Internal or External?
Sunday, February 28, 2010 at 6:35 PM 
Pondering. Resting. Sleeping. Reading. Considering others. Caring for myself. All of these things seem to be the rhythm of my Lenten days. An internal air continues to hover around me and as I just responded to a lovely post at Barefoot Toward the Light, I realize this quiet space feels just right for now. Different for me, but somehow just right.
It has been a simple weekend filled with walks and lots of rest. I've taken care of the few "have to's" on my list and spent the rest of the time tending to relationship - sometimes with my family, often with God, always with me. It feels necessary and good.
In the midst of the internal space, I also received two very outward reminders of my presence in the world which were delightful indeed. Yesterday, I received my very own copy of Awakening the Creative Spirit - a fantastic new book by Christine Paintner and Betsey Beckman, two of my dear friends and colleagues. I highly recommend it for anyone interested in the arts and becoming "fully awake" as today's Lenten verse* highlights. The exciting news for me is that I am the co-writer of Chapter 15 on "Arts-Centered Supervision". You can only imagine my delight to see my authorship officially acknowledged on page 197 (as well as a few other places throughout the book!)
The other 'outward reminder' can be found in visual form where you catch a glimpse of me as spiritual director in this PBS episode on religion. I show up around minute two with my most compassionate face and listening ears. Don't blink or you'll miss my adult TV debut! Seriously, it's a great video covering the topic of spiritual direction. I hope you'll go take a peak!!
OK, that's all I have to share for now. Time to huddle back up with hot tea and my Kindle!
P.S. I'd love to know how your Lenten season is progressing.
*Luke 9:28-36
Shilshole Sailboats - 2.20.10 © lucy
Books, Lent, Spirituality
Reader Comments (11)
How exciting!! Congratulations!:)
Yay, yay, yah - I am so thrilled for you. THe video version doesn't seem to want to work right this minute for me but that does not curb my congratulations!!!!
xoxoxoxo
woohoo on your TV debut
congrats on the chapter co-write too
I have finally managed to order a copy of this book - Amazon UK didn't have one before now and I was getting snippy! It will be doubly precious to me now I know you co-wrote that chapter.
What a nice glimpse of your face, and I loved the video. It always moves me when I see this sort of interfaith interaction - for example between the Rabbi and the Sufi Sheikh - I always ask myself why there's such discord.
Enjoy your quiet.
Lucy, great to see you with your colleagues in the video, and so many older people doing spiritual direction, a way to put all that life experience into giving.
When I was in my 40's I had some years of activist spiritual direction, in which my director (in her '60's) asked me to accompany her to various events, encompassing a wide range of situations, including a protest against nuclear armaments where we were both arrested and jailed. But also sacred music concerts, a one-woman play on Julian of Norwich, a meeting once a month while we worked in a soup kitchen and lots of other stuff, sometimes just long walks through city streets. I think overall her point was not just to think about it, but to put spiritual direction into practice.
thank you all for your uproarious support!!
tess - yes, i love the interfaith interactions on the video. the site where they filmed that is walking distance from my home :-)
so, glad you didn't blink and saw my face. funny thing, the SDI director apologized for me not making it onto the video. she blinked:-) xoxo
kigen - wow! that was some kind of spiritual direction experience you had. i am all for experiential learning, and that takes it to a whole new level. something to ponder.
And I did manage to get the video rolling this a.m.....and I did not blink so I remain still impressed by my celebrity relationship!:)
xoxo
Lucy, Your weekend sounded just heavenly! I love the gentle rhythm that you are expressing in your blog here. I am pulled in the same direction, but I have been slow in settling down into it. It is finally coming now I think. A slowness and a depth that I am longing for.
I think that you were on screen for a good two seconds so it was much longer than a blink! : )
Don't know when my "Awakening" book will arrive. Betsey emailed a few weeks ago and said that contributors were getting free books and that I was one of them. I just wrote a page or two about my experiences at the retreat two years ago. Maybe the book is on its way. I'm so excited!
Love...
Lucy!! Congratulations!! My wife and i DVR'ed this Religion and Ethics episode and watched it last night. When i heard Seattle i just had a feeling that you were part of it. I must have blinked so i didn't catch you...but i did recognize the interfaith church from a picture you posted a while back. I think it was a drumming thingy? My intuition was right. This is very exciting. Hugs to you and hubby.
Pax
Brett
It is a wilderness of depth, and the type of depth requires solitude, patience, longing, love. It is hard, and it is beautiful.
There are so many things to be excited about in this post...the book, and PBS and all that I'm growing to learn and understand about Spiritual Direction. WOW.
Thank you for a WONDERFUL POST.
Thank you again for your collaboration in this book and for all the ways you partner with me to bring the spirit to life!