#contemplativeknitting — Public Fediverse posts

There are 3 questions for reflection in this section of #ContemplativeKnitting The first is: how big is your #orbit (meaning the world you see & interact with on a daily/regular basis)?

My answer is twofold: 1) my orbit isn’t as big as it used to be & 2) it’s not as big as I want it to be. There may be a third facet in there, too. As I discovered recently when my dad died, my orbit is bigger than I realize.

And honestly, I’m just leaving those answers there, ATM because, although I read the section days ago & have been thinking about my answers since then. I still feel the need to #contemplate it a little longer. Maybe take a #walk or #knit another row….

What is the right way to pray for me?

I’m not sure there is one. Which may be why my #prayerlife feels inadequate. I may not like the status quo however I do like having at least some basic rules or guidelines for things. That way I know when I’m breaking them. I don’t really feel like I have any guidelines for #prayer

Being #Episcopalian I do like community prayer, the kind done during worship services. I also like the prayers included in the Daily Offices of Prayer for All Seasons & the St. Helena’s Breviary, which are the 2 prayer books I use mostly frequently (aside from the #BCP ) That said, I’m not convinced every prayer done in a group or in public needs to begin with “the Lord be with you” It feels to formal or something for extemporaneous prayer.

I’ve been told that prayer is like a conversation with God, in which case, I pray a lot, although I don’t always address God by name. Some might call it thinking but there is a difference #ContemplativeKnitting #Introduction

How were you taught to #pray ?

I don’t recall ever being taught HOW to pray. As a kid, I recall being taught #prayers (God is great, Now I lay me down to sleep, Hail Mary & the Lord’s Prayer, among others). By the time I became a teenager I was memorizing swathes of the #BCP including prayers. But being taught how to pray or even the parts of a prayer? Not so much.

I was taught to mediate (it was the 70’s & mom was into TM, so I have a mantra I basically repeated while walking around in a dim room since I wasn’t old enough to actually sit still). I found it similar to the contemplative prayer as taught by a Benedictine monk during a prayer workshop a few years ago. That’s as close as I’ve gotten, which probably explains why I feel my #prayerlife is lacking. My prayers come from memories or books because I lack the confidence to “just pray” outside of dire circumstances. It’s one of the attractions of doing #ContemplativeKnitting #Introduction