I Am

A few days ago, I was revising the part of the blog that tells about me.  I said I was a retired social worker and a spiritual journeyer.  Later I thought, "I can define myself in many other ways:  wife, mother, grandmother and so forth.

This time of year we hear from scriptures, particularly the Prophets, many names for God:

Root of Jesse
King of David
    Rising sun
    King of the nations
    Immanuel

And those terms made so famous by Handel:

Wonderful Counsellor, the Mighty God, the Everlasting Father, the Prince of Peace.
(Isaiah 9:5)

These arw only a few of the ways that God, Yahweh, the Holy One is defined.  Each one provides another facet of Who God is.  I would add several:

Mother, Spirit, Brother, Sister, Friend, Lover, Protector

And all summed up, I think, in I AM.  Remember - “tell them I AM sent you.”

Which description comes closest to how you know and relate to God, to Jesus?  Which one the most often?  Which ones, other times?  I most relate to God as Friend.  At times, God is my challenger; other times, my refuge, my strength, my counselor.

Since we are created in the image of God, I think it must also be a holy exercise to recognize and embrace OUR many names, too; our multiple roles and identities.

I Am: 

Child of God, Woman/Girl/Female, Daughter, Sister, Friend, Student, Wife, Lover, Mother, Grandmother, Creator, Listener, Observer, Learner, Teacher, Counselor,

Worshipper, Elder, Mildred/Millie/Mimi, Grammy             

    And the list could go on…

I think about the names that define me.  I consider this a holy exercise.  How do my names relate to those for God?  What is God calling me to in this season of Advent, in my life, as suggested in my various identities?  Are there some that need to be placed in the background so that others may flourish? Is there one that’s been hiding that I need to call forward and embrace?    I remember:  there is a season for everything, including our various roles.

I also think of how my various roles blend with others.  How we complement each other and work together.  How I respect our differences and our otherness.  How I listen.  How we, together in our corporate I amness create community.  How sometimes I clash with others and must work to respect them, to seek forgiveness and to forgive them - even those I must strongly disagree with or whose I amness seems really wrong to me.  I know that they all are made in the image of God.  We ALL are!

I'd love to have you share some of your own names; your I am...

And always, in all these ponderings, “I am because God is the great I AM!”

Happy Advent.

Pajamas

Good morning!

I love pajamas.  I mean, I really love pajamas.  I love them so much that, if I could, I would wear them all day, everyday.  I love them so much I actually do wear them all day some days and most of the day other days.  I’d love to have a collection of pj’s for every day of the month! Really!  I’d even settle for every day of the week!

In the picture above, I’m wearing my favorite pair. Can you tell that’s what I have on?  Do the roses give it away? They are silky and feel elegant. I’m wearing them with my pearls to celebrate Kamala Harris becoming the Vice President of the United States.  Quite an occasion. One that certainly deserved such elegance.  Right?

I can only wear these particular pajamas in the day time.  They are too warm to wear to bed. So maybe that makes them lounging pajamas.  Anyway, I feel a bit old Hollywood when I wear them.  I’ve worn them to Zoom meetings.

My next favorite pajamas are cotton with fun print capri bottoms and solid contrasting short sleeved tops.  I have two pair.  One has a white background  with pink cocktails; the other pair is turquoise with Eiffel Towers.  Both have pink tops.  They are old and now raggedy around the tie waists.  The tops are a bit stretched out.  They are NOT too hot to wear to bed and work in all seasons.  I add a soft, light hoody jacket (a slightly heavier one with fake fur around the hood in cooler weather) when I get up in the morning, thus they become a total outfit, fit for as long into the day as I choose to wear them. I’ll wear them until they completely fall off my body.  They are that comfortable. I don’t wear them to Zoom meetings.

This love affair with pajamas and wearing them all day began, I’m pretty sure, during the Time of Covid!  How much we learned from that time.  Coloring your hair, putting on makeup, wearing panty hose, getting all dressed up isn’t as as important as you seemed to make it in the past.  And it sure as heck is a lot less trouble and a lot more comfortable to stay in your pajamas all day.  I love the lessons from the Time of Covid.

What does this have to do with the season of Advent?  Shucks!  I’m trying to figure that out.  

Maybe it’s about keeping things simple and focusing on the truly important. Being comfortable with yourself, getting to know yourself in new ways, letting go of facades, learning to be more present to beauty and joy and the peace you find within.  Being more aware of and present to those closest to you.  Taking time to listen to good music, read your favorite kind of book, have a real conversation with that special person, be creative, get back in touch with that thing you use to love to do or always wanted to learn.  

Watching, waiting for the quiet voice that will always come.  

In your pajamas!

Quell Pen

This morning I received a gift during my time of meditation, a vision of a beautiful writing implement being placed in my hand, an exquisite quell pen.  I saw that the feather was a brilliant white, reaching out like the wings of an egret.  The writing tip was silver, ready to dip into the ink pot.   I held it as gently and with as much awe as if I were holding a precious jewel or a new born baby, maybe a baby bird or kitten.

This magical implement held the promise of something though of what I’m not quite sure.  Am I to take it as a call to begin writing again? To use my writing to bring hope and promise to others?  If this might be the message, I am giving it a try and we’ll see where it goes.

Yesterday was the beginning of Advent, the beginning of a new year in my faith tradition.  The calendar is fresh, the story of the unfolding year as yet to be recorded. We wait.  There is promise of coming change, of salvation for the world.  We cry Veni, Jesu!  Come Lord Jesus.  Come quickly. Dare we believe?  We’ve waited so long.  The promised one has not come quickly.  The world is so dark. How can we keep waiting and believing?

Look back to the times the Holy  has come to you in your ordinary past.  In times of pain and times of joy.  In darkness and in light.  In loss and in gift.  Hold these remembrances to your heart.  Veni, Jesu.

Now look forward while holding close these past times of fulfillment.  In the remembering you can embrace the promise of the new year ahead.  You can travel through Advent to Incarnation.  From birth to death.  From death to Resurrection and back to the New Year again.  Veni, Jesu.

So in this first week of Advent sing “Come thou long expected Jesus, light a candle, be a candle, recall the light in the darkness of the past and watch for the light coming to you in particular ways in the days ahead.  Maybe even in a vision of a Quell Pen.  And share with me your experiences. Veni, Jesu.