{"id":1427,"date":"2021-02-10T16:07:11","date_gmt":"2021-02-10T21:07:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/redchairblogs.wpengine.com\/holymoly\/?p=1427"},"modified":"2021-02-10T16:07:11","modified_gmt":"2021-02-10T21:07:11","slug":"but-what-about-hope","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.lynchburg.edu\/holymoly\/2021\/02\/10\/but-what-about-hope\/","title":{"rendered":"But What About Hope?"},"content":{"rendered":"

I have had a hard few weeks. I have been angry and grumpy and have lost my temper more than I want to admit. Lots of my friends have had a rough time lately too. There is so much loss, so much grief, so much financial need, so much conflict and division in our world that I am really over it all. I am tired of \u201cvirtual,\u201d and frustrated at the number of small things that are taking me forever to accomplish (taxes, car registration, household repairs, grocery shopping). My brain keeps trying to drag me down rabbit holes of bad memories and my deepest fears. The bleakness of February has found me. But what about Hope?<\/span><\/p>\n

Preparing for next week\u2019s Ash Wednesday service has led me to reflection on how to turn this funk around. For clergy, the Ash Wednesday Service can be one of the simplest to plan all year. The imposition of ashes on the forehead is an important ritual and the actual liturgy changes very little from year to year. The last several years the Chaplains have added \u201cAshes on the Go,” and I have had some deeply renewing moments interacting so intimately with our community. None of the rituals I know will work this year.<\/span><\/p>\n

I purchased some <\/span>artwork<\/span><\/a>, <\/span>Stations of the Cross: Pandemic Hope<\/span><\/i>, and I purchased some <\/span>music<\/span><\/a>, \u201c<\/span>Ashes to Ashes,<\/span><\/i>\u201d written by a friend. Student workers and I are preparing individual containers of ashes. The artworks represent the traditional Christian sixteen stations of the cross paired with the 16 stanzas of Emily Dickinson\u2019s \u201c\u2018<\/span>Hope\u2019 is the thing with feathers.<\/span><\/i>\u201d I have found it challenging to put this meditation experience together, but I have also found it incredibly uplifting. I invite you to come and walk the space in the Chapel next Wednesday to reflect as well. Until then, have hope. Reach out if you need to glimpse something outside of your own gloom.\u00a0 Trust that grief lightens and that anger can grow still. Breathe and have hope.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cHope\u201d is the thing with feathers – (314)<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cHope\u201d is the thing with feathers –
\n<\/span>That perches in the soul –
\n<\/span>And sings the tune without the words –
\n<\/span>And never stops – at all –<\/span><\/p>\n

And sweetest – in the Gale – is heard –
\n<\/span>And sore must be the storm –
\n<\/span>That could abash the little Bird
\n<\/span>That kept so many warm –<\/span><\/p>\n

I\u2019ve heard it in the chillest land –
\n<\/span>And on the strangest Sea –
\n<\/span>Yet – never – in Extremity,
\n<\/span>It asked a crumb – of me.<\/span><\/p>\n

Ash Wednesday Meditation Experience
\n<\/strong>February 17
\n<\/strong>11:15 a.m. \u2013 1:15 p.m. and 6 \u2013 8 p.m.
\n<\/strong>Snidow Chapel<\/strong><\/p>\n

Ash Wednesday is the start of Lent and the Christian journey towards Easter. This year the Spiritual Life Center is offering a multi-sensory experience as a way to start Lent with intentionality and observe the tradition of the imposition of ashes in a socially distant way. You are invited to come to Snidow Chapel for self-guided meditation between 10:15 a.m. – 1:15 p.m. and 5 – 8 p.m. Artwork, poetry, and music will guide you through a series of reflections and self-imposition of ashes. All are welcome, and you may spend as much or as little time as you wish in reflection.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

I have had a hard few weeks. I have been angry and grumpy and have lost my temper more than I want to admit. Lots of my friends have had a rough time lately too. There is so much loss, …<\/p>\n

But What About Hope?<\/span> Read More »<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":9,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[5],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1427","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-stephanie"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p1QIf6-n1","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.lynchburg.edu\/holymoly\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1427","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.lynchburg.edu\/holymoly\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.lynchburg.edu\/holymoly\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.lynchburg.edu\/holymoly\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/9"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.lynchburg.edu\/holymoly\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1427"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.lynchburg.edu\/holymoly\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1427\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.lynchburg.edu\/holymoly\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1427"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.lynchburg.edu\/holymoly\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1427"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.lynchburg.edu\/holymoly\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1427"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}