Vibrant Rhythms

Exploring spirituality in daily living
June 2026 issue, Vol. 1:1

 

 

Dear friend, I hope this bimonthly newsletter will help us as we explore together the “spiritual whitespace” around the text of our lives.

– Betsy Schwarzentraub

Grace Notes

“Prayer is a serene force at work within human beings, stirring them up, transforming them, never allowing them to close their eyes in the face of evil, of wars, of all that threatens the weak of this world. From it we draw energy to wage other struggles—to enable our loved ones to survive, to transform the human condition, to make the earth a place fit to live in.”

– Brother Roger of Taizé

Exploring Forgiveness

Mindfulness

I’ve been learning a lot from research on my next book, Time to Forgive? Walking the Labyrinth to Freedom. I hope it will help us dig down into one or more hurtful life experiences and consider whether or not to work through the pain, to be able to let go of feeling like forever victims and discover agency in our lives once again. I’m not telling people what they “should” do, but sharing real people’s stories of when they said yes or no in different real-life situations and how it helped them to take a next step.

 

One aspect of exploring forgiving is developing greater mindfulness:  practicing getting un-stuck from how we may have over-invested in the harm others have done to us, or we have done to ourselves. It’s wearying always feeling like the victim and trotting out our grievance stories. It’s also exhausting pretending that justice doesn’t matter and we should “simply move on.”

 

Currently I’m taking a class in mindful meditation. Part of it is learning that it’s possible to be involved in life but also to be an observer, able to assess the truth of what others say and of the habitual thought loops of my own mind. Whether we’re dealing with seemingly endless minor irritations or with a major violation, our mindful response can help clarify what we value most and rediscover some joy and freedom in life once more.

 

This kind of book “research” isn’t so much information as it is integration of wisdom that forms a larger picture when different pieces come together. The question of forgiving can be a nearly impossible challenge, and also a prompt to inner growth, regardless of our background. I have cherished the stories people have shared so far along the way.

Living with Enough

“If some is good, more is better.” Somehow I grew up with that idea, even though it’s often not true. Some food is tasty and delightful; more food is overstuffed. Some money helps great things happen; the drive for more money is a relentless taskmaster.

 

In Swimming Upstream, author Christine Roush says that happiness seems to be “a lot less about having what you want, than wanting [valuing] what you have.” That sure seems true to me! It’s taken a lifetime to figure some of this out.

 

And the purpose of having what we’ve been given isn’t to hold onto it and hoard it. As Paul (in the Bible) said to the house church in Corinth, “God is able to provide you with every blessing in abundance, so that by always having enough of everything, you may share abundantly in every good work.” [Italics mine.] “So that” is the purpose: to share what we have and who we are with one another, giving and receiving, mutually engaged.

Reflecting the Light

“most this amazing”
I allowed myself just one poetry class in college, thinking I had to focus on “useful” subjects. (My mind has changed since then.) That one course prompted me to discover the poetry of e. e. cummings.

 

 

 

 

For more than thirty years, I recited one of his poems the first thing every morning. It begins this way:

i thank You God for most this amazing
day: for the leaping greenly spirits of trees
and a blue true dream of sky; and for everything
which is natural which is infinite which is yes

I won’t quote it all, but you can look it up to get the whole thing and see why it’s worth at least thirty years. It has been enough to open my heart to whatever grittiness, beauty, or challenge each day might bring. Not that I remember the reality of God throughout entire days, but it prepares me and sometimes reminds me along the way.

 

So how do we reflect the Light that God intends for us each day? I’m lucky to remember the Light, let alone reflect it. But that’s where some habits, called “spiritual disciplines,” can help. For example,  reading short Bible texts and chewing on their meaning, preferably with a partner or friend.

 

Whatever my daily habits, I’m reminded each dawn that I “have died and am alive again today.” I can trust that somehow God’s Light shines through.

– Betsy

Naming the Wonder

Building Up and Washing Away

In The Book of Awakening, Mark Nepo offers a reflection for every day of the year. In one called “Sustaining Wonder,” he notes how our lives are filled with times that build up and then erode, like wind building up sand dunes and then the tide undermining the dune. This rhythm of action can transform us, from our early years building, to our later years letting go. In the midst of it, we may grow in wonder.

 

As Nepo and so many others often say, the key is to live fully in the present moment. Nepo writes:

“In truth, our aliveness depends on our ability to sustain wonder: to lengthen the moments we are truly uncovered, to be still and quiet till all the elements of the earth and all the secrets of the oceans stir the aspects of life waiting within us.”

I wonder:

1. What have been the times of building up in my life so far? And the times of having things wash away?

2. What essentials does this rhythm leave strengthened within me?

3. What are the aspects that are being changed, maybe even transformed, in the process?

About the Author

Rev. Dr. Betsy Schwarzentraub is a five-time author and retired minister. She writes books, articles and blogs about Christian worship seasons, inclusive faith practices, and exploring spirituality in daily living. See more at https://generousstewards.com/personal-bio/