Stain Glass Lens of the 21st Century

Category: depression

  • Do Not Despair

    Do Not Despair

    It was a damp, cool and foggy morning; perfect for a walk through the park.  As we quietly strolled past the tall bare trees draped in mist and over small wooden bridges almost swamped by the over flowing streams I thought how perfect this weather fit my mood.

    The recent headlines had left a fog hanging over me, images of broken bodies pulled from tons of debris.  Two massive earthquakes in Turkey and Syria, the first at 4:00 a.m. on February 6th as folks were slumbering snuggly in their beds registered a 7.8 magnitude which was felt as far afield as Lebanon, Cyprus, Greece, Israel, and the Palestinian territories. A second quake, which recorded a magnitude of 7.5, struck just 9 hours later. Both resulting in a death count at 41,000 and rising.

    How can one look at the images, read the data, watch the carnage on the evening news and not be affected?  Besides donating funds (check out Canadian Red Cross at redcross.ca) we can also pray asking for God’s light, love and healing to reach each victim and strengthen the rescue workers.  

    It is easy to despair and feel vulnerable. We know that one minute these people were sleeping soundly and the next chaos ensued. We know they did not deserve this to happen and we know, from witnessing this devastation that it could happen to us too.  Perhaps our chaos may not come as an earthquake but may be disguised as a pandemic, cancer or a car accident. Some were left feeling anxious this past weekend as an American Fighter Jet shot down an Unidentified Flying Object over Lake Huron. This happened way too close to home!

    Thing is, we have only so much control over what happens in this world and there is no sense worrying over that which we cannot control.  What we can control is how we spend our days. The moments of our lives add up to the sum of our days and result in the story of our lives.  It matters that we handle what we can control well. 

    Richard Wagamese, a truly inspiring First Nations writer shares this wisdom,  

    “All we have are moments.  So live them as though not one can be wasted.  Inhabit them, fill them with the light of your best good intention, honour them with your full presence, find the joy, the calm, the assuredness that allows the hours and the days to take care of themselves.  If we can do that, we will have lived well.” (Embers, 161)

    May we all continue to hold the victims in our prayers while also shaping our moments into lives of light, joy, peace and love.

    Blessings,

    Rev. Heather McCarrel

    Photo by Dave Goudreau/Unsplash

  • Casting Kindness

    Casting Kindness

    I got caught in a net this week; a net of kindness.  It all started off so unassumingly.   I had phoned the cell phone supplier with questions regarding my bill and what seemed like 12 hours of being on hold my turn finally arrived.

    After explaining the reason for my call the operator politely sighed and in a soft and kind voice said, “Sometimes things happen that we have no control over.  I am sorry this has happened to you.  Let’s get this fixed today.”  She began to explain what she was doing as she clicked her computer keys. It was just a mix up on my bill and within minutes she had corrected the mistake.  As I thanked her, she again said, “As I said before, sometimes things happen that we have no control over.  It is hard but we can help each other out.”

    After hanging up the phone, I paused and wondered if she was an angel or some kind of Zen Master!  Who knew that having a billing mistake would make my day?

    She was right, there are times when things happen that we have no control over and it is hard, but together we help each other out.

    I suspect that is what Jesus meant when he called the fishermen to be his disciples.  It is written that Simon (also called Peter), his brother Andrew, James and his brother John put down their fishing nets so to follow Jesus. (Matthew 4:18-23)

    Jesus taught them how to use the nets of kindness, understanding, acceptance and healing words to catch those falling into despair and darkness.  Jesus knew the world was in need of such “catching”.

    It would seem Jesus also uses cell phone operators to do the same kind of healing.  I wonder what the world be like if we all followed Jesus’ teaching, “…in everything, do to others what you would have them do to you…” (Matthew 7:12) How many more could we catch?

    In these darkened days of winter let us all join in the work of Jesus’ fishermen and throw wide a net of kindness, gentleness and understanding.  As the Dalai Lama said, “Be kind whenever possible.  It is always possible.”

    Blessings,

    Rev. Heather McCarrel

    Photo by Andrew Thornebrooke/Unsplash

  • Buoying Boredom

    Buoying Boredom

    Photo by Skyler Ewing/Pexels

    Boredom had set in.  Between the provincial COVID-19 lock-down, working from home (again) and days of frigid temperatures I had become tremendously bored. By week’s end I had tried three new recipes, planned every worship service through to the end of Lent and despite it only being January I had reached mid-June in my Read –The-Bible-In-a-Year Chart!  But nothing was working; the world just seemed differing shades of grey.  

