Quotes for Reflection: Tuesday's Post

It is time to open a new journal. That isn't quite like starting a new

year, but almost. I always have a sense of wonder when I begin writing in a new journal. What discoveries will I make? What memories will I record? What tales will I tell? How will this new journal unearth the person I was created to be? 

Before putting a journal to bed, however, I reread what I have written, paying particular attention to quotations I have recorded from books and articles and blogs read along the way.

I invite you to open each of the quotations as if it were a wrapped gift. Take off the bow and the paper carefully, for who knows, you might be able to use it again. No need to hold your breath as you take off the top of the box, for what is inside awaits to be discovered. Is it just what you wanted, needed? Is it something totally unexpected, but you suspect will be one of your favorite presents? Perhaps what is inside the box will become even more precious when it is shared with someone else. Does this gift show you how well you are known by the giver? If so, what is the best way to show appreciation for this gift?  


         I draw prayer round me like a dark protective wall,
         withdrawn inside it as one might into a convent cell
         and then step outside again, calmer and stronger and 
         more collected again.
                                                Etty Hillesum
                                                An Interrupted Life

         Hope is the instinct in us that something greater
         can become real. 
                                                Joan Chittister

         Enveloped in Your Light, may I be a beacon to those
         in search of Light. Sheltered in Your Peace, may I offer
         shelter to those in need of peace. Embraced by Your 
         Presence, so may I be present to others. 
                                                Rabbi Rami Shapiro

         Salvation happens every time someone with a key
         uses it to open a door he could lock instead.
                                                 Barbara Brown Taylor

          I can't decide whether to enjoy the world or improve
          the world; that makes it difficult to plan the day
                                                  E. B. White

           Begin doing what you want to do now. We are not 
           living in eternity. We have only this moment, 
           sparkling like a star in our hand--and melting like
           a snowflake.
                                                     Francis Bacon, Sr.

Consider these quotations as an early holiday gift. I hope one or two resonate with you--for I forgot to ask for a gift receipt. 

An Invitation
If any of the quotations inspired or opened you, I would love to know.