Category: Midweek Reflection

Hello. It’s been a few weeks since a new reflection has been posted. I took a couple weeks off after completing my internship, and planned on resuming posting here at that time. I’ve since decided to take a short sabbatical from blogging. I likely won’t be writing directly here again. I will be starting my…

I was not raised in a religious family and I rejected any concept of divine beings. As I grew and encountered the world religions via school or media, I began to study their origins. This opened my horizons enough to recognize the core values behind the rituals and religion, and seemed to speak to me,…

Play is essential to the spiritual life. In the book of Proverbs, Wisdom speaks. She speaks about her beginnings, and the beginnings of the earth. YHWH created me as the beginning of their1 work,     the first of their acts long ago. Ages ago I was set up,     at the first, before the beginning…

“I believe that appreciation is a holy thing— that when we look for what’s best in a person we happen to be with at the moment, we’re doing what God does all the time. So in loving and appreciating our neighbor, we’re participating in something sacred.”1 “…appreciation is… what God does all the time.” I…

Today the sun is shining. The blue sky has a few wisps of cloud. The thermometer tells me temperature is warmer than yesterday at this time. The clock on the wall ticks, tocks. This reminds me of my grandma’s house. Which reminds me of the green carpet and of playing with my cousins. As I…

This is a marathon, not a sprint. Though I’ve never run a marathon, I do know a bit about them. Organizers build in supports for the runners. They have hydration stations, sometimes food available along the way. They have medical teams on hand in case something goes awry. They do this because a marathon is…

Should. “Should” is a four-letter word, especially in this time of global pandemic. I should be more focused.I should have more energy.I should be reaching out more.I should come out of this with a new skill.I should be using this time more effectively. Here’s the thing about “should”:It is useful for shaming and for beating…

On this Earth Day 2020, I’m feeling a little “muddy”. There is so much going on with this Pandemic, information coming from all sides. So much suffering due to sickness, death, job loss, and separation of friends and family when these support systems are needed the most. I want to be well informed, but to…

People are suffering.  People are dying. There is fear and uncertainty all around. We are disconnected from our communities; our work is disrupted and everything around us has changed.  It seems like chaos reigns.   Where is God in all of this? I know I don’t have the answers.  But here is what I have to…

I have anger. It has been my close companion for many a week now. The surge of energy in my body, the tenseness in my muscles, the restlessness, the fantasizing about destroying things. “Anger is the deepest form of compassion,” David Whyte writes, because it reminds us what is most important to us and helps…

This is a blessing for the unhinging for the fraying edges for the falling apart. May this season be an opening a loosening of the grip a letting go of all that is non-essential. May you entrust the heap of your clay self to the One who first formed you. May you rest in the…

Bottle. Moxie. Bravery. Courage. We are in a season that calls for courage. The good news is this: we are already practicing it. Y’all know I like definitions. Here are some definitions of courage: to accept this new reality we are living intoto go to work during a pandemicto stay home during a pandemic for…

“Honestly hadn’t planned on giving up quite this much for Lent.”1 Holy unexpected changes. This tweet is spot on. So much has changed. A week ago, we were still talking about gathering in person for worship. One could meet a friend at a restaurant or coffee shop. We expected to hold election primaries. Now, some…

I don’t know for certain what the day will bring. There is so much possibility and I am at a loss. Depending on how stressed and tired I am, the unknown can feel frightening or exciting. I can feel overwhelmed or expectant. Sometimes the unknown feels terrifying and I don’t know what to do with…

Dear God, This rain is for the birds. … and the flowers and trees. And even me, too. The food I eat requires it. The landscape which feeds my spirit would be a barren wasteland without it. Thank you, my God, for this rain which I do not enjoy. I wrote this prayer a few…

Several years ago I was introduced to a variation on the Ignatian examen. In reflecting on my day, I would ask these questions: 1. How was I able to give and receive love today?2. How was I not?3. What is the invitation? What am I being invited to do or to be? What came to…

Listening. After many of her lectures to me my mother said that she always got the feeling I was paying attention but not necessarily taking the teaching seriously. I think she could read me like a book. I, on the other hand, have always considered listening to be one of my true strengths. I love…

This snippet of conversation took place after celebrating communion while on a retreat: “This is good bread!” “It’s fantastic!” “Oh, my word.” “Where did you get the bread?”“From the cranky lady at the market.” In response to the quizzical look, I explained. There’s a woman who sells her bread at the market. She often has…

“You are on a sacred journey,” she said to me. “Sacred journey?” I thought. “This doesn’t feel sacred. It feels chaotic, haphazard. It feels like falling apart.” I understood my friend to be referring to the season I was then in. I was doing some inner work. It was a time of changes in my…

As a child, I studied ballet.  I can tell you that centering is not a natural thing; you have to find it.  When I was a child, I didn’t care about being centered in life, in spirit, in time.  I only cared about music, climbing, and dreaming. I didn’t care about the center until I…

I recently finished reading Beautiful Boy by David Sheff. David tells what it was like for him as he watched his son struggle with an addiction to meth. As a journalist, his default was to investigate, to research. What he found was that meth is an insidious substance, one of the hardest addictions to recover…

Recently, I asked a friend to pray for me. As I made the request, I was struck by how seldom I do this. I used to ask others for prayer more often. Life has pulled me out of the habit, and it’s been a while. Curiosity led me into reflection. Here are my first thoughts:…

Another year is finished. I want to give you (wise) directions on the cusp of this new year as though my instructions are an incantation, a magic spell to make this new year contain less difficulty, less loss, less disappointment. Some years are harder than others. This past one was rough. My prayer for you…

On this Christmas day May love enfold your being and your doing, May holy wonder surprise and delight you, May grace ease and well-tend your griefs, May God’s peace find a resting place in your heart. Rachael

Santa has never been a part of my Christmas experience. I remember that as a child growing up in Venezuela, I didn’t spend the night before Christmas waiting for Santa to bring me my present (and yes, I said A present, only one). I was the youngest of five children in a home of two…

When I was 6 years old, I played Mary in the parish Christmas pageant. This was not by choice. I did not want to be Mary. I wanted to be the little drummer boy. He got to move. He got to play the drum. Mary didn’t do anything; she just stood there, holding the dumb…

Thanksgiving is past and the Christmas season has begun. “’Tis the season to be jolly.” No thanks. I appreciate the invitation. The attempt to encourage and uplift, especially when the northern hemisphere is cold and dark. I understand the impulse and it doesn’t work for me. This time of year is no more a season…

God loves us. God loves me. God loves you. lovevt: to thrive in (the rose ~s sunlight)1 What if this is a way God loves us? What if God thrives in us as a rose thrives in sunlight? God, a flower, planted in soil. Rooted in the earth, taking its nourishment from its grounding. Stretching…

A couple months ago I worked with my brother-in-law Zach to change out the hard drive in my computer. He did all the software stuff, I did the replacing of the physical bits. As we started the process, Zach narrated what he was doing. Soon into the process, I started to feel uncomfortable. He said…

I always cry during the service when new members join. It happens during the congregational vow at the end: “Joyfully, then, do we, the members of Just North UCC, receive you to our communion….” We go on to promise our support and faith to our newest members. When I joined North Church, it was a…