    Then, the most unexpected thing happened.  Their arrival was marked by the strangest noise on the other side of my front door.  I opened it slowly to find at least 70 to 80 of them all over my front lawn and filling the bare maple trees. This hungry crew had only one thing on their minds; filling their bellies with the berries of the Euonymus Bush that grows up the side of my house, from the garden to the roof, taking in all two and a half floors. I stood in amazement listening as their chatter filled the air, a most charming melody.   

     I slowly closed the front door then quickly ran to the living room bay window.  The white polka-dotted plumage of these European Starlings added a certain jovial touch to the already fascinating scene. If it were not for the thin piece of glass that separated us I could have touched their fluttering wings and cupped their tiny feet in my hands; I stood among them as though I too was filling up on this feast. 

    There were about 30 Starlings fluttering mid-air waiting to dine, and as their turn arrived they would dive into the bush while others filled the hydro lines overhead.  I wasn’t the only one taking in this remarkable event; two cars had stopped and with windows rolled down they too were mesmerized by this flock of hungry birds. 

    Then, just as quickly as they arrived they were gone.  As if on cue they formed a large ink blot in the sky and flew out towards the bay.  As I watched them depart I noticed my spirits had lifted, I was no longer weighed down by boredom but filled with awe.  

     It is as though I had slipped into a mid-winter slumber and it took the unexpected arrival of a flock of birds to undo the spell.  Since their visit I have made a major discovery.  Boredom isn’t a situation we find ourselves in but a state of mind, an attitude we choose.  Nothing in my life changed, I was still working from home, the temperatures remained arctic cold and yet, my attitude is entirely different.  I am wide awake now, noticing the smell of bread baking, the ribbons of colour with each sunrise and sunset, admiring the shadows the full moon casts over my backyard, tasting the comfort of  bread pudding and appreciating the warmth and glow of the fire each evening.

    I am deeply grateful for a God who refuses to leave us alone but instead holds before us daily reminders of fresh starts and a glorious kingdom.  As it is written, “Fear not, for I am with you; be not dismayed, for I am your God; I will strengthen you, I will help you, I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.” (Isaiah 41:10)

    May you also find finger prints of God’s presence in your daily life and may they be reminders of the glorious presence that never leaves you nor forsakes you,

    Blessings,

    Rev. Heather McCarrel   

  • These Are a Few of My Favorite Things…

    These Are a Few of My Favorite Things…

    Photo by Magda Ehlers/Pexels

    On the wooden shelf in my dining room sits a metal tin box that is painted blue with multi coloured flowers on it.  Over 50 years ago I received this as a gift; it has held many treasures over the years. 

    During Advent this box was put away as the shelf was covered with Santa Clauses and Christmas Candles. Last week, I got it out again and before putting it back up on the shelf I opened it to see what treasures it held.

    There were ribbons, a couple of recipes, a beaded necklace, an old house key, and a small note pad.  On the note pad I had written the title, ‘My Favorite Things: June 1976’ and the list starts with rainbows, dandelion wishes, cotton candy, going to the beach, puppy dogs, watermelon, hot chocolate, tobogganing, my kitten named Peanut and the cartoon Scooby Doo.

    I vaguely remember making this list.  It was after I had watched the movie The Sound of Music and heard Maria (played by Julie Andrews) singing the song, These Are a Few of My Favorite Things. She was comforting the van Trap children during a thunderstorm. Maria cheerfully sang, “I simply remember my favorite things. And then I don’t feel so bad.” 

    As I put the tin box back on the shelf, I thought that perhaps it was providence that made me look inside that box.  This latest lock down has been very discouraging; signs of the weariness can be found everywhere from those losing their temper to those simply refusing to follow the rules.  My one friend shared that she witnessed three people ahead of her at the post office lose their temper with the postal worker who was simply trying to do her job.  We all need to pause and remember our favorite things, so we don’t feel so bad.

    As I sat down on a dining room chair, I began to list my favourite things wondering if they had changed in the last 45 years.  In that moment my list consisted of fresh fallen show, birdsong, the smell of bread baking, puppy dogs, used bookstores, wool sweaters, lilac bushes in full bloom, the laughter of children, flowers that grow in sidewalk cracks, and sunsets over Lake Huron.  Then two days later, while nodding off to sleep I again listed my 10 favorite things and the list had changed and even now, the list forming in my thoughts has changed yet again. 

    Since opening that tin box I have spent many moments redoing the list and it has been wonderful filling my thoughts with all that I find beautiful, noteworthy, and of value in the world.  It sure is better than despairing over COVID-19, lamenting the terrible headlines, or worrying over what may happen in the future.

    As James Allen writes in his book, As A Man Thinketh, “Your mind is a garden, your thoughts are the seeds.  You can grow flowers, or you can grow weeds.”

