Holiness in our Midst

Holiness in our Midst: Session 132

SESSION CXXXII: ON ‘OHANA

‘Story Circle Prompt: Who/what/where is your ‘ohana? What can you do to nourish it?

As I sat down to ponder the concept of ‘ohana today (Aug. 28, 2023), there happened to be a front-page article about it in The Des Moines Register. The topic was top of mind, of course because of the recent wildfires in Maui, leaving more than a hundred persons killed and undetermined numbers missing. In cable news interviews after the fires, I heard both Native Islanders and frequent tourists reverently refer to the historic city of Lahaina and its neighborhoods as their “‘ohana.” Rooted in the Hawaiian term for “family,” “’ohana,” goes beyond biological relatives and refers to extended family and community members.

The Register article (by Bobby Calna Calvan, Joe C. Hong and Mike Householder) noted that after the tragedy “… the Hawaiian spirit known as ‘ohana endures.” The writers continued: “In the Hawaiian lexicon, ‘ohana is a sensibility, a way of thinking that means family, belonging, community and so much more – solace in a time of calamity It is a unifying principle in an increasingly fragmented world. And, in recent weeks, amid misfortune, the word has taken on profound importance in a place appealing for help.”

The tragic events in the Pacific prompted me to think about whether I have an ‘ohana now that most of my family have passed away or live in other states. My conclusion is that my ‘ohana for many years was centered in the Iowa small towns (Maxwell, State Center, and Nevada) where my maternal grandparents had created strong family-like community connections. In the present, though, I have focused on nurturing several mini-‘ohanas that serve me well: my tight-knit spiritual formation group called Prairiefire, through which I am studying to become a spiritual director; my circle of long-time friends; and my First Christian Church community in Ames, where I not only count on support for my social justice endeavors, but also where I have been tended to emotionally and even physically (during my time with cancer).

The recent news revealed the longstanding spirit of ‘ohana that shines through a people connected to one another and the land they share. When such bonds are established with love over generations, we see that they exemplify strength powerful enough to survive tragedy.

FOR PERSONAL/JOURNAL REFLECTION:

1. Read the above reflection. In your journal, answer the question: Do you have an extended family circle/community that is your ‘ohana? Is it attached to a geographical location or an organization or group? Who has been there for you in hard times?

FOR GROUP STUDY: 

1.  Read aloud Session CXXXII.
2.  Ask each person to answer the Story Circle Prompt.

Holiness in Our Midst: Sharing Our Stories to Encourage and Heal is a monthly on-line feature created by Janis Pyle to facilitate sharing of our personal experiences, thoughts, beliefs, and spiritual practices with one another, especially through stories. Barriers are broken down when we begin to see all persons, even those with whom we disagree ideologically, as sacred and constantly attended to by a loving Creator. Each column is accompanied by a “story circle” prompt and study guides for personal and group reflection. To share your stories, contact Hannah Button-Harrison at communications@nplains.org. Janis Pyle can be reached at janispyle@yahoo.com

Holiness in our Midst: Session 131

SESSION CXXXI: ON ‘MY TOUCHSTONE PLACE’

Story Circle Prompt: Do you have a “Touchstone Place?”

In her book, Keeping a Nature Journal, Clare Walker Leslie uses the phrase “My Touchstone Place” about her “sanctuary in every season,” Mount Auburn Cemetery and Arboretum near Cambridge, MA. She writes that it is “America’s first landscaped cemetery, encompassing 175 acres of dells, glades, woods, and ponds.”* It has been the source of many drawings in her beautifully illustrated journals.

My “Touchstone Place” is a swinging gate I call “My Measuring Post,” which guards the lane on the west side of my grandparents’ farm near State Center, IA. Perhaps you have chosen such a reference place as a reminder of what is most important to you. Mine exists as a relatively permanent “fixed point” to go back to, a place where I can review whether I am living up to the benchmarks I set for myself. I have stood at my gate to evaluate the pros and cons of every major decision, since I was a child: How do I solve this life issue? Where should I go to college? Should I marry ____? Should I take this job opportunity? Though Grandpa and Grandma Albright have been gone for many years, I still drive past “their” gate whenever I am at a crossroads in my life. Sometimes I open the gate and literally walk down the lane and do a whole life overview with God: Have I made good decisions? Have I done and am I doing God’s will? What changes do I need to make? It is comforting to have found a place to measure spiritual growth.

*Leslie, Clare Walker. Keeping a Nature Journal (North Adams, MA: Storey Publishing, 2021), 13.

