Aligning with Grace

"May I be kind and merciful. May I be humble and compassionate. May I be loving and forgiving. " Twelve years ago this week, I began this blog. It has taken many shapes and served many purposes throughout the years. This morning, on this Thanksgiving week, I went down to the river to do a gratitude practice. I was reminded of a "Gratitude Litany" I had created a few years ago as a 90 second meditation. As I did my practice, I found myself voicing these words out loud into the blue expanse before me as a white egret floated quietly on the river: "May I be kind and merciful. May I be humble and compassionate. May I be loving and forgiving. " Practices do not have to be elaborate. They need not consume hours of our time. Just a few minutes of our time to be mindful of those in need that we know - and those we don't - is all that is required. Just a few moments of presence and of gratitude will go a long way to changing us, our lives...

"A little bit of mercy makes the world less cold and more just." ~ Pope Francis Yesterday, after I finished reading the Sunday papers, I noticed I was very sad. Practically everything I read was depressing. The despair felt contagious. I was overwhelmed by the state of affairs in the world. How did we get this way? I thought to myself, we need more mercy and compassion... It so happens that I have been reading the book "Hallelujah Anyway: Rediscovering Mercy," by Anne Lamott, a very timely little tome indeed! I quoted this book in my last entry, but now I am knee deep in it. Ironically, on page 51 (Psalm 51 is the Miserere, one of my favorite and most recited, I could not help but note), Lamott offers this explanation: "Misericordia is Latin for 'mercy,' from misericors, 'merciful,' which is 'to pity,' and cor, 'heart.' Mercy means compassion, empathy, a heart for someone's troubles. It's not something ...

I wrap myself up in blankets and don toasty slippers on these cold winter days... I drink tea, and move slowly, and I think of what I would like to birth this year... There are so many things I would like to do and experience, but now is not the time for that. Now is the time for entraining with the rhythms of nature - it is a time for slowing down, for practicing self-care, and for nurturing the soul... Somehow, I sense this year will be different. I choose to dedicate it in a different way than I have in the past... There is much to do - much to clear - different directions to take - and all will unfold in its own time and in divine order... I embrace the long dark evenings and let go of what does not serve, in so many ways... I warm my hands around one cup of tea after another, and reflect on the attributes and values I want to cultivate this year. Like Pope Francis, I want to focus on the embodiment and greater reflection of mercy. But in order to do that, I must exer...