The best walks come with wagging tails and happy trails. -Unknown

My morning walk with my dog is a sacred element to my daily routine. The active steps in nature, focused without the distractions of technology, and the time to reflect upon my day ahead frees me to begin each day as refreshed and focused as I can be. I’ve read enough on mindfulness to understand, and appreciate, how healthy this ritual is for me, from both a physical and spiritual perspective.

Yesterday, as my dog Bingo politely nudged me with her nose each time she wanted a treat, I was struck by the reminder of how frequently God also nudges me to make me aware of God’s presence. Of course, I know Bingo is there, walking alongside me…yet even throughout our walk I can become distracted by my own thoughts, the music I am listening to, or even that which is right in front of me.

Perhaps my Lenten invitation is to pay more attention to these gentle nudges from God, especially throughout the ups and downs of my life. How can we recognize God’s presence alongside us, amidst the distractions and everyday realities? Hopefully this below quote from The Gift of Peace will assist us; I’ve enjoyed reading these reflections this week. Blessings on your week ahead!

When the hand of God’s purpose enters my life, however, it is usually not from the front, as I have always expected, but from the side, in murmurs and whispers that not only surprise but soon empty me beyond anything I could imagine. -Joseph Cardinal Bernardin

God protects us from nothing but sustains us in everything. -Greg Boyle, SJ

In the Catholic tradition, yesterday marked the Feast Day of Saint Joseph the Worker. Ever since I had a transformative experience as a college student at Saint Joseph’s University, the example of Saint Joseph as a family person, committed to his faith, and dedicated to his trade, has always inspired me. I am pleased to share this simple reflection below, from the Franciscan Mission Associates, as a testament to his example. Blessings on your week ahead!

Glorious St. Joseph,

You gave your life to humble labor,

Guiding and protecting the Holy Family

With faithfulness, strength, and unwavering trust in God.

We honor you as a model of diligence and integrity.

Through your tireless work,

You teach us the dignity and purpose of human labor,

And remind us that our daily toil, when offered to God,

Becomes an act of love and service.

Help us to follow your example in our work,

Performing our tasks with patience, commitment, and joy.

Intercede for us, that we may always respect the rights

And dignity of workers everywhere.

St. Joseph, protector of all who labor,

Pray for us, that we may imitate your life of faithful service

And always seek to glorify God in our work.

Amen.

Character is not measured by how many times we fall down. It is truly measured by the manner by which we lift ourselves up, each and every time. -Unknown

This week I’m finding this below reflection on the pilgrimage of life to be one that resonates with me. I also love this Christian song, “One Day at a Time,” that I share below. Blessings on your week ahead!

Pilgrim People

We are a pilgrim people. Your pilgrim road might be cobbled and worn or it might be full of potholes, sinkholes, or broken concrete, but all of us walk this pilgrim road together.

On this pilgrim road, believe that . . .

Who you are is enough.

You carry the spark of divine love within you.

You are loved just as you are.

You are a gift.

You matter.

You are precious.

You are a beloved child of God.

—Excerpted from Braving the Thin Places by Julianne Stanz

“[Lent] is not just about giving up our favorite food but it’s about going further and giving up things like hatred and unforgiveness.” -Amanda Jobs

With this week’s commencement of the Lenten season in our Catholic tradition, I share a few resources that have spoken to me from two of my favorite Jesuits, our pastor and our Pope. I hope for a reflective time ahead to thoughtfully prepare for the glorious Easter season that awaits…I’ll definitely be ready by then!! Blessings on your week ahead.

“Lent is a time when we admit to God, ‘I need you.’ Lent is about generosity, so let us say thank you….accompany someone, and listen to them. Look through the eyes of faith and we will see that Lent is a journey through generosity….the generosity of God to ourselves, and the generosity of ourselves to others. Let us pray for sincerity of heart, and pray for how we can lift up others. Let us allow God to touch us and shake us…Lent is about bringing us closer to God.”

– Alejandro Baez, SJ, St. Agnes Church, San Francisco

A Prayer at the Beginning of Lent

As we embark upon this season of Lent, let us pray that we embrace the opportunity to:

Fast from hurting words and say kind words.
Fast from sadness and be filled with gratitude.
Fast from anger and be filled with patience.
Fast from pessimism and be filled with hope.
Fast from worries and have trust in God.
Fast from complaints and contemplate simplicity.
Fast from pressures and be prayerful.
Fast from bitterness and fill our hearts with joy.
Fast from selfishness and be compassionate to others.
Fast from grudges and be reconciled.
Fast from words and be silent so we can listen.

We ask our Loving God to bless us with God’s peace, God’s joy, and God’s love.
– Attributed to Pope Francis

When picking up the pieces of a shattered reality, love is an absolutely vital place to start. -Tariq Trotter

Life has thrown us a few curveballs in recent weeks so we are working hard to keep our pace and our perspective. I’m enjoying reading The Upcycled Self by Tariq Trotter, of the hip-hop band “The Roots.” Our family camping trip the weekend before last sustains us through our current adventures.