FOR PERSONAL/JOURNAL REFLECTION:

1. Read the above reflection. Clare Walker Leslie, author of Keeping a Nature Journal, coined the phrase Daily Exceptional Images (DEI), which she describes as “some gem from the outdoors that I can latch onto when feeling distracted, dulled by routine, or deeply worried.” Examples she gave were: “Jeweled raindrops hanging upside down from a pine” and “Waxing summer moon rises to east over highway.”* In your journal, answer the following: What are today’s exceptional images from your unique vantage point on the world?
   
   *Leslie, Clare Walker. Keeping a Nature Journal (North Adams, MA: Storey Publishing, 2021), 82, 83.

FOR GROUP STUDY: 

1.  Read aloud Session CXXXI.
2.  Ask each person to answer the Story Circle Prompt.

Holiness in Our Midst: Sharing Our Stories to Encourage and Heal is a monthly on-line feature created by Janis Pyle to facilitate sharing of our personal experiences, thoughts, beliefs, and spiritual practices with one another, especially through stories. Barriers are broken down when we begin to see all persons, even those with whom we disagree ideologically, as sacred and constantly attended to by a loving Creator. Each column is accompanied by a “story circle” prompt and study guides for personal and group reflection. To share your stories, contact Hannah Button-Harrison at communications@nplains.org. Janis Pyle can be reached at janispyle@yahoo.com

Holiness in our Midst: Session 130

SESSION CXXX: ON ‘A COMMITTEE OF ONE’

Story Circle Prompt: When did you take action as a “committee of one?”

The phrase “committee of one” came from Opal Lee, 96, often referred to as “the Grandmother of Juneteenth,” as she was being interviewed by CNN on June 19 of this year. She was calling attention to the power of a single voice when a cause seems daunting. Lee herself captured the world’s attention by a series of walks from Fort Worth, TX to the U.S. capital, beginning in 2016, to advocate for the national holiday to commemorate the end of slavery in the United States. Influenced in part by her efforts, President Joe Biden signed a bill declaring June 19 a federal holiday in 2021. 

My lifelong passionate interest in the cause of homelessness began when I was a “committee of one.” In the mid-eighties, when I lived in downtown Chicago, the city’s estimated 25,000 homeless were increasingly visible. It became the daily norm to see street people sifting through trash barrels for edible waste. My first, unreflected reaction was anger: Couldn’t these people help themselves? And, what about the authorities, weren’t they going to do something? When I realized the answer to both questions was no, I began a personal “policy” to deal with daily requests for money:

• I would always carry extra bills in my pocket and give at least a dollar to any person who asked for help.
  
• I would always look the homeless in the eye and smile.
  
• I would always treat the homeless with the dignity and kindness I afford to family.

Once it was forged, I followed my three-point “policy” while I lived in Chicago.

One homeless man caught on fast to my altruism. George, an African American man in his early thirties, positioned himself along my path. I found myself aiding him almost daily for a year and a half. The written and spoken account of our unlikely friendship, called “George of the Streets,” has impacted homelessness awareness in communities in Illinois and Iowa. George taught me many life lessons as he managed, at least for a while, to live a satisfying daily life against enormous odds. His story still propels me to action; today I am on the community board  of Good Neighbor Emergency Assistance, a non-profit offering emergency rent, utility, gas and food assistance in my county.

Have you championed an idea or cause by yourself, at least at first?

FOR PERSONAL/JOURNAL REFLECTION:

1. Read the above reflection. In your journal, answer the following: When did you take action simply because you believed in a cause or an idea? What happened next?

FOR GROUP STUDY: 

1.  Read aloud Session CXXX.
2.  Ask each person to answer the Story Circle Prompt.

Holiness in Our Midst: Sharing Our Stories to Encourage and Heal is a monthly on-line feature created by Janis Pyle to facilitate sharing of our personal experiences, thoughts, beliefs, and spiritual practices with one another, especially through stories. Barriers are broken down when we begin to see all persons, even those with whom we disagree ideologically, as sacred and constantly attended to by a loving Creator. Each column is accompanied by a “story circle” prompt and study guides for personal and group reflection. To share your stories, contact Hannah Button-Harrison at communications@nplains.org. Janis Pyle can be reached at janispyle@yahoo.com

Holiness in our Midst: Session 129

SESSION CXXIX: ON ‘DREAMS FULFILLED’

Story Circle Prompt: Share a story about a dream fulfilled.

Because I have a fondness for live musical theater, a reverence for Africa and a penchant for wild creativity, seeing a production of The Lion King with Broadway actors has long been at the top of my “Bucket List,” aka as my “Things to Do Before I Die” list. On April 16, 2023, with help from friends new and old, I checked off this wish. 

