I believe I have referred to the Lenten practice I did last year of 40 Bags in 40 Days. The idea is to de-clutter your home by making a bag each day that you will either give away, throw away, or recycle (like papers). Because it was so meaningful for me and necessary for me, I am doing it again this year. In the process of physically getting rid of stuff we do not need, there is a sense of making room spiritually for God too. Last year I was also reminded that the 40 days of Lent do not include Sundays. Some refer to those Sundays as Little Easters. The 40 Bags in 40 Day practice does keep you more mindful of what day it is and you look forward to Sunday for a new reason. Going through things to make a bag a day is not always easy–no matter what size bag!
When I went down to work on the pile in our family room this morning, this print above jumped out at me. It is something I made to hang in our downstairs bathroom. The frame started peeling because of the water in the air and so took the picture apart and spray painted it. (That was this summer). I had just not ever put it back together.
The colors reminded me of a rosary I made the other day. It has a Stella Maris or Star of Mary center. As I looked at the saying on the print, I realized that it was not just the colors that fit with that rosary, but the words too.
One of the favorite prayers I found when I was first researching rosaries was the one I have on the information page about the Stella Maris Chaplet. (See the list of types of prayer beads on the right column in my blog.). Granted, the configuration of beads in the Stella Maris Chaplet is different than the Five Decade Rosary, that prayer can easily be meditated upon with the five decade configuration as well.
Not all of us are sailors, but I believe all of us can relate to the storms of life. How can we learn to dance in those storms? How can Mary, the Mother of God, show us how she learned to dance in the storms of her life? I never realized how that quote about learning to dance in the rain could so easily be related to the idea of Mary as Star of the Sea
Now, I need to get back to that pile and figure out what do do with all of it. Hanging the picture back in the bathroom is not getting rid of something. It was just putting it in its proper place.
Hahahaha! This is what I am dealing with. Interesting how the photo flips upside down when I add it to this post. I have tried it a couple of time and it keeps doing the same thing. Yup, kinda confusing. That is just how I feel right now!
