Books about Depression

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February 17, 2020 By Jennifer Lambert 7 Comments

People who have never suffered from depression just don’t understand.

Our society overuses the word depressed to mean temporarily sad.

But depression is an ongoing illness.

Depression doesn’t just go away when life quality, finances, relationships, or circumstances improve.

Medications don’t always help. I’ve tried several and I tired of the side effects and being a guinea pig. I don’t like feeling numb or half here.

So many people think they’re really helping when they recommend trite self-help books that just tell the reader to be happier, listen to more Contemporary Christian pop music, read the Bible, and pray more.

I do appreciate the memoirs about people rescuing themselves by running with their dogs or finding something to live for – clinging to hope in a prayer, pet, memory, or child.

It’s just that every person with depression is different, experiences it differently, copes differently.

Here’s what depression feels like to me.

These books show a reality to depression and living and surviving…or not.

Depression isn’t just feeling down or having the blues or feeling out of sorts.

It’s a nagging, staticy feeling at the very base of the brain all the time, often rising to the surface and taking over everything.

I don’t think there are many books that show the harsh reality of depression.

Even having depression, I often look at others and characters in movies and books and wonder why they have it? I find myself believing the lies of “but they have such a nice life with no problems.”

Depression lies.

If I wanted to not be this way, then I wouldn’t be this way.

Books about Depression

Reasons to Stay Alive by Matt Haig

Like nearly one in five people, Matt Haig suffers from depression. Reasons to Stay Alive is Matt’s inspiring account of how, minute by minute and day by day, he overcame the disease with the help of reading, writing, and the love of his parents and his girlfriend (and now-wife), Andrea. And eventually, he learned to appreciate life all the more for it.

Everyone’s lives are touched by mental illness: if we do not suffer from it ourselves, then we have a friend or loved one who does. Matt’s frankness about his experiences is both inspiring to those who feel daunted by depression and illuminating to those who are mystified by it. Above all, his humor and encouragement never let us lose sight of hope. Speaking as his present self to his former self in the depths of depression, Matt is adamant that the oldest cliché is the truest—there is light at the end of the tunnel. He teaches us to celebrate the small joys and moments of peace that life brings, and reminds us that there are always reasons to stay alive.

All the Bright Places by Jennifer Niven

When Finch and Violet meet on the ledge of the bell tower at school—six stories above the ground— it’s unclear who saves whom. Soon it’s only with Violet that Finch can be himself. And it’s only with Finch that Violet can forget to count away the days and start living them. But as Violet’s world grows, Finch’s begins to shrink…

All the Bright Places is coming to Netflix soon! I’m interested to see what they do with it.

By The Time You Read This, I’ll Be Dead by Julie Anne Peters

After a lifetime of being bullied, Daelyn is broken beyond repair. She has tried to kill herself before, and is determined to get it right this time. Though her parents think they can protect her, she finds a Web site for “completers” that seems made just for her. She blogs on its forums, purging her harrowing history. At her private Catholic school, the only person who interacts with her is a boy named Santana. No matter how poorly she treats him, he just won’t leave her alone. And it’s too late for Daelyn to be letting people into her life . . . isn’t it?

In this harrowing, compelling novel, Julie Anne Peters shines a light on what might make a teenager want to kill herself, as well as how she might start to bring herself back from the edge. A discussion guide and resource list prepared by “bullycide” expert C. J. Bott are included in the back matter.

Suicide Notes by Michael Thomas Ford

Fifteen-year-old Jeff wakes up on New Year’s Day to find himself in the hospital—specifically, in the psychiatric ward. Despite the bandages on his wrists, he’s positive this is all some huge mistake. Jeff is perfectly fine, perfectly normal; not like the other kids in the hospital with him.

But over the course of the next forty-five days, Jeff begins to understand why he ended up here—and realizes he has more in common with the other kids than he thought.

Girl, Interrupted by Susanna Kaysen

In 1967, after a session with a psychiatrist she’d never seen before, eighteen-year-old Susanna Kaysen was put in a taxi and sent to McLean Hospital. She spent most of the next two years in the ward for teenage girls in a psychiatric hospital as renowned for its famous clientele—Sylvia Plath, Robert Lowell, James Taylor, and Ray Charles—as for its progressive methods of treating those who could afford its sanctuary.

