New and Old

It's Advent II and the Modern Suburbanite has turned philosophical as she is sometimes wont to do. We lit the second candle of our Advent wreath calling to mind our tradition. A new skinny frosted tree brings a little glamour into the scene. Now I don't think the birth of the Christ child was to usher in bling and tinsel. But maybe the neo-tree can remind me of Jeremiah saying that the Lord is doing a new thing. Let it be so in our hearts and world.

Blessings,

The ModSub

PPPST! October 2014

Welcome Intrepid Parents!
Happy Anniversary to us; it's been a year of learning and breathing together. What a blessing and an honor...

We met once again and started with a centering breath exercise taken from p. 107 of A Wing and a Prayer written by The Most Rev. Katharine Jefferts Schori, the Presiding Bishop of the Episcopal Church (and marine biologist/pilot). Presiding Bishop background The chapter is entitled, "A New Thing".

"Try this exercise. Close your eyes. Relax your body. Ease into your chair. As you breathe in, hear God saying to you, 'I love you.' As you let your breath go, focus on letting go with it something that binds you--an old hurt, a sin that's hard to forget, your frustration with your own or someone else's imperfection. As Jeremiah said, God has already forgotten it. God remembers only the promise. Even in the midst of our current global anxiety, God is doing a new thing."

What a comfort. God is doing a new thing. How does that relate to raising our children? Does that letting go allow for a moment of grace where we can "come to our senses" (a la the bereft prodigal son)? Katharine speaks of a "reckless love"-- a love that "doesn't count or reckon the cost". What does that mean for our children, our families, our communities? What does that mean for ourselves? Yikes! Big questions...

In the penultimate paragraph she writes, "That abundant life is ours for the asking, and the letting go. It's as close as our breath. The act of breathing is itself a small dying and invitation to new life. Letting go of our breath is a radical act of trust. It's a dying, but a dying for, so that we have room for a new breath."

Let us carry that around with us and try it on for size...

Peace,
The ModSub

11/9 is the Annual Meeting.
Date and time for our group TBD.

Dahlia etudes

Late summer bloomers, geometric and full of impact. Gotta go with the showy, splashy dahlia. Sure to bring on a smile...

PPPST! September 2014

Welcome back, Intrepid Parent to a new year of our small group for the Parents of Young Children at St. Patrick's. New year, new service times, new digs... We are now meeting on the second Sunday of the month in the Day School Library, which we have found to be light-filled and full of comfortable armchairs. Continental breakfast served after 9am service in the Great Hall; our group convenes at 10:10am-10:50am.

A quick review of ground rules for the health and growth of our small band:
    Confidentiality expected and respected-- these are closed door sessions to promote sharing.
    Let's be quick to listen and slow to speak-- everyone should feel like there are opportunities to share what's on their hearts.
    We refrain from unsolicited advice giving. Beginning somewhere
    We leave our judging attitudes and negativity at the door. We bring our open hearts and minds to share.

This session we read aloud from Brian D. McLaren's We Make the Road by Walking, a recommended book by The Right Rev. Mariann Budde. In Chapter 2 this summer, I made a most astonishing discovery that in the Garden of Eden, there were, not one, but two special named trees! Where have I been? Not only that, but there are two creation accounts in Genesis... live and learn, I suppose. Back to the trees-- yes, The Tree of Life and The Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil. The author makes the point that the former is life-giving and constructive; the latter is, through a judgmental path which humans are prone to take, quite destructive. I wonder what that means for us as parents and caretakers?

If the Spirit leads, please join us on the second Sunday in October (10/12) at 10:10am in the Day School Library. You can contact The Rev. Loren Lasch ( loren@stpatrickschurchdc.org ) for more information.

Peace and Blessings!
The Mod Sub

PPPST! May 2014

Welcome, Intrepid Parent:

On a lovely spring morning that we thought would never arrive, we met to share our thoughts, our stories, ourselves, really. The quote for the morning is:

"The first duty of love is to listen." --Paul Tillich

The Difference between Listening & Hearing:

"There is a difference, strong but not always noted, between listening and hearing. You hear the pneumatic drill, though you would rather not listen. You listen for your children's voices in the playground, but you can't always hear them. In urban environments, there's usually a surplus of sound -- so much, in fact, that it often becomes difficult to hear anything at all. But if we become too good at filtering things, have we also damaged our capacity to listen?"

Be the Change:

Take a few minutes today to stop whatever it is you are doing and just listen.

http://www.dailygood.org/pdf/dg.php?qid=5424

Paul Tillich as another oft-quoted Christian theologian Tillich information.

Last month we contemplated T. Merton's Suscipe prayer Merton Prayer.

With all of the exterior and interior clamor of our modern world, we must be intentional in our times of stillness and silence to attend to those important to us. This can include our family, our friends, our neighbors in need; most present and perhaps, most elusive, our God.

So let us be gentle with ourselves and those around us; sound a bell and "stop...and just listen."

