Wednesday, September 21, 2016

Autumn Prayer Journal Curators, volume 1...

Hello my lovely friends. For what feels like the 250th consecutive day, I am having a work day in which I am despairing over a cup of tea in my office. Translation: things are very stressful here right now. The teaching load and sheer volume of student emails and urgently needed technical fixes across 15 classes are taking a toll.

I've been trying very hard to be positive while I'm at work, and guess what? I'm frequently failing. I'm super happy at home, which certainly helps, but the work days are still a bit painful to slog through. And so I thought today was a perfect day to whip out my prayer journal and try to work up some gratitude, sister! ;-)

So, here we go:

Inspiration - This week, I am inspired by my sisters. I am blessed to have two sisters, and both of them are strong, successful, kind women who have inspired me with their creativity and ability to empathize with others. I endeavor to always follow in their example.

Nourish - I have been using the Divine Office app on my phone each morning to pray Morning Prayer and I am really getting into it. My day doesn't seem complete without it anymore.

Spread Joy - Well, this is a tough one. :0 In fact, I left it blank in my journal until just now, because I couldn't think of a way in which I have spread joy so far this week. I have been struggling so hard just to stay patient. I have, though, been working hard to not let my grumpiness spill over to my interactions outside of my office. It's like my own work day misery has made me more aware of how important it is to hold the door for the next person, and thank the person who holds it for me.

Projects - I am working on a pair of socks for Mike that he is calling "the 70's wallpaper socks." The colors are burnt orange, yellow, a muted maroon, and brown, and he absolutely loves them. In a heroic effort to avoid Second Sock Syndrome, *halo* I finished the first sock and immediately cast on for the second. #winning

Involve - I have been building a cart of books over at Amazon in an effort to become more prayerful this autumn, and prepare for Advent. I have a St. Mother Teresa book in there, some prayer journals, and the new Catholic Mom title. I'll let you know the exact titles and if I end up ordering anything else next week. ;-)

Reflect - Lord, I know that I still have so far to go in working on my positive attitude at work. Please help me to center my thoughts on You, and to not let anxiety take root in my mind during the day.

End Goals - I need to work harder at the joy thing. Next week I endeavor to be more joyful during my work day, regardless of what crappy thing happens. ;-)

Do you have an INSPIRE for this week? Go ahead and leave your links or list in the comments!

4 comments:

  1. I don't have an INSPIRE post to share this week however I do have something related to share. I wanted to put the questions in my journal so that I could refer to them easily. I was thinking about taping them the inside front cover and wanted them to fit nicely. I created a Google doc with the questions in it (edited slightly so it is just the questions). The text is 5 inches across (just short of the width of my journal). Here is the link in case anyone else is interested in having a printed copy of just the questions.
    https://docs.google.com/document/d/1SLb8sddU_pRHsSDNDuDc4z-JhL3ik4eTCD0f2ifkPYg/edit?usp=sharing

    ReplyDelete
  2. Hi Melanie! Thanks so much for sharing this, it's awesome! What a lovely idea. <3

    ReplyDelete
  3. Thanks for the Google doc, Melanie! So helpful!



    Inspiration: The preschoolers I work with 3 mornings/week have been inspiring me this week. Their curiosity and eagerness to learn inspires me to look at things with a different perspective.

    Nourish: Morning prayer has been big this week. I'm also *trying* to take moments throughout the day to sit and be still.

    Spread joy: I took time on Wednesday morning to help the kindergaten teacher at St. Thomas because I know she loves it when I come.

    Projects: I came up empty on this one. :0

    Involve: I started reading Story of a Soul and Mother Angelica this week. I've also been learning about spiritual direction.

    Reflect: Lord, help me seek you in the quiet moments throughout my day instead of filling that time with noise.

    End goals: I need to stay on top of my homework, so that I can keep my stress level down.

    ReplyDelete
  4. Sam,

    I LOVE THIS! This is exactly what I was hoping for with this exercise, YAY! So, as I was reading your INSPIRE, I got happy thinking of those little 3 year old faces smiling up at you, and soothed thinking about seeking God in the small moments. When I've encountered something challenging today, I found myself taking a deep breath and winging up a quick prayer for patience before diving in, rather than defaulting to feeling frustrated and annoyed. It helped a LOT. Baby steps!

    ReplyDelete

Thank you for commenting! I read and appreciate every single one, and I will respond to each one personally!