -- which is biblical, of course. A wise person once pointed out to me that the entire Bible could be viewed as a long reply to the question that Cain asked God after he killed his brother Abel in Genesis chapter four:

Then the Lord said to Cain, “Where is Abel your brother?” He said, “I do not know; am I my brother's keeper?” 

The answer is YES! Yes, you are your brother's keeper! And God spent a lot of time and effort showing us what that is supposed to look like!

When I was a girl there was one family in my large neighborhood who had a computer in their basement. (My parents still don't have one!) I never would have dreamed then that I would one day be able to converse with friends all over the world!

Sitting in church last Sunday I looked around at all of the nifty new hair styles and I thought, Isn't Pinterest enriching? We are in a hair-renaissance!  Doesn't that just get you excited! It gets me really excited because it is a sign of how our global-connectedness is working it's way into our most mundane decisions -- like how we do our hair.

When you and I sit down to type out our thoughts or post pictures of a healthy, yummy bean salad we really have no idea how far our influence will go.

So in light of our Bible story today, the question I keep tossing around my mind is this: How does being each other's keeper work in the online world?

We are sitting here in front of our computer screens witnessing the dawn of a new era and we have no way to measure our influence over time. We are laying the groundwork for generations to come. The internet is a tool that meets needs in the here and now, but it is also a work of eternal significance.

So talk to me -- I want to know what you think being each other's keeper should look like on the web. Many of my readers are Christians like me, but some of you are not. I want to hear from you no matter what faith tradition you are speaking from.  Vision casters -- speak!

My online life did not start out incredibly meaningful. I had a homeschool blog in the beginning because I always saw myself as becoming a gloriously successful homeschooler. The plan was to show you how you could become a gloriously successful homeschooler like me. The only problem with that plan is that not too far into my homeschool journey, I realized I wasn't going to be gloriously successful. I found myself doggie-paddling, barely able to keep my head above water. Reading other homeschool blogs just made me feel bad about myself.

First I blogged the wrong way, now I'm learning how to get it right. (Yes, I'm still learning!) I know this much for sure: when you use the internet correctly it will have a positive effect on both your online and offline life. It is a powerful tool, but it takes time and practice and a lot of mistakes to get it right. 

Be patient with yourself and be patient with others. 

There is only love.

Now I want to hear from you. Tell me about your experience with the internet and it's effect on you. Tell be about how you use it and give me some suggestions on how to make our online experiences more enriching. 

Oh and before I forget, here's the recipe:

"Jolly Friends Rainbow Salad":

1 red pepper, diced

1 yellow pepper, diced

1 orange pepper, diced

1 red onion, finely diced (optional -- it adds a nice purple color to the rainbow, but I rarely use it.)

1 can chick peas, rinsed

1 can black beans, rinsed

1 bag of frozen shelled edamame, rinsed to thaw

(In the above picture I used fresh parsley, b/c I happened to have some on hand. This recipe is really flexible. Just have fun with it. I added some peas to the baby's meal.)

Let your children help you mix this salad. Their eyes will pop when the colors start to blend. Season liberally with seasoned rice vinegar to taste. Take to a grill-out and and enjoy with friends.

Much love,
Adriana

My First Love: Beethoven Symphony No.6, "The Pastoral"

I enjoy many styles of music, but my first love is classical music. In the coming weeks I'll be sharing ten classical pieces that have been instrumental in my life journey.
When I was six years old, my mother brought home a record album entitled Beethoven Symphony No.6. -- The Pastoral. Mom didn't have an affinity for classical music; the album was a K-Mart "Blue-Light Special" she had bought on a whim with some pocket change. Perhaps she thought a little "culture" might prove useful for helping to tame her rowdy little ones.

I stood fidgeting on tip-toe as she placed the large, black album on the turntable and lowered the needle into the vinyl grooves. For a moment, I watched the record spin, then sat cross-legged on the floor. All at once, a cheerful, sweeping melody lifted my heart and began to open up my world.

 First Movement

I spent many evenings listening to The Pastoral while sprawled on the brown carpet next to our mammoth stereo system. Sometimes I placed my small hands on the speakers to feel the vibrations the  sound made. A few times I fell asleep in that spot. Mom gently scooped me up from the floor and carried me off to bed.

I knew from the landscape which was printed on the album's cover that the music was about nature. While listening, it wasn't hard to imagine walking through a meadow on a pleasant day. My dad worked long hours in a can factory, but on his days off from work he often took my younger siblings and me for  hikes through woods and fields. 

I always felt disappointed near the end of our journeys when Dad said it was time to turn for home. Inevitably there was just one more bend in the path that I wished I could explore. I could easily relate to the first movement of The Pastoral because it made me feel the same sense of excitement and wonder that I felt when I set out on an adventure with Dad.

Second Movement

In the second movement I could hear flowing water and bird calls. For a small child nothing is more delightful than a creek to wade in. There are so many things to discover: fossils, tiny shells, pretty rocks, salamanders, crayfish. The bird calls in the the second movement were thrilling. Imagine! Instruments that sound like birds! Dad was good at imitating birds in nature. We sometimes practiced together. I loved to imitate whippoorwills and mourning doves.

Third movement

In the third movement there is folk dancing and revelry! This is the part where I would skip and dance around the room.

Fourth Movement

Quick -- run! A storm is coming! 

Throughout my childhood I considered storms to be delightfully frightful. A storm meant the power might go out and we could light candles! Rumbling thunder was exciting. It made me feel glad to be safe, and dry in the sanctuary of our snug home. The fourth movement of  The Pastoral is a surprisingly realistic depiction of a thunderstorm.

Fifth Movement

The fifth and final movement is a shepherd's song of thanksgiving. It is an uplifting ending to a wonderful musical experience. To this day, whenever I hear Beethoven Symphony No. 6, I am filled with eager delight and reminded of the hopeful innocence and spirit of adventure that I felt when I was very young.

let the children come

Children know instinctively the correct way to arrange a nativity scene: everyone should be crammed in as closely as possible to see the Baby. 

Friends,

I hope you are finding time to frolic and play and laugh and sing this Christmas. 

Even the Prince of Heaven became a little child. 

I saw these two videos on Anne Voskamp's site yesterday. 

After dinner, I took my laptop into the dining room, dimmed the lights and watched them with my family. 

Enjoy! 

♥

“Let the children come to me; do not hinder them, for to such belongs the kingdom of God. 
Truly, I say to you, whoever does not receive the kingdom of God like a child shall not enter it.” Mark 10:14-15

Love to all,
Adriana