Today I share a few reflections that have supported my learning this week. I hope they add to your approach to today. The music video from the Grateful Dead is one of my all-time favorites. Blessings on your week ahead!

“When we live fearlessly in faith, we grow closer to the miracle that Jesus’ love is among us…No matter our village or countryside, Jesus’ love is offered within our reach.” -Fr. Ronald Patrick Raab

Prayer for Today’s Educator

Blessed are those who seek knowledge with humble hearts,
who teach with patience and lead with love.
Response: Guide us, Lord, in Your wisdom and truth.

Your word, O Lord, is a lamp to our feet,
a light guiding our path of learning and growth.
Response: Guide us, Lord, in Your wisdom and truth.

Grant us understanding to inspire young minds,
and courage to nurture hope in every heart.
Response: Guide us, Lord, in Your wisdom and truth.

May our teaching reflect Your justice and mercy,
leading all we serve closer to You.
Response: Guide us, Lord, in Your wisdom and truth.

Belonging must be a birthright for all and a global norm to which we can orient our world building. -John A. Powell

This has been one of those weeks where I am able to appreciate how small our world can be. I enjoyed an amazing past weekend with my brother from New Jersey, am settled back in with family this week while prepping for a garage renovation project, and head off tomorrow for a day trip to a school in Southern CA. God continues to bless me with community and life-giving relationships, which is a gift that I treasure.

I recently finished a book on the topic of belonging, The Power of Bridging: How to Build a World Where We All Belong, by John A. Powell. A preview of it can be read about here in this article, “Can We Build a World Where We All Belong?” I don’t think that the timing of this article and this book could be better in terms of what our society needs….I pray for unity and healthy discourse, but most importantly I pray for those who are most vulnerable. Here’s a quote from his book that I appreciate in light of our current reality: “Bridging recognizes the need for a larger and unfolding story that holds our aspirations for a shared future based on belonging, not fear and separation” (p. 21).

One more quote from me to share before signing off, I hope you enjoy it. Let us trust in God and one another. Blessings on your week ahead!

Take the Plunge

“We can come to a closer experience of God if only if only we take the risk, or undertake the adventure, of throwing ourselves into God’s unfathomable depths, trusting that God will give us buoyancy and life.” -Fr. Anthony J. Gittins, The Way of Discipleship

We are called to do the ordinary with faithfulness and it is God who makes it extraordinary. -Saint Theresa of Calcutta

Happy to share this prayer that came into my inbox today. I feel like we need this helpful reminder from time to time. Blessings on your week ahead and Go Eagles!

Pray for Peace

Pray to whomever you kneel down to:
Jesus nailed to his wooden or silver cross,
his suffering face bent to kiss you,
Buddha still under the bo tree in scorching heat,
Adonai, Allah. Raise your arms to Mary
that she may lay her palm on our brows,
to Shekhinah, Queen of Heaven and Earth,
to Inanna in her stripped descent.

Then pray for the bus driver who takes you to work.
On the bus, pray for everyone riding that bus,
for everyone riding buses all over the world.
If you haven’t been on a bus in a long time, 
climb the few steps, drop some silver and pray.

Waiting in line for the movies, for the ATM,
for your latte and croissant, offer your plea.
Make your eating and drinking a supplication.
Make your slicing of carrots a holy act,
each translucent layer of the onion, a deeper prayer.

To Hawk or Wolf, or the Great Whale, pray.
Bow down to terriers and shepherds and Siamese cats.
Fields of artichokes and elegant strawberries.

Make the brushing of your hair
a prayer, every strand its own voice,
singing in the choir on your head.
As you wash your face, the water slipping
through your fingers, a prayer: Water,
softest thing on earth, gentleness
that wears away rock.

If you’re hungry, pray. If you’re tired.
Pray to Gandhi and Dorothy Day.
Shakespeare. Sappho. Sojourner Truth.

When you walk to your car, to the mailbox,
to the grocery store, let each step
be a prayer for our legs,
that we do not intentionally hurt anyone else’s legs.
And if you are riding on a bicycle
or a skateboard, in a wheelchair, each revolution
of the wheels a prayer as the earth revolves:
less harm, less harm, less harm.

And as you work, typing with a new manicure,
a tiny palm tree painted on one pearlescent nail,
or delivering soda or drawing good blood
into rubber-capped vials, or twirling pizzas–

With each breath in, take in the faith of those
who have believed when belief seemed foolish,
who persevered. With each breath out, cherish.

Pull weeds for peace, turn over in your sleep for peace,
feed the birds, each shiny seed
that spills onto the earth, another second of peace.
Wash your dishes, call your mother, drink wine.

