Welcome to Loving the Imperfect Podcast, a show for seekers of deeper contemplation. I'm Brianne Turczynski. For 10 years, I've been studying offerings from holy teachers and holy texts. I'm a journalist who has listened to the stories of many people throughout the years, and so I thought it was my turn to share a thing or two about my journey and my thoughts on scripture and holy work from different faith traditions and practices, mostly from Sufi teachers, Buddhists, and Christian mystics. So, join me as we imperfectly and clumsily make our way through each day, mustering up compassion and some words of love for the hours ahead.
Hello and welcome To Loving the Imperfect. Today we are reading Psalm 122. I know that in my last episode I mentioned that this week's episode will include a reading from Psalm 121, but I miscounted and it is instead 122. So here we go:
1 “I rejoiced with those who said to me,
“Let us go to the house of the Lord.”
2 Our feet are standing
in your gates, Jerusalem.
3 Jerusalem is built like a city
that is closely compacted together.
4 That is where the tribes go up—
the tribes of the Lord—
to praise the name of the Lord
according to the statute given to Israel.
5 There stand the thrones for judgment,
the thrones of the house of David.
6 Pray for the peace of Jerusalem:
“May those who love you be secure.
7 May there be peace within your walls
and security within your citadels.”
8 For the sake of my family and friends,
I will say, “Peace be within you.”
9 For the sake of the house of the Lord our God,
I will seek your prosperity.”
-Taken from the New International Version
I want to spend this time with you. Just talking about prayer. Prayer is very good for us. And it doesn't have to be kneeling at our bedsides saying the Lord's prayer. It doesn't have to look like the typical prayer of praying for everybody that you know and using words to express these things. It doesn't have to look like that. It can look like that, but it doesn't have to.
A prayer can be a simple thought of love for or towards another person, or a moment when you really connect with the Holy Spirit or another person's soul or spirit. Maybe you've just met someone, and the energy flows so perfectly between you. We see this in flowing deep conversations that we remember for the rest of our lives.
It is one long prayer, when our hearts are burning inside of us as the other speaks. Or when you're telling a story and sharing yourself with others, that is a prayer. When you take a walk and you suddenly tune in to the beauty of nature, that is a prayer. When you begin to cry because of your own sadness or for the sadness of others or for the joy of others or for yourself. That is a prayer. Silence is a prayer. A whole life living for the good of others can be a prayer or living a full life. I like to think of the film Harold and Maude because Maude shows Harold how to live and enjoy life and how to love.
A life lived with the intention to be in tune to love and to see others as holy beings who need love and care is to live a life of prayer.
I once met a woman who had so much love in her that just to be in her presence made me weep. I had a physical reaction to her because love was just emanating from her.
She was what some might call a living Saint, I think. She ran an assisted living facility out of a home in a neighborhood and she spent her time telling her residents that she loved them. I followed her around the home as she visited every room and she'd hold their hands and she'd tell them that she loved them, and she would stroke their hair and she would kiss them on the cheek. It was amazing to watch that sort of genuine and open love.
And she told me that all those people were in assisted living facilities, and they were quickly dying. And they were being neglected. And so, she would go and rescue them from these nursing homes and bring them into her care. And she would extend their lives just by caring for them in this way, giving them love. And that's what was bringing these people back to life. Helping them live a little bit better until they passed away.
She sat down with me afterward and she told me that she used to work in a psychiatric hospital on a floor with some of the most violent offenders and they were all men. And she said one time she ended up alone on this floor and a patient came up to her. Somehow, he got out of his room and approached her in the hallway, and she said the way he looked at her made her realize that she was in a lot of danger. But she said that something just came over her and she was able to muster up enough fierceness the fiercest part of her and she gave him a look. She just looked at him and he backed off and she said, if you're meant to be somewhere to help people, God will bring you through safely in one way or another.
And that was her belief because it had been proven to be correct in her life when she had been in dangerous situations. While she was speaking to me and telling me these stories and genuinely interested in me and my life and telling me things about myself, I just started to cry because I felt like I had been seen by this woman who didn't know me at all. She had just met me, but she seemed to already love me the way a mother would love a child,
My heart was burning while she spoke. And when we left, she walked us out, and she told us that she loved us. It was me and my spiritual director who had brought me to this woman because he wanted me to meet her. And when we left, she told us that she loved us. And I really believe that she meant it. And I've never met anyone like her before in my life. And it's hard to explain that experience meeting her.
