Nurturing Monday- A Ritual To Remember My Word

I'm a big believer in the way ritual can put us in connection with our spirituality. 

Sue Monk Kidd

In 2015 I wrapped up my black plastic word 'ribbistrate' in beautiful paper and returned it to my friend Jenni who made up the word and introduced me to it in a meeting of women. 

 Combining the word ribbies, which is baseball slang for a batted in run, and monstare, which means to show we get the meaning. It is  unparalleled joy. It can be for yourself or seeing the achievement of someone else.
In 2016 my word 'mindfulness' retired as my focus word but it stayed very much front and center as a way of being. 

This year 'nurture' is retiring with honors because the reminder to nurture has changed my view of what I can do. I thought is might be a call to serve others but it has also worked to give me permission to enjoy a beautiful sunrise, to pursue a goal for the sake of learning, and to take stock of what I nurtured subconsciously, perhaps to my detriment.

To say goodbye to my word I will move the painting from above the mantle to a new location. There is already a canvas waiting for paint, to hold next year's word. I'm waiting for mail from Colleen Attara to see how next year's word looks in red. Someone asked about buying the painting with the word 'nurture' but I'm not ready to let it go. It will be in a less dominant place but still influence my actions.

              What year end rituals do you have? Do you think about them before the holidays or just as the old year slips away?

To go to the overview of My Year of Nurturing click  here.

Nurturing Monday- Giving Myself A Look At The Facts

                             Just Give Me The Facts, Ma'm

With lights everywhere reflecting in windows and mirrors at Christmas time my thoughts move to reflecting back on my journey with the word 'nurture'. Today in this post I give you the facts.

• Nurture is an active word that invites connection.
• I nurture everyday in some way or another whether I am aware of not
• I turned my word around to explore the negative side. There are things I nurture which are not positive
• When I observed how I nurture I often discounted the action because it was easy
• To nurture a relationship, eye contact and time alone count 80% more than any other way of giving

• Nurturing good practices brings peace and contentment
• In April, I nurtured reality, or accepting things as they are, which proved to be challenging
• In March I nurtured the skill of giving a heartfelt apology. That changed my habit of saying, "I am so sorry, but......
• In November I nurtured the "wilderness" of doing scary things. I joined in with other writers and wrote everyday to try to write my first novel. I wrote 25,000 words and 19 chapters. Want to take a peek?

These are facts about how I have learned to use the word in 2017. 

To go to the overview of My Year of Nurturing click  here.

Nurturing Monday- The Gift That Lies Beneath The Surface

"If you have a good inner life, you don't get lonely. I've got a good imagination. I don't miss romance." 

Diana Rigg

This Nurturing Monday brings me to a new gratitude for the life within that is available to all who seek it. On the surface, the winds may be howling, creating turbulent movement that leaves us unsteady, but underneath our inner life can glow, beckoning us to return.

My life inside is made up of practices. I repeat them daily. There is prayer and meditation, in fact I came up with six habits that bring me happiness. Three of them fill my inner life. 

Pray, Study, and Create all furnish my cozy, inside nook. So how does my one little word fit in? Choosing one little word each year provides a focus and intention to use that word to move my inner life forward. When it is active and glowing that private life can grow up into my outward, public life. Turning outward toward others and serving is easier. Choosing self care of exercise and nutrition is easier. There are lulls, of, course. Some days I want to play hooky. All in all, my word nurture gently reminds me to return to practices that heal and rejuvenate. 

To go to the overview of My Year of Nurturing click  here.

Nurturing Monday- Thankful For My Imagination

Logic will get you from A to B. Imagination will take you everywhere. 

Albert Einstein

This morning I moved my writing corner from the couch to the kitchen table. I moved a lamp and flower pot within view so a could create a certain coziness. You see, the couch was giving me lower back pain. This is day 20 of NaNoWriMo, National Novel Writing Month, and I am still firmly committed to writing everyday. 

When I opened my e-mails today I found a pep talk by a NaNoWriMo author. "In the middle of the month you might hit quicksand," he wrote. "You will be tempted to quit because your plot line is stuck. But if you quit, your story will call to you and it will plead for you to finish. Keep going."

My characters do call to me to finish their story. I am so thankful that I have a tiny bit more imagination to keep them moving forward. Today they will meet a professor of music performance form Budapest who might turn out to be the killer or might give them the information to direct their investigation elsewhere. Who writes a murder mystery? Can't say I have any first hand knowledge but I do love Deborah Crombie and Jacqueline Winspear. Their detectives are my inspiration. If I can find as much excitement in my own novel as I do in theirs, I will be over the moon.

