Little Flower

Today we honor St. Therese of Lisieux. Through her writings, she showed us how great love for Him can be so real in even the littlest flower that she considered herself to be. She reminds me of this short but meaningful poem:

Flower in the crannied wall,

I pluck you out of the crannies, 

I hold you here, root and all, in my hand,

Little flower -- but if I could understand

What you are, root and all, all in all,

I should know what God and man is.

- Alfred, Lord Tennyson

 

October 1 every year is also what I consider the start of a new spiritual year... a special day of renewal of offering and commitment...

Dearest Lord,

Grant me the grace to respond to your invitation
To assist those You hold most dear in Your Heart:
The least, the lost, the vulnerable,

To know and experience
The faithfulness and tenderness of Your love.

May this be done with complete trust
And nothing less than love for You.
Amen.

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Stillness...in His Hands

It is hard to describe with words what the experience of inner stillness is... it's something that is just felt. The moments when you just know that you are exactly where He wants to you be at this time... with the people He wants you to be with... doing exactly what He wants you to do for now... and, just being able to be totally yourself, because you know that that is also exactly how He really wants you to be for Him.. for always.  

It is in these moments of stillness within you that you just know without a doubt, from the deepest part of you, how truly loved you are by Him, and that He will never cease carrying you in the palm of His Hands... 

Perhaps these moments of inner stillness and certitude of His abiding love, are what St. Augustine was referring to when he said that our hearts stay restless until they finally find rest in Him. 

Thank you, dearest Lord, for this precious gift of stillness... in Your hands!

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All Good Gifts

The weather has been alternating - sunny for days, then rainy for a week, then the sun comes out again, then it rains again... and the cycle continues. Every morning , my favorite moment is scanning the  grass in the garden and noticing how the mostly brown land gradually becomes green from the inching upward of the grass and after having drunk up a lot of rainwater.  Even the portions that were mostly brown soil start to acquire their green color as the roots of the grass from the area beside make their way there and fill out the spaces.

The flowers too, continue their cycle of budding, blooming and dying, budding anew, blooming anew, withering anew.  When one dies, it simply means that new life can now succeed it..

Our life is like the fields - whether these be garden grass and flowers, or farmlands. We  go through definite cycles of birthing, growing, maturing and dying, birthing anew, growing anew, struggling anew, deepening understanding anew, then letting go of things anew to give way for the new seeds of what matter most, to emerge... 

The beauty of being in midlife is that we gain the eyesight to see what we may not have seen before... to recognize the Hand that tills us, to know the Heart that swells the grains within us, and to realize that there is the Compassionate Love that has always showered us with  "all good gifts".

******

We plow the fields and scatter the good seed on the land..
But it is fed and watered by God's almighty hand..

He sends us snow in winter, the warmth to swell the grain...

The breezes and the sunshine, and soft refreshing rain...

All good gifts around us

Are sent from Heaven above

So thank the Lord, oh thank the Lord for all his love...

We thank thee then, O Father, for all things bright and good,

The seedtime and the harvest, our life our health our food,

No gifts have we to offer for all thy love imparts

But that which thou desirest, our humble thankful hearts!

All good gifts around us

Are sent from Heaven above..

So thank the Lord, oh thank the Lord for all his love..

I really wanna thank you Lord!

- music by Stephen Schwartz, "Godspell"



 

Crossroads Surrender

I’ve got nothing on my mind: nothing to remember,
Nothing to forget. and I’ve got nothing to regret,
But I’m all tied up on the inside,
No one knows quite what I’ve got;
And I know that on the outside
What I used to be, I’m not anymore.

You know I’ve heard about people like me,
But I never made the connection.
They walk one road to set them free
And find they’ve gone the wrong direction.

But there’s no need for turning back
`cause all roads lead to where I stand.
And I believe I’ll walk them all
No matter what I may have planned.

Can you remember who I was? can you still feel it?
Can you find my pain? can you heal it?
Then lay your hands upon me now
And cast this darkness from my soul.
You alone can light my way.
You alone can make me whole once again.

We’ve walked both sides of every street
Through all kinds of windy weather.
But that was never our defeat
As long as we could walk together.

So there’s no need for turning back
`cause all roads lead to where we stand.
And I believe we’ll walk them all
No matter what we may have planned.