Kaysen’s memoir encompasses horror and razor-edged perception while providing vivid portraits of her fellow patients and their keepers. It is a brilliant evocation of a “parallel universe” set within the kaleidoscopically shifting landscape of the late sixties. Girl, Interrupted is a clear-sighted, unflinching document that gives lasting and specific dimension to our definitions of sane and insane, mental illness and recovery.

Prozac Nation: Young and Depressed in America by Elizabeth Wurtzel

Elizabeth Wurtzel writes with her finger on the faint pulse of an overdiagnosed generation whose ruling icons are Kurt Cobain, Xanax, and pierced tongues. Her famous memoir of her bouts with depression and skirmishes with drugs, Prozac Nation is a witty and sharp account of the psychopharmacology of an era

The Bell Jar by Sylvia Plath

The Bell Jar chronicles the crack-up of Esther Greenwood: brilliant, beautiful, enormously talented, and successful, but slowly going under — maybe for the last time. Sylvia Plath masterfully draws the reader into Esther’s breakdown with such intensity that Esther’s insanity becomes completely real and even rational, as probable and accessible an experience as going to the movies. Such deep penetration into the dark and harrowing corners of the psyche is an extraordinary accomplishment

I haven’t read these yet, but they’re on my list:

Project Semicolon: Your Story Isn’t Over by Amy Bleuel

Project Semicolon began in 2013 to spread a message of hope: No one struggling with a mental illness is alone; you, too, can survive and live a life filled with joy and love. In support of the project and its message, thousands of people all over the world have gotten semicolon tattoos and shared photos of them, often alongside stories of hardship, growth, and rebirth.

How I Stayed Alive When My Brain Was Trying to Kill Me: One Person’s Guide to Suicide Prevention by Susan Rose Blauner

An international epidemic, suicide has touched the lives of nearly half of all Americans, yet is rarely talked about openly. In this timely and important book, Susan Blauner breaks the silence to offer guidance and hope for those contemplating ending their lives — and for their loved ones.

A survivor of multiple suicide attempts, Blauner eloquently describes the feelings and fantasies surrounding suicide. In a direct, nonjudgmental, and loving voice, she offers affirmations and suggestions for those experiencing life-ending thoughts, and for their friends and family. Here is an essential resource destined to be the classic guide on the subject.

The Long Night: Readings and Stories to Help You through Depression by Jessica Kantrowitz

You’ve done what you can: you’ve seen your doctor, made an appointment with a therapist, picked up the prescription for the antidepressant and swallowed that first strange pill. But it can take four to eight weeks for the meds to start to work, and it might take two or more tries before you and your doctor find the ones that work best for you. When you’re in the midst of terrible depression, those weeks can feel like an eternity. You just want to feel better now. This book is for those who are in the long night of waiting. It does not promise healing or deliverance; it is not a guide to praying away the depression. It is simply an attempt to sit next to you in the dark while you wait for the light to emerge.

What are your most helpful coping tools for depression?

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Realistic Homeschool Schedule

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February 10, 2020 By Jennifer Lambert 7 Comments

I struggled with *getting it all done* when the kids were young.

I thought I had to get up before the crack of dawn and read Bible devotionals and do high impact workouts before the kids woke up.

I wondered why I was so stressed and tired all the time.

My kids are 19, 14, 13, and 10 this year.

I would love to say that life’s a breeze now but that would be a lie.

I could paint a rosy picture of everyone being super independent and getting along 100% with all chores and work completed to excellence and in a timely manner all day, every day.

But that’s not reality for anyone.

Our schedules have evolved over the years:

I update my philosophy for homeschooling and living priorities frequently. I prefer relaxed, streamlined, stress-free to busy, rushing, and cluttered. I thrive with a slow schedule.

If a chore or assignment doesn’t get completed today, there’s always tomorrow. My kids don’t need harsh deadlines right now.

We clean what needs to be cleaned without a strict chore chart. We all live here and we all pitch in when we can. Some things get tidied almost daily and others weekly. Some things get forgotten until it’s embarrassing. I’ve made sure to encourage my kids to be helpers from a very young age and they almost always have great attitudes when asked to help with a task.