As the end of the year approaches I am thinking of the word 'enough' as my 2018 word but lately I'm inclined to embrace the word 'more'.

To go to the overview of My Year of Nurturing click  here.

Nurturing Monday- Loving Writing

The treasure I've discovered is a deeper love for writing.

Almost two weeks ago I made a quick decision to join National Novel Writing Month. A novel is a huge jump in my usual writing pursuits. I write for my blog but to try to write 50,000 words in one month is mind blowing. 
Fortunately, I have this One Little Word that is guiding me this year. The word is 'nurture'. Why not nurture this skill and jump in the deep?

When I reached 10,000 words, NaNoWriMo sent me an e-mail. You see, I log my words everyday on their internet site. The statement that somewhere in my words I've discovered treasure rang true. The treasure is the power of nurturing my intentions and following through. Even if my novel stinks, I will be pleased with the process of getting up each morning to write more about my own little world. 
    The main characters in my novel are two detectives who investigate the death of a piano teacher. Oh, you want to know more. Okay, just a peek.............Click here for a preview.

To go to the overview of My Year of Nurturing click  here.

Nurturing Monday- Thankful for My Word Of The Year

Some words expect us to chase them while others sit benevolently waiting to serve.

Choosing the word 'nurture' this year has really blessed my life. I am thankful for having a word that served me so well. It sub-divides easily into subjects. Right in January I made a list of things I wanted to nurture. Since it is a verb it opens up to action. 

 I am on the lookout for another word that will offer ways to grow and change. I was first attracted to OLW because it seemed like a fun activity. I liked joining Ali Edwards group of fellow 'worders". But, I found my words in years past to be elusive. I literally found myself trying to change to fit my word. So here is my dilemma. What word will serve me in 2018? What word will allow me to grow and naturally fi into my present life? I am on the lookout. 

To go to the overview of My Year of Nurturing click  here.

Nurturing Monday- Let Me Tell You About The Wilderness

There are ruts in the road where she dragged her feet.

 In these 31 Days of October I am unpacking my learning from the book, Braving The Wilderness, by Brené Brown. She has been a favorite author for years. In this new publication she manages to build a sidewalk and curb in the wilderness where we can bravely tread.

I did not want to move to the Northwest and leave my family home. It felt truly like a wilderness to me. No friends, no family, no memories, I was scared to stand alone. When my husband said there were ruts in the road where I was dragging my feet, he wasn't kidding. But the wilderness set me up on a path of inner trust and strength.

The wilderness is a metaphor used by "theologians, writers, poets, musicians, to represent everything from a vast and dangerous environment where we are forced to navigate trials to a refuge of nature and beauty where we seek space for contemplation. What all wilderness metaphors have in common are the notions of solitude, vulnerability, and an emotional, spiritual, or physical quest. "

When Jehovah brought the children of Israel out of Egypt he brought them into the wilderness. When Haggar was sent away from Abraham and Sarah, she went into the wilderness where she had her own experience with God. When Jacob wrestled with God it was in the wilderness. 

The wilderness is really a place of opportunity to know for yourself what you believe and for what you will stand. However unwillingly I have wandered there, I know it is a place of great personal growth. I much prefer being in the middle of a group where I belong but unfortunately many times in my life I feel out of place and lonely. 

Tomorrow I write about the quest for true belonging. 

                     Click here to go back to my table of contents to 
                                  see the other posts.

Nurturing Monday- Inviting My Students To Act

How do I invite my students to act instead of acting upon them?

It is nurturing Monday and this month I am exploring ways to nurture my students. Nurture is my word this year. I teach 7-8 year olds in church every Sunday. They are normal, active kids who often are bored out of their minds. We do way too much talking at them and less engaging their busy heads. 

   There is a message I want to give each week but I try to find ways to teach that message while they are involved. Journals allow me to get out the paper, pencils, scissors and glue to invite them to create something for themselves out of the message.

    Do you ever wonder how much your students recall from week to week? If you teach in any capacity you might want a new way to review material you have covered. Here is a fun way. I call it Scripture Man but you could call it anything. 

This game requires knowledge but luck is also a factor in winning. Here are the rules.

Make a list of 10 questions which have one word answers. 

Assign each question a grid coordinate, i.e.; A-7, B-10, F-12

Pass out the Scripture Man handout and have them fill out the grid with the little pictures. The coveted point is scripture man which they can only place once, worth 50 points. The dreaded points are the three bombs which would wipe out all the previous points they earn.