 - Crossroads by Don McLean 

 A lot of us are on the road to or have already crossed the "golden" or "50" line, and have become more conscious of the changes in ourselves as our journey through life continues. Even for those who go through life as if always in a rush, the call to stop for a while and reflect on where we stand also catches up. Sometimes this happens when someone dear passes on, or when our children need us less or leave home, or when we undergo an illness, or a major change in occupation. We find ourselves standing at a still point where activity used to be. We look behind and see the many crisscrossed roads we've taken, while ahead of us lie just as many possiblities and directions. Where to go next? What to do? How far more to reach and what will I find along the path? Who can I count on for support, and whom do I support? Upto how long will I live? How do I really make the most of what I've got? Can I really give my all?

We can take some comfort in the lyrics:

So there’s no need for turning back
`cause all roads lead to where we stand.
And I believe we’ll walk them all
No matter what we may have planned.

We could just try to enjoy the journey, and trust that whatever road we take will eventually lead to another, and to still other roads... until we finally encounter all the good which we were meant to give and receive along the way. 

We could also reframe Don McLean's words so that we experience the journey as our special walk with Him, our beloved Lord, where

You alone can light my way.

and

We’ve walked both sides of every street
Through all kinds of windy weather.
But that was never our defeat
As long as we could walk together.

As we walk together with our Lord, we surrender to Him all we've got and all we are.. so that the journey becomes double exciting. Hmm, a "sweet surrender"...  this sounds like the lyrics of another song  :-)

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Mindfulness

While enjoying "window shopping" at Manila Seedling Bank yesterday, this very pretty and interesting flower caught my eyes - the way the pink and the white intermingled, the cleanliness of its look, and the funny looking bright yellow centerpiece that seemed almost artificial. It was so nice that I just had to take its picture. Then I noticed a little bee come and rest itself on the yellow center, probably to suck something off from it.

How refreshing it felt to just keep still and keep watching the flower and the bee! There was so much to see and stay with... while drinking in the beautiful and vibrant color of the flower.

While driving home after, I realized that that's what it means to stay in the present moment.

It felt great!

Time in a Bottle

Our family dinner time as we have it today is what I would like to capture and save it in a bottle and preserve it forever.

We start eating between 9:00 to 9:30pm, which is quite late (a la Madrid time daw). It's already bedtime for many households. And yet for us, sleepy or not sleepy, we gather together at this hour. We are usually complete by this time - my husband and I, our children, and my mom. Though busy with our own activities throughout the day, during supper we sit and talk. Conversation can center around a variety of topics ranging from school, work, the latests from current events and familiar people, or stories from family history, politics, religion, values, etc. Or, we can just stay sleepy and not say much of anything.

Some times the occassion even turns into either a mini-business course, at other times almost like a debate session (whew!). Or, an attitude building discourse or sermon on the mount  :-). Or a trip down memory lane. You'd be surprised that it's not only us midlifers who sometimes talk about the past, but even our transitioning adolescent-to-young adult children also bring up something they remember fondly from their own childhood.

For me, whatever we talk about matters less than just the beautiful fact that we are all together, and have this chance to listen and be present to, as well as share with each other in person: how the day went,  what called for more attention, what was meaningful... Even my mom who is usually quiet, seems to enjoy just being there with us.

Haaaaay, what grace, what gift we have in this ordinary everyday moment! A blessing that not too many families nowadays can enjoy due to the complexities and demands of modern living that often make it difficult for nuclear families to be complete for mealtime daily.

One day things will necessarily change for us, as our family moves on into its next stages. But for now, I will really just choose to enjoy this gift we have each night.

Yes, "If I could save time in a bottle," I'd put our family mealtime as we experience it today, right in there  :-)

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In Contemplation

                                                                                  photo by Fr. A. Bugtas, S.J.

As from the sun, descend the rays*

As from the fountain, the waters*

As from the Spirit, births new life

As from the heart, flows Divine Love

Divine Majesty 
Fountain full of life

Spill forth your spirit
In sparkling showers

Enlighten all searching

Lavish on all thirsting

Renewal and healing

Your labour unceasing

You dwell within us

Generous Giver
Of all that is good
Dear self-giving God

 Take now my whole heart

And all of my soul
Everything for you
With deep love and thanks

~ o ~

* from The Spiritual Exercises of St. Ignatius, A Literal Translation