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Category: Monk in the World Guest Post Series

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Call for Submissions: Monk in the World Guest Post Series

We welcome you to submit your reflection for possible publication in our Monk in the World guest post series. It is a gift to read how ordinary people are living lives of depth and meaning in the midst of the challenges of real life. There are so many talented writers and artists in this Abbey community, so this is a chance to share your perspective. The reflection will be included in our weekly newsletter which goes out to more than 9000 subscribers. Please follow these instructions carefully: Details: Please click this link to read a selection of the posts and get a feel for the

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Monk in the World guest post: Elysha O’Brien

I am delighted to share another beautiful submission for the Monk in the World guest post series from the community. Read on for Elysha O’Brien’s wisdom on living contemplatively in the chaos: We are a People of Pattern It is morning. The children have been sent out the door and the downstairs neighbor’s dog begins to howl and cry and yip. My day has already started with noise and chaos and it will take everything in my power to rein it back. But the dog… the dog with his high pitched bark and relentless cry, telling the world his saga of agony and abandonment.

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Monk in the World guest post: Deborah Svec

I am delighted to share another beautiful submission for the Monk in the World guest post series from the community. Read on for Deborah Svec’s wisdom on remembering who she is: Retreat to Remember Being more fully present to “ordinary” life requires a retreat from the everyday from time to time.  With a circle of women, I make a pilgrimage to the mountains, where I can remember who I am and see more clearly my place in the larger world.  This year was our fourth trip to the mountains for a week-long spiritual retreat. Rather than sitting and looking out at the landscape for

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Monk in the World guest post: Alicia Dykstra

I am delighted to share another beautiful submission for the Monk in the World guest post series from the community. Read on for Alicia Dykstra’s wisdom on the gifts of being a “grazer”: Grazing People often say you are what you eat. I never took that too literally, but at one point it occurred to me that the saying is true at many different levels. As a monk in the world we are called to pay attention, so I thought this all through some more and tried to figure out what God was trying to tell me. I love to graze and nibble snacks

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Monk in the World guest post: Alexander Gilchrist

I am delighted to share another beautiful submission for the Monk in the World guest post series from the community. Read on for Alexander Gilchrist’s wisdom about finding contemplative moments on the commuter train: As much as we complain about the service, the trains generally run on time. That means the express train to New York’s Grand Central Terminal is going to be pulling into my station around 6:21 a.m. and pulling out at 6:23 a.m. – whether I’m on it or not. That dependability has sometimes forced me to sprint through the parking lot like a 50-plus year old schoolboy in order to

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Monk in the World guest post: Angela Doll Carlson

Another wonderful submission for the Monk in the World guest post series from the community. Read on for Angela Doll Carlson’s wisdom on living as a monk in the world: 11:11 A number of years ago I took a silent retreat at the Abbey at Gethsemane near Bowling Green, Kentucky. At that time of my life my four children were still very young. I was burned out and overwhelmed.  The trip to the monastery was rest and nurturing. I remember the lush grounds and the quiet early morning chanting. I remember the feel of the sparse quarters, comforting, completely adequate. I was alone for the

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Monk in the World guest post: Lynn Domina

This week in our Monk in the World guest post series we have a reflection from fellow monk Lynn Domina. Read on for her wisdom on paying attention as a contemplative practice: The Pleasure of Attention Driving the route I ordinarily take from my home to the next town over, across a few hills and one mountain, around several curves always winding generally north, I pass thousands of trees. They all look alike, green in summer, red and orange in the fall, bare in winter. Many are conifers though, and so they do differ from the deciduous maple, oak, and ash. I

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