I ask the question and they write down their answer. When all have answered I tell them that if they answered correctly they could have all the points on the coordinates which were assigned to that question. For example; you may have all the points assigned to the star if you put it there on B-4.

Then we go on to question number 2, and ect.
After question 10 everyone adds up their points and the Scripture Man is rewarded, or just applauded.

Scripture Man Template and an older student version

  It is while I have them all engaged that I can teach extended principles. Children listen when they are invited to act for themselves. This isn't easy but each week I hope to nurture these children further.

To go to the overview of My Year of Nurturing click 

Support As A Product Of Nurturing

 Lend me your support. Hold me up, just for now.

Just like a product of peanuts is peanut butter, so support is a product of nurturing. I hope you don't have a nut allergy. My word of the year is "nurture" and I have learned much in nine months about how I nurture, what I nurture, and who I nurture. Nurture in 2017

In the month of September I chose to nurture my piano students. We had weeks of separation during the summer and as they come back to lessons I hear "this is hard" frequently. 

   Rather than feeling frustrated in losing skills I'm holding them up, just for now. With a bigger smile, an engaging game, a piece of music trivia to remember, or an honest admission that I lose skill too sometimes and I feel sad that what I could do easily is hard again, I hold them close. 
   I learned how to do that from God. He often just holds me up and lets me rest in the peace of knowing that he loves me. 

 I have been writing with the Five Minute Friday group for more than three years and I really enjoy the talented writers who share themselves each week.

Pacing My Work

       Nurturing my students  in September

My work is helping students to love the piano. My calling is to teach. Since grade school I desired to be a teacher. What I would teach and where was up in the air, even after college. Now, after 30 years, my calling is sure and my work clear. 

The month of August was a recovery month. I had a knee replacement so September requires a different pace. Hopefully my pace will be not too much slower but more deliberate. 

Right out of the gate I wanted a focus. Our work this fall as a studio will be to explore the Baroque period from 1600-1750. Being a court musician was serious work back then, ha! ha! What might be just old fashioned music is also intriguing style including dance, composing, and art. 

With the fancy wigs this week my pace will increase next week to digging into a Baroque piano piece, learning more about the times in Europe, and finding out how Bach stayed so popular for four hundred years.

I am so glad to be back to work.

 I have been writing with the Five Minute Friday group for more than three years and I really enjoy the talented writers who share themselves each week.

Nurturing Monday- Patience Rewarded

"The sea does not reward those who are too anxious, too greedy, or too impatient. One should lie empty, open, choiceless as a beach - waiting for a gift from the sea." 

Anne Morrow Lindbergh

One month has past since my right knee was removed and a new titanium prosthetic installed. August was a time of nurturing patience during healing. And now the healing is well established and I can celebrate.

The celebrations include having stamina to walk again. Walks without residual pain later, are truly wonderful. I'm discovering my neighborhood again, my favorite beach, and checking in with the sunrise at my looking place. 

It was truly a celebration when I went back to the Athletic Club, gingerly mounting the recumbent bicycle, my knee smoothly rotated with the pedals. 
I learned to get "back on the floor again" to stretch my body which was no small feat, let me tell you. It occurred to me when I first put that new knee on the floor that my blog title was taking on new meaning. 

 I came back to teaching my seven and eight year-olds at church. They may not have missed me but I missed their engaged faces which invigorate my soul. 

   These small celebrations of coming back to the ordinary joys of my life were achieved only after waiting, often choiceless in bed or on the couch. For me, the gift of patience was mindfulness. What beauty was before me, what sounds could I hear? Each day I wondered who I could reach out to. I invited friends to visit who I was too busy to see on a regular basis. They came for a few hours, here and there because I was free, unfettered by a schedule and overjoyed to see them. 

   As I go back to work next week I will adjust to being more intertwined with people each day. My piano students will come through my door with expectations and hopefully with prepared hands. Stay mindful, I will tell myself. Don't be too anxious or too greedy and perhaps miss the reward.

To go to the overview of My Year of Nurturing click 

Nurturing Monday- The Anatomy Of Patience Refined

Adopt the pace of nature: her secret is patience.

Ralph Waldo Emerson

Imagine yourself lying in a field where the tall grasses are swaying. The bees are buzzing, birds occasionally chiming in. Time is not relevant to the "now" of this field. Is the air of this natural moment active or passive? 

In my desire to nurture patience within, I want to unpack the components of patience further. First, I want to understand active patience. Not passive, I will endure this, patience, but active, alive patience.

