Reflect to Refresh

Since I retired, I find myself spending more time keeping a close eye on my spiritual growth.  Like most Catholics, my watchfulness peaks during Lent.  And why not? Mass homilies during the Lenten season focus on the need to pray, to change, to repent, to forgive, to listen, to follow. 

And I love that I am reminded again and again. Unlike some of my friends who can quote bible verses by heart, I stumble to remember the exact words or instructions.  

The Lenten season is also marked with invitations to retreats and recollections. And when opportunity permits, I sign up for as many as I can manage.  It seems I cannot have too much of spiritual refreshments.

Early into this year’s Lenten season, I have already attended two short reflection sessions.  I heard a lot of thought provoking ideas at these sessions.  I would quickly jot down as many ideas that struck me on my “spiritual” notebook. Reading them later helped remind me of the precious meaning behind those spiritual nuggets of nourishment.  Read on if you’re inclined to know more about these or skip to the second part for the recipe I have in mind. 

The first was on “The Grace of Later Years”.  Anyone interested to attend was welcome. There must have been at least a hundred “Golden” participants in the room.  It was a two-hour talk given by a 63 year old priest.  His confidence and ease as a speaker must have been honed from years of teaching seminarians and conducting retreats.  He also was a good authority on the present subject since he has been living in a retirement home for old priests.

With his power-point presentation, he peppered his talk with funny anecdotes and familiar quotes.  Quotes and stories I have heard before and yet, still struck me.  One such quote was:

Practice silence and seek conscious contact with the source of our being.

The speaker shared that the first thing he does when he wakes up in the morning is to lie silently in his bed and listen. First to the stillness of the new day still enveloped in darkness.  Then he gets up and continue quietly preparing himself before emerging from his bedroom.  He soon hears the birds tweeting their greetings and the dark giving way to light.  A dog barks in the distance and the house starts to come alive with sounds from the kitchen. He moves quietly through the house and out into the terrace. Touching the leaves and resting his eyes on the blooms in the garden.  This is his prayer of gratitude. Thankful to be given another day, another chance.

In contrast, the second session saw just 10 participants with a relatively young and shy priest as our moderator. It was a special reflection session offered to the mentors of the Parish’s Scholarship Program. (Click here and here and here for more info on this program).   It was also a two-hour session. But unlike the first session, the priest did not give a lengthy talk.  Instead, he felt it would profit the group more if he showed a video of a talk given by Fr. Anthony de Mello instead. (Click this link for the talk)  For the next 30-minutes, we watched and listened closely to Fr de Millo speak about what love is NOT.   

After the talk, our priest moderator instructed us to go to a quiet spot and for 10 minutes think/reflect on what we had heard. This was to prepare us for the interaction that would follow.

 My mind kept going back to Fr de Mello’s statement on how one’s perceptions, biases, fears and pre-conceived notions hinder or block a person from loving.

There is nothing as clear-sighted as Love.

    
Our session ended with the distribution of guide questions to help us reflect further on our personal involvement in our chosen corporal work.  I continue to mull over the motives behind my involvement and how it ties up with the meaning of love.

1 Corinthians 13

If I speak in the tongues[a] of men or of angels, but do not have love, I am only a resounding gong or a clanging cymbal. 2 If I have the gift of prophecy and can fathom all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have a faith that can move mountains, but do not have love, I am nothing. 3 If I give all I possess to the poor and give over my body to hardship that I may boast,[b] but do not have love, I gain nothing.

Each session was different.  One had a light-hearted feel to it, while the other, a need for deeper thought.  But all in all, both gave me the boost I need in my continuing journey to strengthen my relationship with those around me and most importantly, with my God.  

---xoxoxox---

Besides being preoccupied with my spiritual growth, I find as I grow older the need to treat my body better— consider nourishing options and doing away with processed food as much as possible. 

When I was growing up, my mother would have my siblings and I eat utan kamongay (a vegetable stew with malonggay).  For us, this was torture.  We found the kamongay leaves hard to swallow and imagined them sticking inside our throats. But as I grew up and went on living my own life, there was this strange craving for good old utan kamongay.  Spinach seems to be the closest substitute for my siblings who live abroad.  I on the other hand, have three skinny kamongay growing on the vacant lot beside my house.  They have provided me many times with the needed health fix.  

Besides utan kamongay (recipe here), it seems there are so many ways to incorporate this wonder plant—in bread, as pesto, soups and in healthy drinks.  Here is one I adapted from cooking shows and recipes in magazine articles.

Kamongay Power Drink

Basic:

½ c kamongay leaves, (drained after being soaked in water to remove any dust/bugs)

½ c sliced banana or strawberries or a favorite fruit
1 t calamansi juice
1/2-1 c water
Options:

1 T oatmeal

1/2 c milk or yoghurt (if using, lessen water)

2-3 T honey 

Ice cubes 

With Yoghurt

Place chosen ingredients in a blender and zap until well blended.  Pour into a glass and drink to your good health.

With Oatmeal