We all live here all day, every day. I won’t apologize when it seems most people who work full time and have their kids go to school have spotless homes because they’re never there and/or hire maids.

I like getting up when my body is ready and feeding the birds while I wait for my coffee. I enjoy the ease of snuggles on the sofa during read alouds every day. I don’t mind postponing dinner to look at sunset or the moon or because they don’t want to come inside just yet.

This is my mission field. This is my church.

I am raising life givers, world changers, lovers of nature and humanity, laughers at the impossible, greeters of the birdsong.

Our Realistic Schedule:

My eldest works a part time job at a local bank typically Mondays, Wednesdays, Fridays, and Saturday mornings. I drive her and sometimes pick her up for her lunch break and my husband or I pick her up when her shift is over.

She shares our VW Beetle, and my husband drives it to work Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays. We also have a minivan for the family.

She takes college courses Tuesdays and Thursdays. She drives herself to class in the VW and my husband takes the minivan to work those days.

I don’t have access to a car those days. It works fine for us for now. I just schedule appointments and make sure to run errands and go grocery shopping Monday, Wednesday, or Friday.

Every weekday

My son and I usually get up around 8 AM.

I make a hot breakfast for my younger three kids.

I get the middle girls up.

My youngest daughter never wants to get out of bed. Her breakfast is usually cold by the time she comes downstairs, no matter how proactive my planning might be.

I unload the dishwasher and usually start a load of laundry. Doing a load of laundry every day keeps me on top of it. It’s mostly pajamas, loungewear, workout clothes, and my husband’s uniforms. I really don’t wash the towels and bedding as often as I should.

I plan dinner if it’s not already thought out and thawed.

After breakfast, I do read alouds – religion, history, literature, science, and Life of Fred math.

Then the kids individually work on their science, vocabulary workbooks, foreign language, notebooking pages.

I switch the laundry to the dryer. I catch up on writing and social media.

Lunchtime is usually leftovers or something quick and easy.

Afternoons (usually Monday, Wednesday, Friday) are reserved for errands, shopping, or finishing up school work. I help the kids with notebooking or maps.

When Dad gets home from work, he does the math lessons and reviews science and completes any demonstrations or experiments with the kids.

I often go on a walk (about 1.5 miles) in the evenings, before dark, so earlier in winter and later in summer. The kids and my husband sometimes accompany me.

We all eat a hot dinner together every night.

When it’s nice out, the kids play, ride bikes, roller blade, scooter, go to their friends’ houses in the neighborhood, play catch or scoops in the front yard. Otherwise and in addition to that, the kids read, play video games, watch shows after dinner.

Almost every night, I take an Epsom salt bath before bed – with chamomile tea. It’s me time.

Bedtime is usually around 10 PM. iPads are plugged in to charge in my bedroom and wifi is turned off at midnight so we sleep better.

Sundays

These are usually easy days. I have little responsibility on Sundays. We have a big breakfast and usually a nice relaxing dinner. When it’s nice out, we go on nature hikes. Some seasons, there are soccer or baseball games.

Mondays

I feel most productive on Mondays. I clear away the stress and mess of the weekend.

Tuesdays

This is our boring day. Nothing special and I’m ok with that.

Wednesdays

My husband takes our son to ninja lessons. Dinner is after that.

Thursdays

The two oldest girls have aerial gymnastics. Dinner is after that.

Fridays

Homemade pizza and movie night!

Saturdays

We don’t really have a weekend schedule. Saturdays are for yard work and big chores. Relaxing with movies if it’s rainy or very cold. Catching up with math and science and projects. There are sometimes baseball or soccer games during those seasons. We often like to grill and have a relaxed dinner.

I keep our schedule flexible so we don’t get overwhelmed.

I like having a lot of free time to be spontaneous like hiking in the woods near our backyard creek or baking brownies. We can go for a walk or watch a movie together.