As I relive my dream come true, I realize the magic was not just in the show at the Civic Center in Des Moines, though there was plenty with “elephants” suddenly emerging from aisles and actors swinging from rafters—all moving to the constant beat of African drums. A good share of the lasting beauty was that I was accompanied on my journey. Because I am a bona fide fraidy cat driving interstates by myself in rain and snow, and especially navigating downtown Des Moines at night, friends gladly stepped in to provide meals (Italian pasta) and snacks (homemade chocolate chip cookies), transportation (curbside service), and lodging (a cozy bed) for this adventure of a lifetime. There was even a Lion King poster, deluxe booklet, and backpack waiting for me in my seat at the theater! In asking for some assistance, I received abundantly. A simple wish, stated out loud, became a spiritual experience. (I am, of course, available to make my friends’ dreams come to fruition.) I am still humming the theme song, “Circle of Life,” as I dream new dreams. Do you have a story of a dream fulfilled?

FOR PERSONAL/JOURNAL REFLECTION:

1. Read the above reflection. In your journal, answer the following: What is one thing you would like to do, see, or experience in your lifetime? What is the first step you can take to make this dream come true?

FOR GROUP STUDY: 

1.  Read aloud Session CXXIX.
2.  Ask each person to answer the Story Circle Prompt.

Holiness in Our Midst: Sharing Our Stories to Encourage and Heal is a monthly on-line feature created by Janis Pyle to facilitate sharing of our personal experiences, thoughts, beliefs, and spiritual practices with one another, especially through stories. Barriers are broken down when we begin to see all persons, even those with whom we disagree ideologically, as sacred and constantly attended to by a loving Creator. Each column is accompanied by a “story circle” prompt and study guides for personal and group reflection. To share your stories, contact Hannah Button-Harrison at communications@nplains.org. Janis Pyle can be reached at janispyle@yahoo.com

Holiness in our Midst: Session 128

SESSION CXXVIII: ON ‘A GIFT TO MOTHER NATURE’

Story Circle Prompt: What gift would you give Mother Nature for Mother’s Day?

Viewers were asked to respond to this evocative question on a Weather Channel program on the Monday after Mother’s Day, 2022. My answer has an immediate quality, given that today (April 27, 2023) the Mississippi River is overflowing its banks in several picturesque Iowa cities, including Burlington, where I spent two transformational high school years. Mother Nature seems in peril! If I had a magic wand to grant her three wishes, I would immediately declare every day to be Earth Day. Secondly, I would invite every country to take climate change seriously and, thirdly, I would empower individuals to be good stewards in their daily lives. My personal gift to Mother Nature this year is to be more conscious of the waste I generate, especially the number of plastic grocery bags and amount of packaging materials. What would you like to give back to Mother Nature?

FOR PERSONAL/JOURNAL REFLECTION:

1. Read the above reflection. In your journal, answer the following: What do you believe to be Earth’s most pressing issue today? How can you address it?

FOR GROUP STUDY: 

1.  Read aloud Session CXXVIII.
2.  Ask each person to answer the Story Circle Prompt.

Holiness in Our Midst: Sharing Our Stories to Encourage and Heal is a monthly on-line feature created by Janis Pyle to facilitate sharing of our personal experiences, thoughts, beliefs, and spiritual practices with one another, especially through stories. Barriers are broken down when we begin to see all persons, even those with whom we disagree ideologically, as sacred and constantly attended to by a loving Creator. Each column is accompanied by a “story circle” prompt and study guides for personal and group reflection. To share your stories, contact Hannah Button-Harrison at communications@nplains.org. Janis Pyle can be reached at janispyle@yahoo.com

Holiness in our Midst: Session 127

SESSION CXXVII: ON ‘A HAPPY HEART’

Story Circle Prompt: What makes your heart happy?

I happened to find this question, appropriately enough, on a white board in the waiting room of a Des Moines counseling center. The answers that clients wrote were mostly names of pets and close relatives. One person simply wrote “smiles.” 

My current answer would be a newfound source of heart-happiness, that is, choir music! Recently, an event buoyed my spirits for an afternoon and well beyond. I attended the 2023 Spring Choral Concert, a fundraiser for Good Neighbor Emergency Assistance, as a community board member. Our organization offers emergency rent, utility, gas, and food assistance in Story County.

