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My hips, my spirituality and their growth -- who would have thought they could be related? Well, they are!

I realize lately that I've always been concerned about my faith issues more so than the tissues surrounding my hips. My hips were an issue in my youth, then a blessing when I carted a child over the shelf they created and eventually even an important place to rest my hands as I looked stern at an unruly audience or child. Hips grow - no big deal. The effort to keep them in check has become more difficult as time passes. Granted, this is not a complaint...maybe. I put some effort into the battle, and then along came Avery, the grand, and the hips came into important use again. Slinging him over the shelf that is on me and on to the playground or to play trains or to keep him out of danger or to snuggle.

About eight years ago I helped to form a group called SOUL SPACE. The original premise was to design a retreat center for women to gather, to talk, to dialogue about matters of the spirit. It is an interfaith group so the discussions are lively and interesting and very often we all leave with one of those glowing feelings that good girl talk creates. Although the group has its share of spiritual directors, ministers of many denominations, Rabbis and Jewish educators and nuns, Quakers and Muslims, it also has a strong segment of working women in business and the arts. What makes it work is that it is made up of women and in particular women of a certain age.

With age comes wisdom. Whoever said that was being polite. With age comes the knowledge that there is a whole lot more to learn and less time to grasp it. It is a matter of figuring out who to ask the right questions and from whom are we able to get the right answers. For example, where can we get the courage to encourage our friends and dig into our spiritual resources to be helpful and present. What are the guidelines in being present, spiritually, for a terminally ill friend?

What does one have to do with the other? It is all the rage. It is impossible to go one day without being reminded that we are not taking good care of this special place called the world. The price of gas is high - take public transportation. Bring your own shopping bags to the grocery store. Buy those ridiculous looking light bulbs, that by the way go on too slow and make me blink. Recycle, walk, use solar panels, have a bamboo floor, walk carefully with your oxygen footprint. The list is endless and ... it is terrific.

I think it is finally here. A sure thing - spring. As of May 15th most weather gurus will tell you it is time to plant seeds in your garden and know that they will survive the weather. The days are longer, the moods are more temperate and life in general when the sun shines longer is easier. One thing for sure is that the traveling person has an easier luggage time. Boots are left in the hall closet, coats are hung carefully away and even an occasional umbrella is not a burden for the traveler.

As we get older, we continually add to our roles in life. I am currently filled with the spirit of Belle Price who recently passed down to me the mantle of family matriarch. Mind you, I am not the bloodline matriarch, but I have all the credentials. Belle lived into her 99th year. She was the mother of two, grandmother of three and great-grandmother of five. She was a widow for 32 years and the length of her widowhood only underlined the beauty of her marriage.

Point of information, really interesting point, especially for this readership …. all souls are female. I didn’t make it up and I probably wouldn’t dare to anyway unless I was a man. All souls are female from the biggest brawniest males to the sweetest young things. It is glorious news. If you’ve never given much thought to your soul and how to nurture her in times of trouble or sadness this singular piece of information should help.

 

The older I get (and the busier) the more I find myself discovering my spiritual moments in ordinary not sacred places. A simple statement that needs backup so first let me explain two relatively common yet complex words that I will be repeating. The words ordinary and spiritual. My definition may differ from others and that may make a difference to the reader, something that might of course change the context of the article and that’s why we begin there - at the beginning, the standard explanation.