Words for the Heart

They can be like a sun, words.
They can do for the heart
what light can
for a field.

-St. John of the Cross, Love Poems from God (translated by Daniel Ladinsky)*

On January 1st I posted this invitation to share your word for the year and over 130 of you responded!  Reading through your words was moving, inspiring, and hope-filled, and I absolutely loved the explanations connected to them.  I wanted to honor this communal offering in a creative way, so I entered the words you posted into Wordle to create a word cloud and here is the result (you can see a larger version by clicking here or on the image):

WORDLE - Give Me a Word

*ADDED NOTE: Feel free to share the Wordle on your blog with a link to the original post (it's community art!).

And now the winners (with their words) of the random drawing for the four fabulous prizes:

GIVEAWAY #1: a one-month subscription to Flock (Maureen – REACH)

GIVEAWAY #2: a DVD of Mary Magdalene (Kel – SANCTUARY)

GIVEAWAY #3: a copy of Grace Unbound (Jemma – MOVEMENT)

GIVEAWAY #4: a copy of the French Republican Calendar (Jo-El – EXPAND)

*Thanks so much to everyone who participated!*

Feel free to still add your word to the beautiful pool of wisdom!

*thanks to Maureen for sharing this quote from one of my favorite books on another post

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* Come back on Monday for the next Poetry Party! *

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© Christine Valters Paintner at Abbey of the Arts:
Transformative Living through Contemplative & Expressive Arts

Lenten E-Course - Benedictine Spiritual Practices

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9 Responses to "Words for the Heart"

  1. Mary Beth says:

    I copied this Wordle and posted it at my blog…with attribution and a link. I hope that is okay. I love this exercise and adventure. thank you!!!

  2. Love your wordle! It seems sacred because each word was given much thought and is so meaningful to each person.

  3. Christine says:

    Absolutely Mary Beth.

    I wholeheartedly agree Bette, definitely a lot of sacred meaning here.

  4. Terri says:

    What hope there is for the world when a community can come together as reflected in the wordle. Truly sacred.

  5. Kel says:

    Christine, I'm excited to start the new year with a win :)
    I look forward to exploring the body as sanctuary

  6. Carolyn says:

    …wholly holy, a breath kissing the atmosphere, blessing us.

  7. Jan says:

    I saw your Wordle at Mary Beth's and now want to copy it–with attribution to you, of course. It is wonderful!

  8. Monika says:

    Word Clouds are wonderful. This entire exercise was graced with reflection, creativity, beauty and fun: a winning combination for ALL who participated!

  9. Christine says:

    Thanks everyone, such a wonderful celebration of shared beauty!

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