Hi, I’m Becky. I thought I would tell you a little bit about myself.
It has been a while since I have introduced myself and there are some new people that have joined along, so it felt like a good time to tell you some of what makes me, me.
I grew up in the land of 10,000 lakes, snowy winters, and beautiful summers. My parents and faith community were a pathway into a relationship with Love, not a hurdle. My first career was that of an RN. My second career was that of a stay-at-home mom of three children. As my children began to leave the home and move out into their own, I embarked upon my third career: I am seminary-trained with a doctorate in Spiritual Formation and Leadership. From there I became a Spiritual Director and Supervisor and that is what I do now.
My spiritual direction practice is shaped by a contemplative stance.
Being a contemplative woman informs the posture I take as I move through and into the world. It is the way I live and move and have my being. For me, contemplation is a consistent, rhythmic, and embodied approach to living. It incorporates listening, hospitality, and discernment on the landscape of my life that is open and spacious. Being a contemplative affords generous hospitality to self and others, as well as genuine and spacious curiosity for all of life. Being a contemplative is grounded, rooted, and shaped by the goodness and generosity of Divine Love. Being a contemplative woman also means taking a subversive approach to life, as it undercuts and refuses to give way to the natural individualism and narcissism that pervades society.
I have traveled through the wide-open grasslands of my memories, into the dark caves of woundedness, along shorelines of curiosity and imagination, up mountains of dreams and desires, across oceans of brokenness, through the barren wilderness of disappointment and regret, over steep hills of perfectionism, and into mud holes of shame. I found myself basking in the sunshine of hope, slowly making my way through dense fog of doubt, inching my way through a raging sandstorm of self-criticism, and seeking shelter during blinding blizzards of hopelessness.
What terrains you have walked over?
I have two walking sticks—Love and Life.
They are my constant companions as I explore the vast terrains of my life. My trekking poles help navigate the various terrains by providing postural support and stability, grounding and guiding me as I make my way along. They also help me interpret and understand where I was and what I am experiencing as I intently and curiously search how to live the life I am living and love the life I have been given.
The walking stick of Love is shaped and filled with “Who,” more than “why” or “how.” Love is inherently mysterious. It describes the mystery of Love. Love’s incarnation reaches into the heart of material, biological, and social existence and even affects the darker sides of creation. All of life and creation are held and energized by Love. Everything that is created is in the process of being restored.
The walking stick of Life is created from Love. It is realized in a relationship with Love, experienced as freedom, healing, and belonging, and seen as a confident expectation and assurance by others. Second, we as humanity are the sons and daughters of the Good and Loving Holy One, who is loving, trustworthy, and reliable.
The walking sticks of Life and Love are available to you, to all, resulting in a new way of living. They give hope, cast a vision, and are a promise of transformation of desires and habits and the restoration of relationships with Love, self, and others. It is an invitation to live differently, in an alternative reality of flourishing and shalom. Humanity has been given a vision to explore and experience freedom and joy. No matter where you find yourself on the continuum toward wholeness (the integration and uniting of mind, heart, and body) and holiness (learning to live in the reality of the Love), Love is always present, loving, active, and restoring.
I believe we are all on the spiritual adventure of being human. I want to invite you to join me in the process of recovering our humanity. I in no way come as an expert, having figured out the ins and outs of living and loving well, but rather I come as a fellow human being on the journey of life and love, sharing my discoveries. I invite you to journey with me in the heart of Love and Life and begin to live the life you are living and love the life you have been given.
What walking sticks do you use? How well are they serving you?
What ground have you walked on this week? This month? This year?
As you read “to live the life you are living and love the life you have been given,” what do you notice? What do you notice in your mind? Your heart? Your body?