on the Pilgrimage

The Difference a Day Makes ... or 12 of Them We are in unprecedented times .. for our time, anyway. We, who have become accustomed to living as 'I' see fit, and disregard anyone that does not fit 'my' way of thought ... we, as a globe, have been brought to our knees. Within a month, or less, an international pandemic has become the reality for everyone, except Antarctica (at this time). Our world will never be what it once was. The thing is, this is not the first world pandemic and not the first time everything has come to a halt. It's just the first time in about 100 years. And what a wake-up call it is! I should have started to document this when I first heard about 'something' in China. In December 2019. Then, I remember hearing something in the new year about a cruise ship that was infected. And then the reports throughout the world became more frequent. China, Italy, Iran, and now Switzerland all are in dire straights. For a long time, the USA was repo...

Changing your life is not easy. Old habits can be very entrenched in the day to day living. What do they say - a new habit can be made in 20 days, but it takes a lifetime to break them? Well, I'm not even sure about that. I have a couple of books on habits ... maybe I should read them and see what they share with me.  Look for a review later on The Power of Habit by Charles Duhigg and Gretchen Rubin's Better Than Before. I own them both but have yet to read them. This last week has been a challenge ... it seems that has become the title for my life - "A Challenge"! ... and yet I look at the stories of others and I know mine is ... well, it's mine. And I don't think it would be right of me to compare mine with others. That would also mean that mine is for me to manage, to deal with, to overcome, and to build upon, right? I did sit and reflect on those words for Lent 2020 that I put forth last time - Sacrifice, Reflection, Contemplation, Preparation. And here...

I wish I had thought about this sooner and marked this year with contemplation through the liturgical season. I sort of started ... but it never registered to become a conscious journey.  Until today. Last week (February 25) marked Shrove Tuesday ... and then Ash Wednesday, to begin the 40 days. Today is 35 more days, and I think I can still do something and make these days count for something. I remember when I fasted with Pathways (see here  for the experience), and I learned that fasting is not only the removal of food but a conscious replacement with prayer. Lent is a time for reflection and preparation by replicating the sacrifice and withdrawal into the desert for these days.  Perhaps this is a good time to embark upon what I need to embark upon .. Before Christmas, I made a rather significant discovery of self. In part, it has to do with cleaning, but it also has to do with preparing for death, for living this next chapter in fullness of what is possible. It seemed...