The sun will soon be rising as I begin my drive south
My heart is full of many emotions
I decided to make one last visit to Mom
Little did I know that her wild companions would be here to greet me
It somehow makes it easier
Leaving here and hitting the road
I pray for good weather and smooth driving
As I head to Alabama and my beloved Denise
Lord grant me safe travels I pray
And now, as always, I life this humble prayer to you
Dona Nobis Pacem
Grant Us Peace
A wee morning prayer from your Padre…
The sun has set and the Vesper Lights flicker and glow
It has been a long day, Lord
A time to travel
A time to meet with medical staff
A time to enjoy my Dad’s company
A time to simply Be Still
Now as I prepare for sleep
As I prepare for the journey to Alabama tomorrow
May your Angels watch over Denise, our Dads, and me as I travel
For your many gifts I give you thanks
Now as my eyelids grow heavy
I lift this humble prayer to you
Dona Nobis Pacem
Grant Us Peace
A wee prayer from the heart of your Padre…
“Gandhi’s legacy is a legacy of love, compassion, and sacrifice. In the 1970s, in response to deforestation, women in the women’s movement started hugging the tress, saying, ‘You will have to kill us before you cut the trees.’ In 1981 we had a terrible flood, and a four-mile lake was formed because of deforestation, and after that, finally, the women were listened to. Gandhi’s Salt March was so imaginative, so inspirational. Unjust laws are meant to be disobeyed, to create a moral order. Dr. King and Mandela used the same philosophy. Gandhi shifted the mind of the world. Environmentalists started to do with forest what Gandhi did with salt. A huge forest satyagraha campaign was started.”—Vandana Shiva
Verse of the day
Arise, shine; for your light has come, and the glory of the Lord has risen upon you.
– Isaiah 60:1
Voice of the day
we are all born / so beautiful / the greatest tragedy is / being convinced we are not
– Rupi Kaur, milk and honey (2015)
Prayer of the day
i thank You God for most this amazing / day:for the leaping greenly spirits of trees / and a blue true dream of sky;and for everything / which is natural which is infinite which is yes – E.E. Cummings
“God is felt in the places of pain and sorrow, in the places of paradox and contradiction.”
—Christine Valters Paintner, PhD,Desert Mothers and Fathers: Early Christian Wisdom Sayings Annotated and Explained
How have pain and sorrow been a part of your spiritual journey?
The sun has set and the Vesper Lights flicker and glow
It has been a long and emotionally draining day, Lord
Yet in the midst of it there was profound sharing and love
As we walk with our fathers through this challenging time
Give us grace to see the light in the midst of the Valley of the Shadows
Give us compassion to walk with them despite the challenges
Give us strength to support, love, and encourage
Now as my eyelids grow heavy
I lift this humble prayer to you
Dona Nobis Pacem
Grant Us Peace
A wee prayer from the heart of your Padre…
Verse of the day
“Whoever is faithful in a very little is faithful also in much; and whoever is dishonest in a very little is dishonest also in much.” – Luke 16:10
Voice of the day
True heroism is remarkably sober, very undramatic. It is not the urge to surpass all others at whatever cost, but the urge to serve others at whatever cost. – Arthur Ashe
Prayer of the day
Empower me
to be a bold participant,
rather than a timid saint in waiting,
in the difficult ordinariness of now. – Ted Loder
“As people heard about the wisdom of those entering the desert, many people followed these ammas and abbas, seeking them out, asking them for wisdom and guidance for a meaningful life.”
—Christine Valters Paintner, PhD,Breath Prayer: An Ancient Practice for the Everyday Sacred will be published by Broadleaf Books on October 12th
What question are you bringing to the ammas and abbas in your spiritual search for a meaningful life?
I shared the quote below from Thomas Merton on July 26, 2021. Once again or spoke to my heart today.
God, Who is everywhere, never leaves us. Yet He seems sometimes to be present, sometimes to be absent. If we do not know Him well, we do not realize that He may be more present to us when He is absent than when He is present. — No Man Is an Island (p. 250)
This has been a difficult week for Denise, her brother, and me as we walk this journey with our Dads. To be honest, I have felt the “absence” of God a lot this week. Yet my friend, brother, and mentor, Fr. Louis (Thomas Merton’s chosen name when he joined the monastery, The Abbey of our Lady of Gethsemani) has spoken to me often in the midst of darkness and struggle.
I am thankful for the community of faith, who continues to walk with us through the Valley of the Shadows. So many are praying with us and for us. So many are on this journey with us.
Not only is God present when She may feel absent to me; She is fully present in my dear family of faith ❤️
For this communion of Saints I am forever grateful! You are present to us, O God, in the Communion of Saints❣️🌹
…Merton’s point is that war is rarely — if ever — the right answer to the world’s problems. If we didn’t see that in Vietnam when Saigon fell after more than 10 years of American involvement and the loss of 55,000 U.S. soldiers and countless Vietnamese lives, perhaps we can see it now in Afghanistan where two decades of war has caused the deaths of an estimated 100,000 Afghan citizens, American and coalition troops, and militant fighters.
— Read on judithvalente.medium.com/what-thomas-merton-can-help-us-understand-about-the-afghan-crisis-9b3ffd10c67e
