I don’t like to make New Year's resolutions. Instead, I like to celebrate people who have helped me change my life. Here are a few that I want to celebrate this year:
1.All of my knitting students past and present. They always inspire and teach me with their creativity.
2. My Steven's Minister, Diane, who helped me put the pieces of my life back together during a very difficult time.
Here are some excerpts from an article that I was asked to write about my experience having a Steven's Minister:
"Stephen’s Ministry
I had just found out that my husband of 33 years was having an affair. I felt stunned, devastated---my world of love, trust and security was shattered into tiny bits flying all around me. As I shared what was happening with a close friend, she encouraged me to ask for a Stephen’s Minister.
My Stephen’s Minister listened with great compassion, never judging, or even suggesting what I should be doing. We met weekly and I began to think of our time together as my “life-raft” in a sea of confusion and fear. Her thought-provoking questions, her listening ear and heart, her deep caring about me helped clear my mind, giving me clarity about my situation and about God’s love and Presence in the midst of such an awful time in my life.
In trying to think of an analogy of how Diane helped me through this time, I draw upon my experiences as a“birthing doula”. My role as a doula was to be a labor and delivery coach to help women through childbirth. I couldn’t take their pain away or do the work of labor for them, but I could encourage them, remind them of what they were doing, offer comfort and support. Diane was very much a labor coach as I “birthed” a new life. She couldn’t take my pain away but she was a loving, comforting presence who helped me stay focused on God’s love and the goodness of all of the wonderful people in my life.
I can never give back to her what she gave to me; my gratitude for Diane and the Stephen’s Ministry program is boundless. God’s presence and love is so alive in this ministry."
There are several books on Amazon about Stephen’s Ministry if you would like to learn more about it.
3. Father Bob Albright
Father Bob was the chaplain at the Newman Center at Towson University for many years until he retired. Max and I started attending Mass there about 8 years ago and took his Bible Study class. Many things that he said in his homilies and in Bible Study touched something deep inside of me spiritually. What he said were beliefs that I had but never knew how to put them into words. It was like a light clicked on inside me and I will now be forever changed.
Father Bob has written several books that can be purchased from Amazon.
4. William Paul Young
William Paul Young is the author of a book called The Shack. One of the best gifts I have ever received
was reading that book. The book speaks of Papa’s Love through other people. ( If you
want to know who “Papa” is read The Shack. Not everyone has loved this book as I have,
but that’s OK, it spoke to me and I’m grateful.) You can read more about it or buy it at www.amazon.com
Something new is going on in my knitting world. A new adventure I
am having is learning how to do “Arm Knitting”. I’m making a scarf and here’s
what I have done so far:
Since I only cast on 10 stitches for the scarf, it is turning
into “Hand Knitting” rather than “Arm
Knitting”.
There are lots of free patterns and tutorials for “Arm
Knitting”.
Here are a few:
You can also do a search for “Arm Knitting” on
YouTube.
I hope that you have lots of “new adventures” this
year.
To find your own path of adventures:
Walk across the snow to make your own path!
And, if you have anyone in your life who has inspired or changed
your life, be sure and celebrate them by saying “thank you” to
them.
Love,
Mary
