The Source of all our Joy!

In my last post I asked the question—“What is Joy?”

The responses have caused me to think about joy in an expanded wayjoy. Thank you for your insightful, beautiful responses shared in italics below.

There are many ways to look at joy…and that makes sense. Perhaps we describe joy based on our most recent or joy-filled experience. Perhaps our sense of joy depends on our season in life or in our sense of purpose.

“Joy is a choice. Sometimes we don’t feel it, but we will more often be aware of those moments if we are eyes wide open.” Continue reading “The Source of all our Joy!” →

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We are made in the image of God

“When you do things from your soul, you feel a river moving in you, a joy” ~Rumi

We are made in the image of God; we are created to create.life a work of art

Perhaps you doubt whether there is a creative bone in your body, but you would not be giving your Creator the benefit of the doubt. Everyone has an Inner Artist, but often our Inner Critic expresses itself more ardently. And we believe in the voice that whispers (or screams), “I’m not creative. I don’t have talent. I’m too self-conscious to create in front of others.”  Continue reading “We are made in the image of God” →

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Signs on country roads…and in life.

DSC_0076abI found some new country roads this weekend with lots of hills and curves and dead-ends and surprises.

If people think Nebraska is flat, then they’ve never gotten off Interstate-80. I drove for miles seeing neither car nor person. I discovered roads that are closed (likely indefinitely); roads that are minimally maintained; roads with bends, turns and curves, for no other apparent reason than a row of trees in the way; roads thatDSC_0079a embraced hills that rose out of nowhere; and roads with sharp rights (and no other options). Continue reading “Signs on country roads…and in life.” →

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Just float…Gently down the stream, Merrily, merrily, merrily, merrily, Life is but a dream

When you feel like you’re sinking, just float.

Lie back and rest.

You will be held.

float struggleMade in the image of God, we are created to create. We are meant to DO something with what we are given—our ideas, our talents and our dreams. God planted them within us for a reason. They are conceived without our knowing, but we sense it. Something is happening within us and we must take notice. Continue reading “Just float…Gently down the stream, Merrily, merrily, merrily, merrily, Life is but a dream” →

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A picture can reveal the soul: Using images in the classroom

The soul never thinks without a picture. –Aristotle

Or, as I’ve come to learn, a picture can reveal the soul.

As a high school teacher, I work with teenage students every day…but it’s not every day I see into their soul.  The past few years I’ve started using images in the classroom as a springboard to journaling, inspired by practicing SoulCollage® and using the Growing Leaders Habitude® book series. Continue reading “A picture can reveal the soul: Using images in the classroom” →

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Cece: * A * * Snow * * Day * * Reflection * *

I think of Cece, our neighbor, often, but especially when we have “snow days”.  As a teacher, I benefit from our school district’s closure for inclement weather….today—

“A WIND CHILL ADVISORY IS IN EFFECT UNTIL 12 PM TODAY AS -20° TO -25° WIND CHILL COULD CAUSE FROST BITE WITHIN MINUTES AND HYPOTHERMIA. STAY INDOORS AND IN HEATED AREAS AS MUCH AS POSSIBLE.”snow day1

This is Nebraska—it can get very cold and snowy. We have five extra days built into our school calendar for such weather. We are usually notified the night before or early morning if school is cancelled, but one morning I drove to school and didn’t realize it had been cancelled. From then on Cece Continue reading “Cece: * A * * Snow * * Day * * Reflection * *” →

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Linger in the 12 Days of Christmas

mother and childWe are still in the midst of the Christmas season. There are TWELVE DAYS of Christmas…you know the song. Yes, the gaudy decorations are still up at the mall, but the Valentine’s Day displays are being assembled right next to boughs of holly and Santa’s reindeer. And all of the items that espoused to create your perfect Christmas are being sold at 50-75% off; for some reason those items aren’t worth as much as they were last week. Christmas is over! As a culture, we plow through Christmas and move on the next Hallmark-created holiday—and that’s just the way retailers like it. Continue reading “Linger in the 12 Days of Christmas” →

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Surrender to Surprise

The shortest distance between two points is a straight line. I learned that from “The Brady Bunch” (or Math class).  11aMapQuest or Google Maps usually give a few  options, recommending the most direct route. But based on my own personal experience, it isn’t always accurate or logical.  It may seem more efficient to take a well-planned route, but it’s not nearly as adventurous. I find it so exciting to drive down a road that I’ve never been on before and sooooo boring to drive the same route time after time.

There are countless ways to get from one point to another.  And I plan to discover as many of these countless routes as possible between Lincoln and Schuyler, Nebraska. Just go north and west, 90 minutes. COUNTLESS possibilities– each one delivers something new with St. Benedict Center as the final destination. Continue reading “Surrender to Surprise” →

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The Right Book at the Right Time: A Divine Encounter

“Because for some of us, books are as important as almost anything else on earth, what a miracle it is that out of these small, flat, rigid squares of paper unfolds world after world, worlds that sing to you, comfort and quiet or excite you.”—Annie Lamott

I believe the right book comes along at just the right time.

As both bibliophile and believer in a God of surprises, how could I not? Whether at home or away, SolariumI always have a book, or ten, by my bedside. I like to have choices. I have dozens of books on shelves I want to re-read (and do) (and will). I also have dozens of books that I haven’t read yet. So when I go away, I pack 3 or 4 to choose from depending on my mood.  When I’m at St. Benedict Center, sometimes the books don’t even leave my suitcase; instead I let Serendipity choose for me. I go into the solarium, peruse the book titles and wait for one to speak to me. And the right book always presents itself. There is never a wrong choice. Continue reading “The Right Book at the Right Time: A Divine Encounter” →

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