Titled “You Do Not Walk Alone,” the program showcased seven professional community choirs, a combined choir, and one especially assembled (along with an orchestra) to perform the choral masterwork, Requiem, Op. 48, by French composer Gabriel Fauré. On a snowy Sunday afternoon in March, I was not alone in being transported and transformed by heavenly sounds, sweet notes of children and somber tones of the Requiem soloists, that found permanent places in our hearts. What makes your heart happy?

FOR PERSONAL/JOURNAL REFLECTION:

1. Read the above reflection. In your journal, answer the following: What is the happiest thing that happened to you today? In the past week? In the past month? In the past year? Ever?

FOR GROUP STUDY: 

1.   Read aloud Session CXXVII.
2.   Ask each person to answer the Story Circle Prompt.

Holiness in Our Midst: Sharing Our Stories to Encourage and Heal is a monthly on-line feature created by Janis Pyle to facilitate sharing of our personal experiences, thoughts, beliefs, and spiritual practices with one another, especially through stories. Barriers are broken down when we begin to see all persons, even those with whom we disagree ideologically, as sacred and constantly attended to by a loving Creator. Each column is accompanied by a “story circle” prompt and study guides for personal and group reflection. To share your stories, contact Hannah Button-Harrison at communications@nplains.org. Janis Pyle can be reached at janispyle@yahoo.com

Holiness in our Midst: Session 126

SESSION CXXVI: ON ‘ASSIGNMENTS FROM GOD’

Story Circle Prompt: Do you ever feel you are “on assignment from God?” Can you define the entrustment? Or, when have you felt you were meant to be in a certain place or role?

These questions arise from the story of Tyre Nichols, the African American man who was beaten by Memphis police after a traffic stop on Jan. 7, 2023 and died in the hospital three days later. His mother said that the only way that she was able to carry on with her life was to believe that her son was “on assignment from God” in the tragic event. She hoped that “greater good” would come from communities coming together to work for peace in the aftermath of such violence. This mother’s assertion prompts a question worth pondering: Are each of us here “on assignment” from a Higher Power?

To answer for myself, I felt “on assignment” when I moved to the family farm to care for my grandmother during her last days.

I felt “on assignment” when I cared for persons with profound disabilities for many years in residential care settings.

I feel “on assignment” whenever I serve cups of cold water (and hot coffee) to residents at the assisted living center where I work today. 

And I feel “on assignment” whenever I write about seeing “God moments” in everyday life.

I can never know for sure if I have ever been “on Divine task,” but confirmation comes in small sweet ways. The subject was birthdays the other day when I was chatting with a convenience store clerk. We had been co-workers for 10 years in a group home setting. In an offhand way, she said, “You realize you were born to care for persons with disabilities and to write, don’t you?”

“Maybe so,” I said.

FOR PERSONAL/JOURNAL REFLECTION:

1. Read the above reflection. In your journal, answer the following: Do you feel you are “on assignment” from God? What are you doing when you are most in sync with the Universe?

FOR GROUP STUDY: 

1.   Read aloud Session CXXVI.

2.   Ask each person to answer the Story Circle Prompt.

Holiness in Our Midst: Sharing Our Stories to Encourage and Heal is a monthly on-line feature created by Janis Pyle to facilitate sharing of our personal experiences, thoughts, beliefs, and spiritual practices with one another, especially through stories. Barriers are broken down when we begin to see all persons, even those with whom we disagree ideologically, as sacred and constantly attended to by a loving Creator. Each column is accompanied by a “story circle” prompt and study guides for personal and group reflection. To share your stories, contact Hannah Button-Harrison at communications@nplains.org. Janis Pyle can be reached at janispyle@yahoo.com

Holiness in our Midst: Session 125

SESSION CXXV: ON ‘NEAR DEATH’ EXPERIENCES

Story Circle Prompt: If you knew you might only have a short time to live, what would you do differently now?

First, another question: Where were you on Jan. 2, 2023, when America stopped and dropped to its knees on behalf of a single unresponsive NFL player? I was wandering around my living room, having taken in the Rose Parade earlier (on Monday because they don’t hold it on Sunday), and wondering what football games were on. I turned on Monday Night Football and stumbled on the riveting scene unfolding in a game between the Buffalo Bills and the Cleveland Bengals. Damron Hamlin, wide receiver for Buffalo, was fighting for his life right in front of our eyes. The next evening Hamlin’s fate was still unknown when CNN anchor Anderson Cooper was interviewing Super Bowl-winning tight end Benjamin Watson on the tenuousness of life. Cooper paused and tossed out the rhetorical question, as an aside to their conversation on the importance of faith: If you knew you might only have a short time to live, what would you do differently now?

