Barb Spies, OFS, Director of Mission Services and Pastoral Care

I came across this quotation: “The work will wait while you show the child the rainbow, but the rainbow won’t wait while you do the work.” What does your calendar look like? I see the activities calendar at Felician Village, and the days are filled! I look at my work calendar, and it’s overflowing with events, meetings, and to-do lists. I see the calendar at home for my family, and it’s packed. We are addicted to filling every moment, it seems. So, how do we slow down and savor all that is around us?

Kirk Byron Jones, in Addicted to Hurry, notes “Peace is not merely the absences of tension but is also the presence of harmony and justice. Peace is not simply a negation of something; it is the active presence of something. Likewise, savoring pace is not just he negation or minimizing of hurry in life; it is the celebration of noticing and paying attention more in life.” I love his use of “savoring pace.” I want to avoid rushing from place to place, item to item, event to event. I want to be in the present moment before I move onto the next.

One of my favorite times of day is when I gather with friends on Zoom on weekday mornings to listen to the Gospel and talk about how it applies in our lives. We end our gathering with a prayer. It gives me a chance to slow down and savor the friendship, the Scripture, and the life around me. I also look forward with times in worship. I let the words of the hymns fill me up. The words of the readings lead me to contemplation.

I still have the full calendar. I still wish for a more savoring pace. But I am reminded in these small moments to take a breath. Meditating on the blessings of life often brings joy. “Come to me, all you that are weary and are carrying heavy burdens, and I will give you rest.” Matthew 11:28

Blessed Angela: “Do not omit spiritual exercises.”