By Kathy Berken
On Deck
How many times have you heard people suggest that if you kept a gratitude journal, your life would be complete? I bet this happens more often than not. Who has time for writing things in a notebook these days or even on a phone or tablet? I think you might appreciate a way of journaling that does not require taking pen to paper or a stylus to a screen.
When I visited with Elizabeth, who gave me permission to use her ideas, she said it was time to create a new practice of gratitude that matched her busy life with activities involving family, church and spiritual growth. She did not want to have yet one more thing on her plate. Even as a writer, I like the idea of being able to track our blessings while on the go.
Elizabeth participates in Growing in Wisdom, a two-year virtual program based in Saskatchewan, Canada, where they are studying “The Soul of a Pilgrim: Eight Practices for the Journey Within,” by Christine Valters Paintner. Within the text is a reference to John Philip Newell’s “Praying with the Earth: A Prayerbook for Peace” (2011), which includes a novel take on the Beatitudes. For example, “Blessed are those who know their need, for theirs is the grace of heaven.”
Elizabeth’s assignment was to express in seven words her intention for the inner pilgrimage that she would be taking while engaging with the book. “I came up with three short phrases,” she said, “which stayed with me through Lent, and they still resonate with me as I’ve been starting to focus more specifically on the practice of grateful living.” Her seven words: “Pay attention. Give thanks. Walk with wonder.” A take on the traditional haiku, her directive is easy to remember and, more so, to practice while going about her day.
In Mark 4:24, Jesus tells his disciples to “pay attention to what you hear.” Further, in Luke 8:18, Jesus tells them to “pay attention to how you hear.” Not only is the content of what you hear important but the way in which you hear it has the potential to help your understanding. In a simple example, when my granddaughter Isabelle tells me she is hungry, it helps me to know the context. Does she want a treat because she just heard the music from the ice cream truck down the street? Or because she has been outside playing for two hours and needs something to replenish her boundless energy?
Elizabeth’s second spiritual practice of giving thanks follows her awareness of her environment. She may take a walk in her neighborhood for exercise but when she consciously pays attention to the people she meets, the sounds of the city and the feel of the weather, she has more opportunities to be grateful.
Her third practice of walking in wonder is the anchor to her tripod. She may not be physically walking but metaphorically, she moves through her day with an awareness of her surroundings, offering gratitude for all she experiences and keeping her eyes open to the mystery of God everywhere.
What of the times when we are not focusing on the wonder of God’s immanence, times when the busyness of our lives overwhelm our senses and we do not feel the presence of God? Know that the Holy Spirit is nevertheless within and around us. Pope Leo XIV recently told his weekly audience in St. Peter’s Square: “There is no cry that God does not hear; even when we are not aware we are addressing him.”
May we always pay attention to the great mysteries of God’s Creation. May we always give thanks for the gifts we have. May we always walk with wonder, believing that God is with us.
(Kathy Berken is a spiritual director and retreat leader in St. Paul, Minnesota. She lived and worked at L’Arche in Clinton — The Arch from 1999-2009.)
