An Ordinary Day: Thursday's Reflection

NOTE: Don't be surprised by erratic posting in the next few weeks. I may post. I may not. With the arrival of Memorial Day comes changes in schedules and plans and the need and desire for flexibility and spontaneity. I will post as I can. OK?

I love the Annie Dillard quote, " How we spend our days is how we spend our lives."

Yesterday I started my day with writing time, as I have been doing since returning from my solo writing retreat. I am struggling to start a new chapter. Diving into the first draft is always difficult for me. I jotted some notes, looked through some other notes. Opened a new file on my laptop and wrote a few lines. Deleted them, and repeated the process. To be continued.

I wrote in my journal about my struggle with this new chapter. 

I sat in silence.

I whispered the words of Thich Nhat Hanh:

                              In; out.

                              Deep; slow.

                              Smile; release.

I dressed. I fixed my hair--a lost cause on this rainy day.

I made a grocery list. Our grandson will be here for dinner. Let's have tacos, I decided.

I grocery shopped and had a conversation with one of the men who bags and carries groceries to your car. He has worked there 40 years, but has knee problems and doesn't work as many hours now. He misses his friend who moved to Seattle and after work today will go to his church to be with some other friends. He repeated several times, "Have a good day."

I did another errand and returned home the long way, so I could see all the fluffy flowering trees. The crabapples and lilacs and the freshest fullness of greens. 

I moved laundry from the washer to the dryer. I fixed my lunch--an arugula salad--and sat in the snug to eat and started reading a memoir called The Bridge Ladies by Betsy Lerner. How tempting it was to remain in my Mama Chair all afternoon, I thought. My ongoing temptation.

I returned to my desk in the garret. It was time to check my email. I responded as needed and did a bit more work for a summer writing series I have helped organize at church. In Your Own Words: Writing as a Spiritual Practice. https://www.gloriadeistpaul.org/summer-writing/

I worked on this post. I returned to the first draft shuffle and made a bit more headway. Bruce and I check in with each other about our days and talked about plans for an upcoming trip to the North Shore. 

And the day continued with a walk before fixing dinner. While in the kitchen, I listened to Minnesota Public Radio, hoping nothing too awful had happened during the day. Pete arrived for dinner and approved of the menu. We talked about the remaining school days and then he and his Papa watched some episodes of "Flash." That's their thing. Not mine.

I returned to the snug and read not just the current book, but a few pages in Mark Nepo's More Together Than Alone, Discovering the Power and Spirit of Community in Our Lives and in the World.
                  The small things we can share and model
                  will make a difference. p. 72

Before turning out the light, I read in bed and then closing my eyes, I reviewed the blessings of the day and sent love and blessings to those in need of hope. 

Not everyday is the same, of course. Some days I meet with clients or go to a meeting or have lunch with a friend. Some days are more scheduled. Some days there is a special event like house guests coming or going to see a play or concert or attending a class or a lecture. Some days are reserved for worshipping with my faith community. Some days, some weeks are quite full, even too full sometimes, and some days are more memorable than others. More and more I understand how the pattern of my days is the picture of my life. 

How grateful I am. 

                    Each of us is an artist of our days; the greater
                    our integrity and awareness, the more original
                    and creative our time will become."
                                                  John O'Donohue

An Invitation

How do you respond to the Annie Dillard and John O'Donohue quotes? I would love to know.