So, 2009 starts here for this pilgrim. I find it hard to say exactly what happened last summer, but the blog dried up, almost died altogether...but here's my attempt at reviving it. Hopefully I'll have the ideas and energy to keep it going long into the year.I don't do new year resolutions. They get a pretty bad press and rightly so - I know very few people who seem able to make them stick for more than a few weeks. However, I have started 2009 with a renewed vigour for the 'spiritual disciplines'. As I reviewed last year for our family newsletter, I realised just how much I'd gained from my college course on spiritual formation, which got me into practising various disciplines - I blogged about this some time ago - yet, like the blog, I'd lost the thread and allowed the habit to wain. So I determined to do something about this, not least because I'm taking up a major new challenge at work this year and I daren't enter into that without having a regular source of fuel for the journey.
My plan is to take a particular discipline each month and to spend some time each day pursuing it. January is my month for Silence and Solitude. I've enjoyed some excellent times so far (and one or two where staying awake has been problematic!), helped by Thomas Merton's 'New seeds of contemplation'. It's one of those devotional books in which you could reflect on each sentence for days - a veritable treasure and well worth the investment.
In the next blog, I'll try to share something of my experience of silence and solitude. For now, ssshhhhh!!!........