In my thinking I found two verbs that seem to be part of my active patience, waiting and observing.

Waiting obviously requires patience. But, active waiting is hopeful and invites a curiosity needed to employ the second verb, observing. If you find yourself in a place of active patience, observing is a tremendous help. Instantly your state becomes mindful of "now". What am I observing "now"? Observation, in turn, invites perspective. Waiting in a doctor's office is less a waste of precious time but more an opportunity to be aware and open to interesting conversations, or the quieting of racing thoughts, or even the quality of breath.

  Two other words, not verbs, but adjectives, grow from active patience. Acceptance and calmness are on the right hand and left hand of active patience. 
    Going back to the doctor's office, what can you acquire from accepting that you have no control over the length of your visit? Longsuffering; having or showing patience in spite of troubles, especially those caused by other people. That dictionary definition is less harsh than the word itself. No one wants to suffer long but can we learn to trust ourselves more when we accept "what is"?
   So if you have been waiting, observing, accepting, chances are you have some moments of calm. Right? The calm when your breath gets slower and your tensions surrender. That is active patience, to me. It is active because I am choosing this path. I am not a victim but a trusting pilgrim wandering the landscape of patience. 

To go to the overview of My Year of Nurturing click 

Nurturing Monday- Patience

This moment will soon pass, and I will never have it back again.

This month I am using my word of the year, Nurture, to invite more patience into my life. Much of learning about patience is waiting. I am waiting for my scar from a knee replacement to heal. I am waiting to get permission to drive again after surgery. I am waiting to get my stamina back. I feel tempted to just let the time pass. But then I know I am letting a precious commodity go by unobserved. 

My struggle is to use this time to become an even better observer. While I waited in the doctor's office I invited myself to observe how others there were using their time. Two daughters were debating how to help their ailing mother as they waited for x-rays after a fall. I observed they used humor to offset their worry. I observed many individuals coming to surgery without a companion. They checked themselves in alone and I looked over at my husband who unselfishly took vacation time to be my caregiver. 

The knee on the right shows almost no cartilage to cushion the bones. The right knee show new parts with a nice cushion.

This is also a time for celebrating. My recovery is going smoothly and faster than I thought. I feel the strength in the new knee. Walking has a new joy, already. Going a little farther every day I rejoice in feeling less pain than before. Like opening a gate to more physical freedom, I pass through with attentiveness, knowing where I came from and where I am going.

    Soon enough I will be back in the whirlwind of life. I won't remember days without time constraints, but, hope to remember what I observed and who I was while I was waiting.

To go to the overview of My Year of Nurturing click 

Nurturing Monday- Anatomy of Patience

    When I try to take apart the word and definition of patience, "right now", seems to be unrelated.  Patience is imbued with waiting for something, not having it right now. Nevertheless, right now I am in recovery from a complete knee replacement. 

Beautiful flowers from friends grace my home. I have a small roaming area due to walking issues but I am anticipating growth, both physically and emotionally.  The month of August will be a chapter of my life entitled "Learning Patience". 

   

Patience can mean waiting, but there is much more to waiting than tapping our foot while time passes. Patience can also be about observing. Consider the patience of a detective who is observing the goings ons of others as she tries to piece together the facts. In observation there is possibility of finding meaning. 

This August I hope to unpack more of the anatomy of patience. I want to nurture it, value it, and make peace with this loaded word. 

To go to the overview of My Year of Nurturing click here.

Nurturing Monday- Choosing Patience To Heal

“A waiting person is a patient person. The word patience means the willingness to stay where we are and live the situation out to the full in the belief that something hidden there will manifest itself to us.” 

― Henri J.M. Nouwen

The hidden that I hope manifests itself is my ability to be patient with healing. Only three days until I get my old arthritic knee replaced with a titanium one. 

Recovery will be painful and fretful but it has a duration and the end result is less pain and more ability to be stable on my feet. 

  I cleaned the beside table and put some books, the surgical soap I need to shower with twice before I go to the hospital, and my trusty bear who waits better than anyone I know. 

My Manifesto of Patience

May I be at ease with those who want to help me.

May I remember that to allow others to help is recognizing our common humanity.

May I be familiar with pain but willing to cut it short.

May I push to bring movement into my new knee.

May I find joy in little things like, sun streaming in windows, flowers on the front porch, cloud formations, good books, and friends visiting to wish me well.

May I re-kindle the hope each morning that I will succeed.

To go to the overview of My Year of Nurturing click here.