I do not limit screentime or food. I make suggestions. I try to model healthy behavior. Some days, it’s a down day because someone doesn’t feel well or whatever. If someone tries to get a lot of junk food right before a meal time or bedtime, I ask if they think that’s a good idea. I also don’t buy a lot of junk food except on special occasions. If someone doesn’t like a meal or misses it due to an event, she is free to eat whatever they like afterwards.

We don’t stress over any academics because they will always get done one way or another. Academics aren’t the most important thing to me. I am not striving for my kids to get perfect scores on standardized tests or into the best college. Since we don’t follow a public school schedule, we don’t do grades or levels or testing, and my kids are happy.

I prefer to focus on guiding my kids in their critical thinking and being kind and loving to everyone.

We flow along with the seasons and I love watching my children grow and change as I guide them along with life and learning.

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Favorite Soups

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January 31, 2020 By Jennifer Lambert 15 Comments

Winter is the perfect time for warm and filling soups.

January is National Soup Month!

These recipes are great for busy weeknights or using up leftovers.

With a salad and homemade bread, these soups are perfect on cold and dreary winter evenings.

They freeze beautifully and are welcome staples at potlucks. They’re great for lunches the next day too!

Our favorite soups:

What’s your favorite soup?

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Cockaleekie Soup

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January 31, 2020 By Jennifer Lambert 1 Comment

A quick and easy meal for weeknights is cockaleekie or chicken and leek soup.

Leeks are typically a spring vegetable. They’re lighter and sweeter than onions.

They look like giant green onions or chives.

I love having leftover chicken in the freezer and chicken stock on hand for easy meals like this one.

I chop up celery and carrots. I clean and slice up the leeks.

Sauteed in butter or oil, they smell heavenly.

I add herbs, black pepper, chicken stock, and chopped cooked chicken.

It’s ready in fewer than 30 minutes!

With a salad and some 1-hour bread machine soda bread, it’s a hearty meal for a cold night.

Cockaleekie Soup

Course Soup

Ingredients

1 c sliced leeks
1 carrot, peeled and sliced
1 stalk celery, diced
1-2 T butter, oil, or bacon grease
1-2 T white wine or sherry
3 c chicken stock
1 c cooked chicken
1 T black pepper
1 T thyme leaves
1 c cooked brown rice

Instructions

Saute vegetables in fat for about 5 minutes. Splash with wine.
Add stock and chicken. Heat to boiling.
Add seasoning and rice. Serve warm with soda bread.

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Cheesy Potato Soup

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January 30, 2020 By Jennifer Lambert Leave a Comment

Potato soup is a family favorite.

We typically have two kinds of potato soup: creamy or chunky cheesy.

Sautéing up a mirepoix, making a roux, and adding parcooked potatoes is super easy.

I often use leftover potatoes. If not, I boil them separately while I saute up the veggies and make the roux, then the cheese sauce.

I add in the potatoes and make some yummy toppings and it’s like a loaded baked potato in a bowl.

Look at gorgeous this creamy cheesy soup looks!

Cheesy Potato Soup

Course Soup

Ingredients

5 medium potatoes, peeled and parcooked
1-2 stalks celery, minced
1/2 onion, diced
1/4 c butter
1/4 c AP flour
3 c half and half
3 c chicken stock
16 oz Velveeta, cubed
1-2 t garlic powder
salt and white pepper
4 strips bacon, chopped and fried crisp for topping
1 c shredded Colby Jack or Cheddar for topping
1/4 c chopped parsley for topping
1/4 c chopped chives and/or green onions for topping

Instructions

Boil peeled and chopped potatoes if not already cooked.
Saute celery and onion in butter for a few minutes.
Sprinkle with flour and add the chicken stock and bring to boil. Add half and half and turn down heat to make a thick sauce. Do not boil.
Add potatoes to soup.
Add cubed Velveeta until melted and creamy. Do not boil.
Season with garlic, salt, and pepper.
Ladle into bowls and toppings. Enjoy!

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Zuppa Toscana

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January 30, 2020 By Jennifer Lambert Leave a Comment

I often make variations of Zuppa Toscana based on what I have on hand.

It’s one of the quickest and easiest soups to make.

I always have the three main ingredients on hand:

Potatoes
Greens
Sausage

I often saute breakfast sausage and/or bacon with chopped onions.

