It was Thomas Moore who said, “The vessel in which soul-making takes place is an inner container scooped out by reflection and wonder.”
Rejuvenation
I try to make time on weekends for creative and stimulating pursuits.
Some of the activities that I enjoy are painting, with watercolors or acrylics, reading mysteries, keeping a journal, and drinking hot tea or hot cocoa.
What does rejuvenation look like for you?
Island Adventures
Had a fantastic day trip to Block Island this past weekend.
We rented mopeds and rode, then walked out to the North Lighthouse,
swam, walked around the point, and then rode round to the Southeast Light and Mohegan Bluffs. Went back into town for lunch and then another swim and some frisbee in the ocean. A sun-filled, salty, sandy day was just what we all needed. Refreshing to walk along the shore and see the ocean, which was very clear and a beautiful turquoise blue.
Serenity restored.
The Art of Relaxation
Margin is an important concept, especially in the life of an introvert. Margin, like the white space around the edges of the pages in a book, simply means making space in your life just to be. I am intentional about down time in my life. Serenity to me involves some time to just sit and relax on my back porch most days.
Points of View
Love these gardens and the view of the meadow … and Friday night picnics. An oasis in my week.
Seasons of Life
In the last three months, I’ve had surgery, been on an international trip (the trip of a lifetime with my parents who are in their eighties), traveled 1000 miles to attend the funeral of an 18 year old, celebrated a birthday, learned that my 85 year old dad was told by his doctor that he should give up driving, said goodbye to our beloved dog of 14 years after a traumatic accident, traveled for a long weekend, attended a backyard concert, volunteered at my church fair, and had numerous physical therapy appointments – all while working full time and being a student in a doctoral program. It’s been a bit of a roller coaster. I realized that the sleepless nights lately have been mostly because my subconscious is worrying the problem about my parents as they are still very active but starting to need more help. When I awoke the other night at 2 a.m. – not the first time – and thought I would not get back to sleep, I prayed and let go of my worry and fell immediately back to sleep. The power of prayer is amazing. We need only ask God for His grace and mercy; He loves us so incredibly much and wants to grant us peace. I’m thankful that when I remember to turn to Him, He is always at the ready. He longs to give me serenity.
Spring = Serenity
I’d be hard-pressed to say which is my favorite season. I love them all! But today it is spring and so today that is my favorite season. And I think I have finally captured spring.
Although I love all of the flowering trees, the cherry blossoms particularly, my favorite are the pink dogwood. But the fresh new green of budding trees against a deep blue sky is something that speaks serenity to my soul.
What speaks serenity to your soul?
Glimpses of Light
Dealing with Pain
Dark storm clouds gathered in the west as we went for a drive to enjoy the spring flowering trees and bushes. It’s been two weeks since my elbow surgery and I’m in considerable pain every day. The doctor warned me ahead of time that there would be pain for a few months after the surgery. But I didn’t really hear that part; I was just desperate for a resolution to the pain from the torn tendon and inflamed nerve.
So I’ve been recuperating at home for two weeks with Advil, Tylenol, ice and stronger pain meds at night to help me sleep. I usually consider myself to have a high tolerance for pain and in fact this injury has had me in pain on and off for two years (I tried cortisone shots and therapy a few times). But finally it got so bad that I could not sleep and it was pain 24 hours a day. So the doctor cleaned up the tendon – it was too damaged to reattach – and moved the nerve so that it would not constantly be aggravated. I’m typing and writing a bit finally, but not doing much – tomorrow I go back to work. I’m not feeling ready for work, but hoping it will be a distraction from the pain. I had thought that I could use this time at home to get caught up on school. But the thing about pain is that it saps your energy. I’m normally a pretty energetic person; hence the full time job/full time student thing. I get up early, study a bit, exercise, and work, come home and study some more. Well, I’m lucky if I can concentrate long enough to read a chapter or an article these days.
I’m thankful that there is a future ahead where my elbow will be fully healed and I’ll be pain-free. Meanwhile, I must just accept this stage, trying to live with serenity and grace. Conserving my energy and not fretting about all the things that are not getting done. Such are the storms of life. We weather them as best we can, always hopeful for another day, a sunny day. Early spring is like that, 8o degrees one day, 40 degrees two days later, stormy and windy one day, sunny and balmy the next.
I’m holding on to my serenity.
Jellyfish: Boys of War
Had a lovely walk on the beach this week with our 21, almost 22, year old daughter. We had to step carefully to avoid the man-o-war jellyfish that had blown up onto the sand in the stiff offshore breeze. Gen was lamenting the poor creatures demise and particularly the bitty ones that she called ‘boys of war’ who did not even get to survive to adulthood. They were about an inch in diameter and seemed so fragile, yet are so dangerous. Her phrase and her empathy made me smile. Life is precious – even a jellyfish! This child of mine is passionate about life, about sustainability, about reducing homelessness, about many subjects. What a joy to share this time by the ocean. Another day at the beach we giggled uncontrollably as the wind pelted us with tiny stinging grains of sand. At the pool, we lay in the sun and had a long heart-to-heart. Connecting with this beautiful young woman who lives so far from us is a rare treat and I cherished our short time together. Finding serenity together as we laughed, celebrated, reminisced and enjoyed time outdoors.
#optoutside #evenwithboysofwar