    Our thoughts are powerful; they shape our days.  Why not choose happy thoughts? 

    So, what are your top ten favorite things?

    Blessings,

    Rev. Heather McCarrel

  • Make Your Life An Event!

    Make Your Life An Event!

    Photo by Boris Pavlikovsky/Pexels

    Here we are at the beginning of a new year with 365 blank days ready to be filled.  Each day is like a page in a book and the story of that book is written by how you decide to spend your moments.  How are you going to fill the pages of your life?

    It isn’t difficult these days to find plenty to complain about.  Those with little imagination can always lament but those with vision and wisdom write the story of their life with gratitude and gentleness.

    They are the ones who see the touch of divinity in seemingly ordinary occurrences.  They gather these occurrences like one may gather shells on the beach or stones along a hike.  They are gathered and placed into one place to be reviewed and admired for the beauty they hold.

    One way to do this is simply by hanging a calendar on your refrigerator and making note daily of all the beauty you witness. Record the day you bumped into an old friend at the grocery store and spent 45 minutes in the cereal aisle talking or the day your new arm chair arrived after months of waiting.  Make note on that calendar of the brilliance of the full moon or the day you saw your first Robin in the spring.  Ink in the day the daffodils bloomed, the roses filled the air with fragrance and the day you noticed the first red autumn leaf.

    Then, as the year draws to an end create a ceremony of reviewing your year.  Make a cup of tea or pour a glass of wine and in a quiet space slowly flip through the months making note of the days, pausing to remember the moments and savoring the memories.  Welcome to the story of your life!

    As John Lennon sings in his song Beautiful Boy, “Life is what happens when you’re busy making other plans.”  Don’t miss out on the beautiful story of your life by only using the calendar to write down Doctor’s Appointments, bill payments and when the car needs an oil change.  Don’t miss out on the divinity in your life by only remembering who slighted you, what upset you and who made you angry.  Instead, take a daily inventory of all the beauty your life holds. 

    Happy New Year Everyone,

    Rev. Heather McCarrel

  • Beating The Blahs!  

    Beating The Blahs!  

    Photo by Darius Krause/Pexels

    The days have been so grey lately that my light sensory Christmas decorations have been going on by 3:00 p.m. in the afternoon.  I don’t mind though, those little multi coloured lights help to brighten an already dark and dull landscape. 

    As we now head into the darkest days of the year it is important we take with us all we need to find our way back out again.  For some these darkened days spiral into despair, depression and days of such low energy they can barely climb out of bed.

    The tipping point is almost here, hang on!  Tuesday December 21st at exactly 10:59 a.m. E.S.T. we will arrive to the tipping point; this will be the longest night of the year and then we begin to gather more light daily.

    What do we need to navigate these last couple weeks of dullness?  Lights and lots of them!  Cover your house with Christmas light, inside and out.  I would even suggest you consider keeping a few strands of the indoor lights up until well into March. And candles, there is something healing and comforting about a flickering candle, perhaps its warmth and aroma softens the darkness and transforms it into something romantic and otherworldly.

    We also need good company.  Recently I have been enjoying the company of an old friend I hadn’t thought of since I was around 10 or 11 years old.  The ever optimistic Francie Nolan and her Tree of Heaven in the book a Tree Grows in Brooklyn.   Each evening I look forward to time with Francie and her stories of life in 1940s Brooklyn.  There are many ways to connect with friends:  Skype, ZOOM, Facebook, WhatsApp, or simply pick up the phone! 

    And, we need exercise.  It is natural for us to feel less energy during these grey days.  Getting out for a walk even if it is at the local mall helps to rejuvenate us and increases endorphins, dopamine, adrenaline and endocannabinoid all which are brain chemicals that help us feel happy, confident, capable, and less anxious. 

    There is also the need for a talk with God.  Take time to pray, read scripture, meditate or listen to your favorite preacher on YouTube.  Cultivating faith aids us in seeing the bigger picture and is a sure fire way to buoy our spirits.

    Don’t forget to be silly during these darkened days!  Intentionally adding fun and joy to our days adds brightness. I heard of a couple who went to the local toy store and bought silly string.  They had a riot in their own back yard!  One youth group leader brightened up everyone’s day last Sunday by letting loose a confetti cannon in the sanctuary!  So, sing a song, do a little dance or draw a picture.  Find a way to be creative and think outside of the box.

    Finally, end each day with a fistful of gratitude.  As you lay in bed, about to dose off, count five things from that day you are grateful for; by expressing gratitude we barricade the darkness from seeping in.

    May you find a spark of heavenly light in every day,

    Rev. Heather McCarrel