Tag: Peace

Posted in Life and Death

Rest in Peace

Posted on by Neal Saye

So today I took down (a tad sadly) our Travel Tree.

If you have followed my little blog for a while (and why on earth would you not?), you may remember that Robert and I have a second, smaller Christmas Tree which we call our Travel Tree. All the ornaments are ones we have purchased on our various travels.

As I cleared the little white tree, my eyes kept resting on a couple of simple ornaments.

And I didn’t want to hurriedly take them off. So I let them hang around a while longer.

HR and I have visited Plains, GA, hometown of Jimmy and Rosalynn Carter, a couple of times, appreciating the small town that birthed such a tremendously kind and humanitarian couple.

May President Carter, as he is being laid to rest this evening next to his beloved Rosalynn, finally Rest in Eternal Peace, after a long life well lived.

Posted in Holiday Joy, Peace

Taize Four: “Living Water”

Posted on by Neal Saye

Tonight was the fourth and final Taize service at our church, Asbury Memorial, in Savannah. Next on the Christian liturgical calendar is this weekend’s Palm Sunday.

(Here’s a link to my first post about Taize, with a bit of explanation about what it’s all about: https://nealenjoy.com/2024/02/28/taize/)

Tonight’s final service was again splendidly simple and peace filled.

The emphasis was upon Living Water.

From the order of service:

“After Pope John Paul Il visited the ecumenical, monastic Taizé community in France in 1986, he said:

One passes through Taizé as one passes close to a spring of water. The traveler stops, quenches his thirst, and continues on his way. The brothers of the community do not want to keep you.

They want, in prayer and silence, to enable you to drink the living water promised by Christ, to know his joy, to discern his presence, to respond to his call, then to set out again to witness to his love and to serve your brothers and sisters in your parishes, your schools, your universities, and in all your places of work.

So come into this place of peace & let its silence heal your spirit;

Come into this place of memory & let its history warm your soul;

Come into this place of prophecy & power & let its vision change your heart.”

CHANT: Let all who are thirsty come. Let all who wish receive the water of life freely. Amen. Come, Lord Jesus. Amen. Come, Lord Jesus.

May the peace that passeth understanding, the peace of God, which the world can neither give nor take away, be among us, and abide in our hearts. Amen.

Posted in Christmas Countdown 2023

Countdown to Christmas: 12/1/23 — “Look Out the Window”

Posted on by Neal Saye

For some reason, I came up with the idea of trying to find a nontraditional Advent Calendar this year as a way to honor the season. I have enjoyed various types and styles over the years.

whychristmas.com

I finally found online a mindfulness Advent Calendar in the format of 25 cards, each with a short meditation.

It just came in the mail! See?

On the front of each card is a cute little picture.

And on the back are the instructions for the short mindfulness practice.

Robert and I both started it today, with the first meditation, “LOOK OUT THE WINDOW.”

I chose our second floor hallway window.

Oops, let’s wait till that car goes by.

That’s better.

I invite you to join us on this Countdown to Christmas 2023 starting today and leading up to the 25th.

Here are easier-to-read instructions for day one’s little meditation.

It’s the first day of Advent! How Christmassy do you feel? Whether your answer is “very” or “not at all’, the big day is hurtling towards us and there will already be several indications of that fact outside.

Let’s get things started with this mindful seeing exercise. Sit by a window for 5 minutes and just look out.

First: can you see anything that signifies Christmas? Is there frost on the ground? Are there lights and decorations anywhere? Focus on these things. Do they increase your festive anticipation? Are there any signs of Christmas that you have never noticed before? What thoughts and emotions do they evoke?

Next: channel all your awareness into all the other things you can see. Avoid simply labelling things and moving on; for each object, no matter how familiar, observe the shape, the colour, the patterns and the texture.

Notice how the elements interact with the environment, e.g. how the wind blows the branches in the trees.

Try to imagine the view from the perspective of someone who has never seen such sights.

This exercise will help you see and appreciate your local environment and realise just how busy and complex it is.

I was so surprised at what I saw — when I mindfully looked — out that window. Decorations that I had somehow missed in Charles and Faye’s yard across the street, a little bird in the Live Oak tree, a red car, a family on the sidewalk with the toddler skipping, resurrection fern on the tree branches, dust on the window panes ….

See you tomorrow!