I love Ginny's weekly "Yarn Along" but I don't seem to be keeping up much lately. I have such great plans to get to my blog but it doesn't happen. Oh, well, I'm here this week.
As you can see, I have quite a lot going on. One of my resolutions this year was to read more and that I have been doing. First of all, I am participating in two online book studies - Let. It. Go. by Karen Ehman over at Proverbs 31 and Prayer: Finding the Heart's True Home by Richard Foster over at encourage: bloom. Of course, I also have to read for fun and so I have an English mystery, Dead Simple by Peter James (an author suggested by a friend - the jury is out on what I think at this point) and Meet the Austins by Madeleine L'Engle. L'Engle is probably my favourite author of all time and since I have finished her four volume Crosswick Journals, I have been starting to read all of her fiction again. I've never read any of her Wrinkle in Time series (I have no interest in science fiction) but I love everything else she writes. I just finished A House Like a Lotus, which was my absolute favourite book as a teenager and happily, it stood the test of time and age for me. I have been combing Abebooks.com and am trying to pick up her books one by one used and now have the entire Austin family chronicles to enjoy.
Of the two studies, I have to say that Prayer has grabbed me much more, which is interesting as it is certainly the more challenging read. There's nothing wrong with Let. It. Go. - for some reason, though, I just haven't connected with it the same way. The chapter on mothering was good (once I got past the discipline portion - not Mrs. Ehmen's but that of some of her friends) but otherwise, I just haven't connected to it. Yes, I have some issues with being controlling but I do think that circumstances in the last few years have taught me, to a large degree, that I can only do so much and the rest I have to just accept. Sometimes, I think that being Canadian, there are aspects of American Christianity that just passes over me.
Prayer, on the other hand, has grabbed me in so many ways. To be honest, I didn't think it would be all that interesting. Prayer is not a strength of mine - being quiet and contemplative is not a natural thing for me, AT ALL. I have been working with Common Prayer: A Liturgy for Ordinary Radicals and doing twice daily prayer sessions but I was leaning toward thinking that was enough for now. Reading Prayer has totally change that for me. I am seeing how many different kinds of prayer that there actually is and that there are so many ways that I can make my prayer more meaningful. There are too many things that have grabbed me to write about them all here but one thing I thought I would share is that I am focusing more heavily on 1. times of solitude (and all of you mothers of young children realise just was a challenge that is) and having a prayer space. My desk, which belonged to my grandfather, is most definitely my place of contemplation. I LOVE this spot and while it may seem like chaos to other people, it is the place where I feel the most that I am me. I am also trying to focus more on Sacramental and Liturgical prayer and prayers of Adoration. I am going to work on memorizing and praying through various Psalms that really speak to me. I'm going to start with Psalm 8, which is the favourite of my father-in-law.
I've also, for a while, been focusing on gratitude. I just thought I would throw in this photo of my favourite mugs. My lovely and thoughtful friend got them for me in England and I love them. I have a "thing" for birds, especially in winter and I love the simple, English robins.
My knitting is very basic at the moment. We have friends whose 4 year old son just had very serious surgery. His story is theirs to tell but I fell in love with the idea of making him a blanket to wrap him in love. It's a simple set of garter stitch scarves made of blocks and sewn together. I just wish that I had more time to knit because it's working up much more slowly than I would like.
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