The essence of the question is spiritual in nature: Has a “near death” experience changed the course of your life? 

The first thing that Hamlin did, upon awakening, was begin collecting money for the nurses and first responders who saved his life.

For me, recovery from cancer resulted in a renewed vow to live each day more fully, faithfully, and honestly.

How have you responded to a “near death” encounter, real or vicarious?

FOR PERSONAL/JOURNAL REFLECTION:

1. Read the above reflection. In your journal, answer the following: Have you had a life-altering experience that caused you to make changes? What was the event? What were the changes? 

FOR GROUP STUDY: 

 1.   Read aloud Session CXXV.

  2.   Ask each person to answer the Story Circle Prompt.

Holiness in Our Midst: Sharing Our Stories to Encourage and Heal is a monthly on-line feature created by Janis Pyle to facilitate sharing of our personal experiences, thoughts, beliefs, and spiritual practices with one another, especially through stories. Barriers are broken down when we begin to see all persons, even those with whom we disagree ideologically, as sacred and constantly attended to by a loving Creator. Each column is accompanied by a “story circle” prompt and study guides for personal and group reflection. To share your stories, contact Hannah Button-Harrison at communications@nplains.org. Janis Pyle can be reached at janispyle@yahoo.com

Holiness in our Midst: Session 124

SESSION CXXIV: ON ‘ONE SURE THING’

Story Circle Prompt: As the New Year begins, what is “one sure thing” in your life that you can build on?

This question challenges us to look beyond the uncertainty that clouds the horizon as we enter 2023. What is foundational enough to counter fears such as climate change and political unrest?

One sure thing for me is my support force, my local safety net: the medical team that helped me survive through and thrive after cancer; my church family at First Christian Church in Ames; my Prairiefire spiritual formation class and spiritual director; my quirky work community, and my long-standing friendships. 

Taken together, my circle of support enables me to try new things, take personal risks, and dare to dream, even though I am entering my final years.

What is “one sure thing” for you?

FOR PERSONAL/JOURNAL REFLECTION:

1. Read the above reflection. In your journal, answer the following: What is “one sure thing” I can count on? What relationships can I depend on?

FOR GROUP STUDY: 

 1.   Read aloud Session CXXIV.

  2.   Ask each person to answer the Story Circle Prompt.

Holiness in Our Midst: Sharing Our Stories to Encourage and Heal is a monthly on-line feature created by Janis Pyle to facilitate sharing of our personal experiences, thoughts, beliefs, and spiritual practices with one another, especially through stories. Barriers are broken down when we begin to see all persons, even those with whom we disagree ideologically, as sacred and constantly attended to by a loving Creator. Each column is accompanied by a “story circle” prompt and study guides for personal and group reflection. To share your stories, contact Hannah Button-Harrison at communications@nplains.org. Janis Pyle can be reached at janispyle@yahoo.com

Holiness in our Midst: Session 123

SESSION CXXIII: ON CHRISTMAS MOVIES

Story Circle Prompt: What is your favorite Christmas movie? Why?

My favorite Christmas movie is “It’s a Wonderful Life.” The plot line is timeless. In the small town of Bedford Falls, George Bailey owns a savings and loan company that benefits the community. His nemesis, Henry Potter, is always looking for opportunities to take over George’s business and the town. When it appears to George that all is lost (including his livelihood and family), because of Mr. Potter, an angel named Clarence is sent from Heaven to show him what life in his town would have been like if he had never been born.

The spiritual question that the movie asks is a profound one: What would the world (or my family or communities) look like if I had never been born? Perhaps, I will make it my New Year’s Resolution for the coming year to answer it. 

FOR PERSONAL/JOURNAL REFLECTION:

1. Read the above reflection. In your journal, contemplate the spiritual question: What value have I added through the years to my little corner of the world?

FOR GROUP STUDY: 

1. Read aloud Session CXXXII.
2. Ask each person to answer the Story Circle Prompt.

Holiness in Our Midst: Sharing Our Stories to Encourage and Heal is a monthly on-line feature created by Janis Pyle to facilitate sharing of our personal experiences, thoughts, beliefs, and spiritual practices with one another, especially through stories. Barriers are broken down when we begin to see all persons, even those with whom we disagree ideologically, as sacred and constantly attended to by a loving Creator. Each column is accompanied by a “story circle” prompt and study guides for personal and group reflection. To share your stories, contact Hannah Button-Harrison at communications@nplains.org. Janis Pyle can be reached at janispyle@yahoo.com