After the crucifixion of Jesus, two disciples were on their way to Emmaus, and they were talking about what had happened. As they walked, a man approached them and walked beside them. And he asked what they were talking about. And they told him what happened in Jerusalem.
And I imagine that much more was said between them when they walked, and they were so taken with this man, maybe because he listened very well to their story and with compassion and spoke back to them their language, that they were compelled to ask him to eat with them. Not only that, but hospitality in Bible times and today in the Middle East is still a great virtue. So, the man went with them, and when they ate, the man broke bread, blessed it, and gave it to them. And all at once their eyes were open and they recognized that it was Jesus. And then Jesus disappeared. And they reflected on this, and said, “We're not our hearts burning while he spoke and opened the scriptures to us.” Almost like they should have known. And that conversation, whatever was said, I imagine they all spoke each other's language.
So that feeling we get during or after amazing conversations, or meeting an amazing person, that feeling we get, that is a prayer. Those types of conversations or meetings with people, it is a form of prayer, because it is not us communicating on a physical level, but on a spiritual level. It is communication between souls, and those souls are communicating with each other, and the Holy Spirit is communicating to those souls. It's this conversation going on that we aren't even aware of. I believe each soul speaks a language that is only known to you in your deepest depths. And when someone speaks that same language to your soul, your soul recognizes it and speaks back. Communicating to your physical self this phenomenon of your heart burning inside of you or you have this feeling of excitement or pure joy. The souls are communicating to God or the Holy Spirit their recognition of this and the Holy Spirit or God is speaking back. So, it is a communication of the spirits and that is prayer.
So anytime that's happening, you're praying without even knowing it. You're connecting with God on a deeper level and you're connecting with someone else on a deeper level. So when I was speaking to this woman, I really felt that; it was so overwhelming that I just started to cry, and what she's doing with all of those elderly people is a prayer. Her life, being with those people and helping them pass in a peaceful, loving atmosphere is a prayer, there are many other ways that we pray without really knowing it. Sometimes I'll even cook if there's something going on in the world some country needs prayers. I'll cook a meal that is specific to that country and think about the people in that country and pray. That is my way of praying for them and that whatever pain they're going through will pass, and so I cook food from that country to see them, to remember them, to bring their presence into my home and to show them love in a spiritual way.
But if you need a guide in prayer, centering prayer is good. It’s a Christian meditation. You can look up information about that online. There's a lot of different websites that give information. There’s praying the rosary. I've always found it to be a beautiful way to recognize the works of the Blessed Mother. For those of you who want to incorporate more of the divine feminine into your spirituality. I like to pray the Joyful Mysteries.
Mala beads are also great. Each bead is a breath. So, for each bead, you take a breath. So that could be a good guide. for those of you who just want to concentrate on your breathing and be in tune with your spirit at the same time. And sometimes I use the rosary for that sort of breathing, exercise as well. So, what are some ways that you pray? Maybe it's something you never thought of as a prayer before, but now that you've listened to this, maybe you will think of it as a prayer.
So I want to leave you now with a poem from Mary Oliver who always saw the Holy Spirit In nature, and she was praying all the time, it seemed, while she was observing different animals and different elements of nature. This is a poem of hers entitled Invitation. It is from her collection called Red Bird. And I will put the title of it in the information for this episode, as I usually do.
“Oh do you have time
to linger
for just a little while
out of your busy
and very important day
for the goldfinches
that have gathered
in a field of thistles
for a musical battle,
to see who can sing
the highest note,
or the lowest,
or the most expressive of mirth,
or the most tender?
Their strong, blunt beaks
drink the air
as they strive
melodiously
not for your sake
and not for mine
and not for the sake of winning
but for sheer delight and gratitude –
believe us, they say,
it is a serious thing
just to be alive
on this fresh morning
in the broken world.
I beg of you,
do not walk by
without pausing
to attend to this
rather ridiculous performance.
It could mean something.
It could mean everything.
It could be what Rilke meant when he wrote:
You must change your life.”
Thank you so much for joining me today. Next week's psalm is 129. I hope you all have a great week. Thank you again. Bye bye.