Let us gather once more on June 1st before the summer hiatus (with snax!).

Peace,

The ModSub

PPPST! April 2014

Well, it happened again; the small group for the parents of the very young met yet again at the top of this new Spring month to compare notes, to encourage each other, and to eat snacks!


We took a moment to take some deep cleansing breaths and to center ourselves for a moment before reflection.

This month's passage is a follow-up to the March session's prayer of Thomas Merton. PPPST! March 2014 . Basically, we take solace in the fact that Jesus' yoke is light and burden easy. Merton prays, "But I believe that the desire to please you does in fact please you."  Rev. James Martin, SJ, wrote The Jesuit Guide to (Almost) Everything, where we can find resonant ideas on the path to freedom through Christ.

"But there's more. Within that final contemplation is one of the most famous, and perhaps most difficult, of all Ignatian prayers. It's often called Suscipe, taken from the first word of the Latin prayer. ...Like many of the Ignatian ideals--including indifference, detachment, humility-- this prayer is a goal.

       Take, Lord, and receive all my liberty,

       my memory, my understanding, and all my will--

       all that I have and possess.

       You, Lord, have given all that to me.

        I now give it back to you, O Lord.

       All of it is yours.

       Dispose of it according to your will.

       Give me love of yourself along with grace,

       for that is enough for me.

Like I said, a tall order. It is a prayer of total surrender...For me, I don't think I've ever been able to say that prayer and mean it completely. That is, I still want to hold on to all those things. And I'm not sure that I can say yet that all I need is God's love and grace. I'm still to human for that . But as Ignatius said, it's enough to have the desire for the desire. It's enough to want that freedom. God will take care of the rest."

Of course, the "indifference, detachment, and humility" that Rev. J. Martin speaks of are not directed at persons in our circle of intimates; rather he is pointing to detachment from our expectations and reactions, a greater challenge than the former, requiring no small dose of humility.

May these words give us comfort and strength as we walk with our families in our daily lives.

Until May 4th (snax de riguer :) )!

The ModSub

PPPST! March 2014

A little wintry mix will not stop us from meeting online to review yesterday's monthly meeting for parents of the very young!

After the customary chiming of the singing bowl (my phone app) to center ourselves, we read the following quotations from the 20th century Trappist monk, Thomas Merton.

We must make the choices that enable us to fulfill the deepest capacities of our real selves.

When ambition ends, happiness begins.

Be good, keep your feet dry, your eyes open, your heart at peace and your soul in the joy of Christ.        http://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/quotes/t/thomasmert116013.html

A bit of a follow-up to the vocation conversation of February. The original question was to be, "How do we guide our children to 'make choices that enable [them] to fulfill the deepest capacities of [their] real selves?'" I offered that personally, it is sometimes very difficult for me to let God's plan unfold in my life. Again, the trust issue rears its persistent head. But all is not lost! The subsequent quotes show us a light and easy yoke when we rely on Christ's strength.

For more information on St. Thomas Merton (and more about Forward Movement's Lent Madness) click here: Thomas Merton background

We closed with the Prayer of Thomas Merton (thanks S. Balke, Seminarian!):

“My Lord God, I have no idea where I am going. I do not see the road ahead of me. I cannot know for certain where it will end. Nor do I really know myself, and the fact that I think that I am following your will does not mean that I am actually doing so. But I believe that the desire to please you does in fact please you. And I hope I have that desire in all that I am doing. I hope that I will never do anything apart from that desire. And I know that if I do this you will lead me by the right road though I may know nothing about it. Therefore will I trust you always though I may seem to be lost and in the shadow of death. I will not fear, for you are ever with me, and you will never leave me to face my perils alone.” 
― Thomas Merton,        Prayer of Thomas Merton

See you on April 6th! Of course, there will be snax....

Faithfully,

The ModSub

PPPST! February 2014

Hi Intrepid Parents:

We met once again at the top of a new (wintry) month to share in fellowship and respite from the rigors of parenting the very young (and not so young :)!).

After centering ourselves to the sound of the singing bowl, we shared these two quotations from theologian, Frederick Buechner. I was prompted to select the first quote based on a sermon delivered by our Rector, the Rev. Dr. Kurt Gerhard a couple of weeks ago. Follow Me



"The place God calls you to is where your deep gladness and the world's deep hunger meet." Wishful Thinking 

"Grace is something you can never get but only be given. The grace of God means something like: Here is your life. You might never have been, but you are because the party wouldn't have been complete without you. Here is the world. Beautiful and terrible things will happen. Don't be afraid. I am with you. Nothing can ever separate us. It's for you. I created the universe. I love you. There's only one catch. Like any other gift, the gift of grace can be yours only if you reach out and take it. Maybe being able to reach out and take it is a gift too.” Wishful Thinking 

Frederick Buechner
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Frederick_Buechner

The question that we put to ourselves was what is our calling when it comes our role as parent? There is a certain comfort and challenge in the second passage. Sometimes, it takes a gracious gift of courage to reach out and to accept a call.