I add potatoes, either chopped and parboiled, or leftovers.

Chicken stock is almost always in my freezer.

I quarter the potatoes for pretty.

Last, I toss in some chopped greens to wilt and salt and pepper for the finishing touch.

Bon appetit!

Zuppa Toscana

Course Soup

Ingredients

1 package sausage Italian or breakfast
1/2 onion, diced
5 new potatoes, cooked
3 c chicken stock
1-3 T minced garlic
2-3 c chopped kale or other greens
1 t red pepper flakes optional
salt and pepper
1 c cream or half and half optional
1-2 T Parmesan cheese, grated for topping

Instructions

Boil potatoes in water in a separate pot if not already cooked.
Brown sausage and onion with a bit of olive oil or bacon grease to keep it from sticking.
Add garlic and saute.
Deglaze pan with chicken stock and bring to a boil. Adjust seasoning.
Drain and quarter potatoes. Add to the soup.
Add greens until just wilted.
Add cream if using. Do not allow to boil.
Grate Parmesan cheese on top of soup to serve.

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Chicken Noodle Soup

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January 29, 2020 By Jennifer Lambert Leave a Comment

I almost always have chicken stock in my freezer.

I make a fresh slow cooker full every time we have chicken bones.

Easy slow cooker chicken stock:

chicken bones (or turkey)
1 T apple cider vinegar
1 small tomato or 3-5 grape tomatoes (optional)
1-2 carrots ( I don’t even peel them)
1-2 celery stalks
5 whole cloves
5 whole peppercorns
2 Bay leaves

Fill with water and set slow cooker on low for 12 hours.

*I don’t add onion or garlic to stock because it makes it bitter.

Strain and use immediately in recipes or freeze in labeled quart bags.

I sometimes can get a second slow cooker pot of slightly weaker stock if there are a lot of bones.

Easy Chicken Noodle Soup

Sautéing up a mirepoix, making a roux, and adding fresh boiled noodles or leftover rice with cooked chicken and veggies is super easy and quick.

This is a great soup when someone is feeling sick in my house. I can usually whip it up quick with leftovers or freezer items I keep on hand. I can update this soup with various veggies and herbs for brighter flavor.

Chicken Noodle Soup

Course Soup

Ingredients

1-2 stalks celery, minced
1-2 carrots, peeled and sliced
1/2 onion, diced
1/4 c butter
6 c chicken stock
1-2 lbs chopped cooked chicken
2 bay leaves
1 T minced garlic
1 t thyme leaves
1 T parsley
1 T lemon juice or apple cider vinegar
salt and pepper
1 package good quality egg noodles boiled to al dente

Instructions

Boil noodles according to package instructions.
Saute veggies in butter for a few minutes.
Add chicken stock.
Add chicken and seasonings. Simmer for 30 minutes until flavors meld.
I sometimes like to add dill, sage, or rosemary for extra flavor.
Remove bay leaves and serve warm with noodles.

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February Themes

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January 28, 2020 By Jennifer Lambert Leave a Comment

When my kids were very small, we had monthly themes on our bulletin board, for our homeschool lessons, and to order our daily lives.

As the kids get older, the themes aren’t quite so vivid. I enjoy the liturgical calendar, the natural cycles of the world, and celebrating the flow and small events in our lives.

We loved these themed Calendar Connections.

February offers fun themes to celebrate love and more.

Candlemas

This day is the Feast of the Presentation of Jesus Christ and the Feast of the Purification of the Blessed Virgin Mary.

Celebrating Candlemas

St. Brigid

Saint Brigid is one of Ireland’s patron saints, along with Patrick and Columba. Irish hagiography makes her an early Irish Christian nun, abbess, and foundress of several monasteries of nuns, including that of Kildare in Ireland, which was famous and revered.

Celebrating Saint Brigid

Saint Valentine

I love learning about the Saints’ lives.

February Book Basket by Kennedy Adventures
February by Catholic Playground
February Feast Table by Elizabeth Clare
February Links from Shower of Roses

Groundhog Day

Celebrating Groundhog Day

Presidents Day

Preschool Presidents Day Log Cabin Craft

Black History Month

I’m teaching my kids about Civil Rights, and I will be posting our unit study soon!

