Mary O'Connell

Living Arts Weekly: Reflecting

November 4, 2018 We are mirrored into life, not by concepts but by faces delighting in us, giving us the beloved self-image we can’t give ourselves.   -Richard Rohr This autumn time, as we in the Northern Hemisphere settle into longer nights and shorter days, calls us to reflection. As we take our evening walk, we […]

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Living Arts Weekly: Treating

October 28, 2018 There is magic in the night when pumpkins glow with candlelight Happy Halloween weekend! Facebook and Instagram are full of great photos of smiling kids with heaping full bags of candy.  Early on in my parenting journey, I spent weeks sewing adorable costumes for my children. The sweet little pumpkin costume for

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Living Arts Weekly: Settling

October 21, 2018   Each week in our Living Arts Weekly blog post, we begin with a quote about the topic at hand.  Let me just say that Google is my best friend in finding an appropriate quote each week. (Seriously, what did people do before Google? They probably read a lot more. Note to

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Living Arts Weekly: Collecting

October 14, 2018 Collect moments, not things. As a child, I remember starting “collections” of dolls, or figurines, or coins, or other items. At first the collecting was exciting, and family members always knew what to get me for my birthday or for Christmas. After awhile, I just really just wasn’t into that thing anymore,

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Living Arts Weekly: Warming

October 7, 2018 Warmth is the vital element for the growing plant and for the soul of the child. – Carl Jung   When I think of the gifts that LifeWays North America brings to families and early childhood programs, I believe one of the greatest is Warmth.  Not only the attention to the physical

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Living Arts Weekly: Preparing

September 30, 2018 Little squirrel up in the tree, runs along the branch so free Gathering nuts to nibble and crunch, saving them for winter’s lunch! Won’t you stop and play with me? No, no, no, I’m busy you see! This time of year calls us to prepare. Like the approaching cold months urging the squirrel

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Living Arts Weekly: Transforming

September 23, 2018 “Change leads to disappointment if it is not sustained. Transformation is sustained change, and it is achieved through practice.” ~ B.K.S. Iyengar This week begins with the Autumn Equinox and ends with Michaelmas! All around us we see signs of transformation at this time of year. The equinox is the time at

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Living Arts Weekly: Turning

September 16, 2018 The goldenrod is yellow, The corn is turning brown, The trees in apple orchards With fruit are bending down  – Helen Hunt Jackson As summer turns to autumn, the fall fruits are ready to be picked. Apples, pears peaches and plums fill our bushel baskets and our bellies. My mother-in-law and I

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Living Arts Weekly: Laboring

September 2, 2018 The firewood you chop warms you twice. – Old English Proverb   One of my favorite stories to share with young children is the Little Red Hen. The simple, sweet repetition draws them into the story as the process of transforming wheat to bread takes place, and they love the poetic justice

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