Comment if you'd like and see you on 2 March.
Blessings,
The ModSub

PPPST! January 2014

Happy New Year, Intrepid Parents:

We met again this morning and after a quick centering moment, we read the following passage from today's Lectionary. Every time that I read this passage, I question more than becomes resolved. The comfort that I draw from reflection on this Gospel reading is that, although one can be lost so often in life (and in early/middle/late parenthood), we are consistently found as we rest in the every-ready arms of El Shaddai.

Blessings....

The Mod Sub

Luke 2:41-52

The Boy Jesus in the Temple

 Now every year his parents went to Jerusalem for the festival of the Passover. And when he was twelve years old, they went up as usual for the festival. When the festival was ended and they started to return, the boy Jesus stayed behind in Jerusalem, but his parents did not know it. Assuming that he was in the group of travellers, they went a day’s journey. Then they started to look for him among their relatives and friends. When they did not find him, they returned to Jerusalem to search for him. After three days they found him in the temple, sitting among the teachers, listening to them and asking them questions. And all who heard him were amazed at his understanding and his answers.When his parents saw him they were astonished; and his mother said to him, ‘Child, why have you treated us like this? Look, your father and I have been searching for you in great anxiety.’ He said to them, ‘Why were you searching for me? Did you not know that I must be in my Father’s house?’ But they did not understand what he said to them.Then he went down with them and came to Nazareth, and was obedient to them. His mother treasured all these things in her heart.

 And Jesus increased in wisdom and in years, and in divine and human favour. 


The Parents of Pre-pre-schoolers Team at St. Patrick's Episcopal Church (PPPST!) blog entries begin in previous months. Click on link below to read more...
http://jkdesignspot.blogspot.com/2014/01/st-patricks-pre-pre-schoolers-parents.html
BTW, the next session should be on Groundhog Day, Sunday 2 Feb. at 9:15am in Small Group Room.

PPPST! (St. Patrick's Parents of Pre-pre-schoolers Team) 2012

Welcome Intrepid Parents!

Here is a convenient place to meet virtually and to see what was "food for thought" in past months. We meet once a month before the 10am service (9:15 to 9:50am) on the First Sunday of every month. There is a nifty "small group" meeting room just past the office that suits our needs quite well. Needless to say there are snacks to go with morning tea or coffee. Childcare is available in the nursery for a quiet respite from parental duties.

Please join us! The Rev. Loren Lasch is a good first contact. Ellen Teplitz and I (Janet Lee) are your facilitators.

We start with a centering bell app that I installed on my mobile phone: https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.googlecode.mindbell&hl=en .
When I hear it ring randomly throughout the day, I might take a deep cleansing breath or I might say the Jesus Prayer, "Lord Jesus Christ, have mercy on me, a sinner".





In November 2012, we prayed this prayer from The Book of Common Prayer:
46. For the Care of Children

Almighty God, heavenly Father, you have blessed us with the
joy and care of children: Give us calm strength and patient
wisdom as we bring them up, that we may teach them to love
whatever is just and true and good, following the example of
our Savior Jesus Christ. Amen.

We asked the question, what does Jesus have to say to us about parenting?


In December 2012, we read this short passage from a book called, What Mothers Do by Naomi Stadlen. It helped us to think about how we can best serve each other in small group. Sometimes all we can do is listen...

Naomi and Ruth. ("Call me Naomi no longer; my name is Marah for the Lord has dealt bitterly with me.")   http://bible.oremus.org/?ql=255773724

"It took me many failures to realize that this silence is healing. It acts as a shock-absorber. No more needs to be said. The crying mother feels less alone, and the listening mothers feel they have taken on a tiny fraction of her lot. All feel lighter and stronger, despite the pain they have shared. After some time, the bitter mother will dry her eyes, thank everyone, and the meeting moves on to something else.

Silence often works better than words. Mothers sometimes use meetings to seek or share advice, but this can easily go wrong. Each mother's situation is specific to herself. Often when one mother learns something from another, it's a tiny bit of information that she finds useful, not the informant's entire system. But when a mother has survived the early months of uncertainty, she can be tempted to believe that she can rescue newer mothers from this difficult time. 

Most of the time, what mothers seem to want from each other is compassion--without any advice. That's why their stories can sound harrowing. The harrowing quality is to elicit pity. A mother may often give a more one-sided picture than is truly the case. This is because the mother longs to be bathe in her listener's compassion. She has probably spent all morning being patient and compassionate toward her child and craves some attention for herself."

Naomi Stadlen

There are related conversations in a previous post:
http://jkdesignspot.blogspot.com/2013/07/ive-been-reading-this-recommended-book.html

Please join us on Sunday 5 Jan 2014; and as always, there will be snax :)!
The ModSub