Dental Care Month

American Heart Month

Learn about heart health and anatomy.

Mardi Gras

This feast day is right before Ash Wednesday, which begins the six weeks of penitence before Easter.

History: Racial Injustice Calendar.

Fun Stuff: National Days

Something for each day of the month – from fun foods to celebrating squirrels to justice issues to historical landmarks.

We love Nutella Day on the 5th!

What are your favorite themes in February?

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How I Pray

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January 27, 2020 By Jennifer Lambert 7 Comments

I didn’t grow up in a praying household.

Religion was ridiculed and people of faith were considered weak.

It’s taken me 20+ years to consider faith and it’s been a rocky journey at best.

I don’t pray as regularly as I should, nor about the right things all the time. I’m selfish and sinful and mean and hateful and hypocritical and judgy. As are we all.

Prayer guilt haunts me with that ongoing uncomfortable, knowing feeling that I really shouldn’t be in ministry because mature saints would pray more than I do, and with much more fervor; prayer laced with Puritanesque, Princetonian, seminary vocabulary, and Biblical theology would be good too.
Pete Alwinson

I won’t pray for you the trite “happiness and health” because those things aren’t guaranteed, nor are they the most important.

I’m disgusted by the misuse of offering “thoughts and prayers” for tragedies, as if it helps anyone. Sometimes, silence is better.

I think prayer is more for Us than for God or the Universe or Others.

When you pray, don’t be like hypocrites. They love to pray standing in the synagogues and on the street corners so that people will see them. I assure you, that’s the only reward they’ll get. But when you pray, go to your room, shut the door, and pray to your Father who is present in that secret place. Your Father who sees what you do in secret will reward you. When you pray, don’t pour out a flood of empty words, as the Gentiles do. They think that by saying many words they’ll be heard. Don’t be like them, because your Father knows what you need before you ask.
Matthew 6:5-8

We learn about ourselves when we pray. We discover our values, needs, desires, wants.

Our eyes only see basic shapes and colors. Our minds perceive what we see. In seeing love in the face of others is to see God. To pray for others is to embrace God.

I think there are many different kinds of prayer.

Types of prayer:

Communion (All day, all the time)
Supplication (Lifting up your needs)
Dedication, Sanctification, and Consecration (Ceremony for service)
Praise (Joyful recounting of all God has done for us)
Worship (Losing self in the adoration of God)
Intercession (On behalf of others)
Spiritual Warfare — Two types: Dealing with yourself (Your mind is the battlefield and Repentance and Forgiveness) and Dealing with Others (Putting on the Full Armor and Binding & Loosing)
Agreement (Corporate Prayer)
Watch & Pray (Continual State of Awareness as a Watchman on the Wall)
Thanksgiving (Count your Blessings; name them one by one)

How I Pray

I grew up thinking that prayer was all about coveting, thanksgiving, and praise.

I memorized little prayers before meals and at bedtime, but it didn’t really mean anything.

I believe prayer is a constant conversation.

It can be long, wordless, or simply an exclamation.

I often express thanks or exasperation or request assistance. I never feel as if I am alone in my endeavours. Sometimes, I want reassurance that Someone else witnessed this or that along with me.

Prayer is then not just a formula of words, or a series of desires springing up in the heart – it is the orientation of our whole body, mind, and spirit to God in silence, attention, and adoration. All good meditative prayer is a conversion of our entire self to God.
Thomas Merton

Prayer as a Discipline

Liturgy of the Hours

The arrangement of the Liturgy of the Hours as described by Saint Benedict:

Matins (during the night, at about 2 a.m.) also called Vigil and perhaps composed of two or three Nocturns
Lauds or Dawn Prayer (at dawn about 5 a.m. or earlier in summer and later in winter)
Prime or Early Morning Prayer (First Hour = approximately 6 a.m.)
Terce or Mid-Morning Prayer (Third Hour = approximately 9 a.m.)
Sext or Midday Prayer (Sixth Hour = approximately 12 noon)
None or Mid-Afternoon Prayer (Ninth Hour = approximately 3 p.m.)
Vespers or Evening Prayer (“at the lighting of the lamps” about 6 p.m.)
Compline or Night Prayer (before retiring about 7 p.m.)

