Catherine's Cafe Vocation Blog

Some things not to love: “Fall back” in time (takes me days to readjust!), colder weather, no leaves left on the trees, and the apocalyptic readings in the lectionary leading up to Advent!     All of these require a “reset” of my body, mind, and spirit.  Each of these asks me to face change and challenges me to refuse to whine or complain, or to waste time wishing for warm weather and beautiful colors and only parables with happy endings.  I believe the cycle of seasons and the cycle of our liturgical life are essential to growth – in faith, in self-understanding, in willingness to look at hard truths and harsher realities.   I do not eagerly jump into these changes and embrace all that requires, but I know jump I must – except maybe for me it’s more of a slow and reluctant stroll.  I do think we each have to ask ourselves at this time of year, “Would I be content staying exactly the same?”  “Do I never want to experi...

I changed my sheets the other day and I thought I’d flip over the mattress only to realize that my mattress only has one side. So I turned it around instead and put the head down were my feet go. My mattress is a cumbersome thing but as I struggled to turn it around I found myself thinking of our local Lake Wingra and the cyclical turning over of the waters. This happens in Fall and Spring and allows life to continue under the ice in the depths of Winter. In the winter the warmest water sinks to the bottom of the lake. This mixing of waters distributes oxygen and Nutrients to support life under the ice covered lakes. In the Spring, when the ice on the surface melts, the turnover reverses with the warmth and nutrients moving closer to the surface A seasonal miracle, this turning over. What is turning over inside me as we move deeper into the Lenten season? Under the ice cover am I taking the opportunity to seek out nourishment and life in these Lenten depths? When Easte...