Grazie, Francesco...
"Praised be my Lord, for our Mother the Earth that which doth sustain us and keep us,
and bringeth forth diverse fruit,
and flowers of many colors, and grass...Make me an instument of Thy Peace.
Life has stepped forth...again. Something has shifted in the past two days, really since the weekend. I can Breathe. I can Sleep (well, sort of), I can Work, I can Rest, I can Laugh, I can Dance, I can Cook Dinner..and then EAT IT. I can even sort of listen to my telephone messages in a timely manner...
This evening, the scent of dried cedar added to the woodstove caresses the interior of this little home with protection and the famiiarity of Circle, Sweat, Prayers, and Healing. This is the 2nd fire this week. Last night was "dried rosemary" night and slumgullion on the stove...so both the kitchen and the cabin room renenergized to the scent and activity. I am getting an affirming lesson in good self-care these past few days. I am eating soup/stews that were created with Love with Shelties in the kitchen last year for this time when I knew I wouldn't have it in me to eat or to care. I chopped plenty of kindling last spring with Shelties(one physical and one angel) in the backyard for this time when I knew I couldn't be present enough to handle an ax without chopping off my own foot. The Christmas lights are even back on and so is the instrumental Christmas music even as I am working on this...Home..it feels like MY Home.
Today is the special day of remembering and honoring St. Francis of Assisi. We had two prayers circles in the classroom today with two of the 3/4 cohorts, and we will have another with the third tomorrow. These touch my Heart and Spirit in such deep ways. It is almost a week without Love when the Circle is missing. Mass was what it usually was--the sacred space to place your Heart on the altar with the offerings and prayers with all of us, Children of God. I am finding my spiritual path leading to a clear place and I am thankful. I have been praying in the evenings with an old book I found in the Roosevelt neighborhood. It's entitled "Mantras for eventide". I just open a page and read, pray, ponder, and then...
I recently read most of a biography on Francis. What a human! I don't know what else to say. I don't resonate with most of what he said and did and simultaneously, I Believe that he "GOT" it--Brother Sun, Sister Moon, Brother Wolf, Sister Bird---Brothers and Sisters of the One and for the One. Called the "Little Pauper"--humiliated, starved, threatened, ridiculed, even despised by his own familia...his One Desire was to Live as His Lord...when it was time for him to die, he had his brothers in community take him outside, naked, and lay him on the cold, dark ground so he could leave this life as he came into it-unfettered, without accumulation, with simple faith, and on our mother Earth created by our Loving Source.
Most of what I wanted to say today has been forgotten in the course of this day. I always seem to get great ideas just before I head out in the morning. It flies away when I don't take a moment to jot a reminder..
Parent-teacher conferences are next week, For the first time in my career, I feel I have demonstrable data and information to share with the families of the students. I am enjoying preparing the pieces. Must make sure not to go overboard. I have also had a reality check lesson from yesterday. We are just teachers, just teachers. In the long run, we don't matter all that much. And still, I must and choose to act as if I AM important in the lives of these children. Without fail, I believe that there are no coincidences and that I have said a cosmic "Yes" or A-HO to do this work, with these children, in this Now. The next Now will be a different Work and a different Child. ( I am going to say here that I sense the Child for me was born on Sept. 15th of this year--just a hunch, and a Dream, and huge wishful thinking!:)...Sister Moon will be full this Saturday. It is supposed to rain some more. The children continue to work on their woodworking projects. Some began the weaving of colors today that, for them, represent the colors of Faith, Hope, Love, and Mercy...."Where there is hatred, let me sow Love..."
"Praised be my Lord, for our Mother the Earth that which doth sustain us and keep us,
and bringeth forth diverse fruit,
and flowers of many colors, and grass...Make me an instument of Thy Peace.
Life has stepped forth...again. Something has shifted in the past two days, really since the weekend. I can Breathe. I can Sleep (well, sort of), I can Work, I can Rest, I can Laugh, I can Dance, I can Cook Dinner..and then EAT IT. I can even sort of listen to my telephone messages in a timely manner...
This evening, the scent of dried cedar added to the woodstove caresses the interior of this little home with protection and the famiiarity of Circle, Sweat, Prayers, and Healing. This is the 2nd fire this week. Last night was "dried rosemary" night and slumgullion on the stove...so both the kitchen and the cabin room renenergized to the scent and activity. I am getting an affirming lesson in good self-care these past few days. I am eating soup/stews that were created with Love with Shelties in the kitchen last year for this time when I knew I wouldn't have it in me to eat or to care. I chopped plenty of kindling last spring with Shelties(one physical and one angel) in the backyard for this time when I knew I couldn't be present enough to handle an ax without chopping off my own foot. The Christmas lights are even back on and so is the instrumental Christmas music even as I am working on this...Home..it feels like MY Home.
Today is the special day of remembering and honoring St. Francis of Assisi. We had two prayers circles in the classroom today with two of the 3/4 cohorts, and we will have another with the third tomorrow. These touch my Heart and Spirit in such deep ways. It is almost a week without Love when the Circle is missing. Mass was what it usually was--the sacred space to place your Heart on the altar with the offerings and prayers with all of us, Children of God. I am finding my spiritual path leading to a clear place and I am thankful. I have been praying in the evenings with an old book I found in the Roosevelt neighborhood. It's entitled "Mantras for eventide". I just open a page and read, pray, ponder, and then...
I recently read most of a biography on Francis. What a human! I don't know what else to say. I don't resonate with most of what he said and did and simultaneously, I Believe that he "GOT" it--Brother Sun, Sister Moon, Brother Wolf, Sister Bird---Brothers and Sisters of the One and for the One. Called the "Little Pauper"--humiliated, starved, threatened, ridiculed, even despised by his own familia...his One Desire was to Live as His Lord...when it was time for him to die, he had his brothers in community take him outside, naked, and lay him on the cold, dark ground so he could leave this life as he came into it-unfettered, without accumulation, with simple faith, and on our mother Earth created by our Loving Source.
Most of what I wanted to say today has been forgotten in the course of this day. I always seem to get great ideas just before I head out in the morning. It flies away when I don't take a moment to jot a reminder..
Parent-teacher conferences are next week, For the first time in my career, I feel I have demonstrable data and information to share with the families of the students. I am enjoying preparing the pieces. Must make sure not to go overboard. I have also had a reality check lesson from yesterday. We are just teachers, just teachers. In the long run, we don't matter all that much. And still, I must and choose to act as if I AM important in the lives of these children. Without fail, I believe that there are no coincidences and that I have said a cosmic "Yes" or A-HO to do this work, with these children, in this Now. The next Now will be a different Work and a different Child. ( I am going to say here that I sense the Child for me was born on Sept. 15th of this year--just a hunch, and a Dream, and huge wishful thinking!:)...Sister Moon will be full this Saturday. It is supposed to rain some more. The children continue to work on their woodworking projects. Some began the weaving of colors today that, for them, represent the colors of Faith, Hope, Love, and Mercy...."Where there is hatred, let me sow Love..."
posted by MihErn @ 8:01 PM
2 Comments:
At 10:06 PM,
About Me said…
How appropriate, then that one of the pieces we worked on tonight is based on the St. Francis text. You'll hear it in December when you come to the concert. We'll have two of them by then, based on his words.
At 7:17 AM,
MihErn said…
Oh Diva, sounds wondrous. See you soon, E-
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