Daily Examen

The Daily Examen that St. Ignatius practiced:

1. Become aware of God’s presence.
2. Review the day with gratitude.
3. Pay attention to your emotions.
4. Choose one feature of the day and pray from it.
5. Look toward tomorrow.

Contemplative Prayer

While contemplation is a train of thought about something, meditation is training the mind to rest in a particular focus that leads to a connection to the source of consciousness itself.

Contemplative prayer follows Christian meditation and is the highest form of prayer which aims to achieve a close spiritual union with God. Both Eastern and Western Christian teachings have emphasized the use of meditative prayers as an element in increasing one’s knowledge of Christ.

Augustine spoke of seven stages:

the first three are merely natural preliminary stages, corresponding to the vegetative, sensitive and rational levels of human life;
the fourth stage is that of virtue or purification;
the fifth is that of the tranquillity attained by control of the passions;
the sixth is entrance into the divine light (the illuminative stage);
the seventh is the indwelling or unitive stage that is truly mystical contemplation.

Saint Teresa of Avila described four degrees or stages of mystical union:

incomplete mystical union, or the prayer of quiet or supernatural recollection, when the action of God is not strong enough to prevent distractions, and the imagination still retains a certain liberty;
full or semi-ecstatic union, when the strength of the divine action keeps the person fully occupied but the senses continue to act, so that by making an effort, the person can cease from prayer;
ecstatic union, or ecstasy, when communications with the external world are severed or nearly so, and one can no longer at will move from that state; and
transforming or deifying union, or spiritual marriage (properly) of the soul with God.

Contemplative prayer in my opinion is nothing else than a close sharing between friends; it means taking time frequently to be alone with him who we know loves us.’ Contemplative prayer seeks him “whom my soul loves.” It is Jesus, and in him, the Father. We seek him, because to desire him is always the beginning of love, and we seek him in that pure faith which causes us to be born of him and to live in him. In this inner prayer we can still meditate, but our attention is fixed on the Lord himself.
St. Teresa of Avila

Stages of contemplative prayer by Dionysius the Pseudo-Areopagite:

Katharsis (purification)
Contemplation/theoria (illumination), also called “natural” or “acquired contemplation”
Unity (theosis), also called “infused” or “higher contemplation”; indwelling in God; vision of God; deification; union with God

My prayer for my children:

I pray for you LESS.

Self.

Stuff.

Negativity.

I pray you are GENEROUS.

With

Your time.

Your money.

Your love.

your joy.

I pray you TRUST.

even when others hurt you.

when you’re scared.

when you feel lost and alone.

I pray you are SEEN.

for what you do.

for how you love.

for who you are.

and try to see others for who they really are.

I pray you feel LOVED.

despite the cruelty and coldness of this world.

even when no one expresses gratitude.

FAIL spectacularly.

and get up again, and again, and again.

Learn from your failures.

The highest form of prayer is to stand silently in awe of God.
St. Isaac the Syrian.

I really like this Mystic Prayers page.

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What’s your favorite way to pray?

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Homeschool Space in Texas

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January 25, 2020 By Jennifer Lambert Leave a Comment

We began homeschooling in 2005, in San Antonio, Texas.

We didn’t have much of a clue what we were doing at that time and that ended up being the best thing!

We had no formal homeschooling space.

Liz used the kitchen table and a little plastic desk for a couple years to do workbooks and crafts.

We had an easel with a whiteboard on one side and a chalkboard on the other side.

We had a little aquarium on the other side of the half wall. Seamus the cat was always fascinated with it.

We had a little backyard garden.

We had lots of books. We spent most of our time on field trips, park days, playgrounds, libraries, running errands.

We cooked and cleaned and did chores. I sewed curtains and crafts with Liz.

I had two babies those two years in Texas, and Liz learned how to be a mama’s helpers with two new little sisters.

I love that we were actively living and learning the most during our first two years of homeschooling rather then the formality I explored for a few years. We went back to a more unschooling life as soon as a I knew better!

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