“To live is to be slowly born.”


Antoine de Saint-Exupery

Sunflower Seeds

Celebrating Everyday Spirituality

My Spiritual Companion has Wings

Whenever I pray by a lake I am on the lookout for my spiritual companion. He has wings, but he’s not an angel or the Holy Spirit. He’s a heron.  For many years the presence of a heron would signal a good prayer experience or a meaningful week’s retreat. Some years I see the heron on the last day of the retreat. Sighting him means I will be able to go out from my retreat and live better for the week of quiet. On other retreats I may see the heron intermittently a couple times in the middle of the week. The best is spotting the heron on the first day. Such was the case on Monday, August 6. As soon as I walked outside, I saw the heron on the edge of the lake, only a few yards from where I was standing. I was surprised, because I wasn’t even looking for him. The bird was a good omen. It said, “While the heron catches fish, you will be catching what God will be tossing to you.” Keep alert!

One Response

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Latest Blog Posts

I imagine you sang “Jesus Christ Is Risen Today” complete with trumpets on Easter Sunday morning. I hope you sing it again regardless of the date on the calendar. After all, Jesus is risen. Jesus is always risen. What we sing about is the reality. It’s the perennial, non-stop Paschal

A good strong verb, even a little one, adds color to a written composition. Which is better: (a) He made demands as if he were a king or (b) He pontificated? Your answer is a matter of opinion. One thing I’ve noticed about the Resurrection stories is that they have

Meet Sr. Valerie

As Sisters of Notre Dame, Mary is a model for us as we seek to experience and express God’s goodness and provident care in the unfolding of each day. Join us on the journey!

Subscribe to Blog

Enter your email address to subscribe to this blog and receive notifications of new posts by email.

Loading

Upcoming Events

Weekend retreat at Villa Maria Education and Spirituality Center, Pulaski, PA
October 11-13, 2024
Retreat with the Sisters of Loretto, Nerinx, KY
September 8-13, 2024
Retreat at Lial Renewal Center, Whitehouse, OH
August 11-18, 2024
Retreat at Heartland Center for Spirituality, Great Bend, KS
April 14-19, 2024
First Friday Club in Youngstown, Ohio
April 4, 2024