Shovel leaves or snow or trash from your sidewalk.
Make a path. Fold a photo of a child in need
around your Visa card. Scoop your holy water
from the gutter. Gnaw your crust.
Mumble along soundlessly, stumbling
your prayer through the streets.

People do well…when they can. -Mel Robbins

Last week I led a workshop for a school Board of Trustees that faces significant decisions on the horizon. We discussed the value of discernment and viewing challenges through the eyes of faith. A framework I suggested is the story of Jacob wrestling with God, in Genesis 32: 22-31. Jacob spent a long night wrestling with an angel (God), leading toward a blessing in the morning. In fact, he was even re-named Israel, which is translated to mean “one who wrestles with God,” or even, “God perseveres.” I pray for such perseverance these days!

At dinner last night, our conversation developed from an interesting starting point of: “If you had to be tortured to death, which torture method would you choose?” toward a more serious tone of praying intentions for classmates in need, family members who are sick, and those who are anxious or afraid. After initially inquiring of my kids, “what movies are you watching on TV?!?,” I moved on to affirm them in their compassion and thoughtfulness. The complexities of the teenage brain- and heart- continue to astound..and perplex…and at times, inspire me.

This week I share a few points of reflection that have brought meaning to my days thus far. Blessings on your week ahead!

“Our prayer is one of hope that, as a Nation blessed with many gifts, our actions demonstrate a genuine care for our most vulnerable sisters and brothers, including the unborn, the poor, the elderly and infirm, and migrants and refugees.” – Archbishop Timothy P. Broglio, president of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) 

“The sacrifice of love widens our embrace of those whom God asks us to serve…we are not alone. Look around and see how many are seated in the circle at Chris’s feet. God alway gives us the ones we need.” -Laura Kelly Fanucci

“Just for today, I will try to let go of my need for control, to become aware of when I need help, and to ask for help when I need it. Just for today, I give myself permission to cry when I’m sad, to scream when I’m frustrated, to smile and laugh when I’m happy, and to dance like I’ve got wings when the Spirit moves me.”
—Chanequa Walker-Barnes 

Don’t judge. Don’t put people in a box….just give them a chance to a dream a little bit. -Andy Reid

It is an exciting time to be a football fan if you’re a Philadelphia enthusiast like myself. Last night I read this above quote ( from Why a simple 3 x 5 notecard with two words explains Andy Reid’s leadership style) by former Eagles coach Andy Reid that I found to be timely. Also pasted below are a few other reflective nuggets from my recent readings. Blessings on your week ahead!

Our Shared Calling, Rachel Held Evans

Whenever we show others the goodness of God, whenever we follow our Teacher by imitating his posture of humble and ready service, our actions are sacred and ministerial.

Listen to the Deepening Places, Sr. Macrina Wiederkehr, OSB

If today you hear God’s voice . . .

Learn to listen! The voice inviting you is voiceless. Most ancient of all voices. Enticing voice without words. Listen from within the cells of your being. From the marrow of your bones, listen. From the deepest source of your life, listen. A holy vibration, a gentle movement, a persistent tugging—summons you into the deepening places.

Learn to go deep! Like waves of the sea you are being pulled back into the depth. Embrace the depths. Deep calls unto Deep. There is a depth in you to which you must return. Most silent of all calls. A voice without words calls you to the deepening places.

Learn to abide! Remain in Christ as Christ remains in you. Be like a sponge. Soak up the Word of God. Absorb it. Make the Word your home. Live in the Word. Abide. Dwell. Inhabit. Reside. Trust the deepening places.

Learn to be silent! Silent as the leaves that fall, silent as the blossoming flowers, silent as the moment before dawn. You are being summoned into the temple of silence. Practice silence, for this voiceless voice can be heard only in the shrine of silence. You are being chosen for the deepening places.

Dream a little before you think. -Toni Morrison

This week I share some words of wisdom on the power of prayer, from Julian of Norwich. These pearls of wisdom made their way into my inbox today, as a reflection for Mark’s Gospel, first chapter, versus 29-39. Enjoy and blessings on your week ahead!

“Very early before dawn, Jesus… went off to a deserted place, where he prayed”

Prayer unites the soul to God, for though the soul may be always like God in nature and in substance restored by grace… Then prayer is a witness that the soul wills as God wills, and it eases the conscience and fits us for grace. And so Jesus teaches us to pray and to have firm trust that we shall have it; for Jesus beholds us in love, and wants to make us partners in his good will and work..And so the soul by prayer is made of one accord with God.
…For the whole reason why we pray is to be united into the vision and contemplation of God to whom we pray, wonderfully rejoicing with reverent awe, and with so much sweetness and delight in God that we cannot pray all except as God moves us at the time. And well I know that the more the soul sees of God the more she desires God by grace.