PRAYER CORNERS

Living room prayer corner

I've written several times how important it is to have at least one prayer corner in one's house, where one can be quiet and spend time with the Lord, pray and bring all things to Him. I've taken some photos of my prayer corners, and I thought you might enjoy seeing them. I have a somewhat fussy style...a Victorian, shabby chic, East/West meld in the living room...and a more sober set-up in the bedroom.

Anyway...here are some photos.

Our Lady of Fatima

Statue I got in honor of the 100 year

anniversary of the apparitions

(The rose is from my potted garden!)

The icon, to the above-right of Our Lady of Fatima, is Saint Olga Equal to the Apostles, a great grandmother ancestor of some degree of mine.

The rose from the potted garden

My ancestor, Saint Anna of Novgorod

Many prayer corners are MUCH more streamlined and sedate. One doesn't have to have a plethora of icons. I just happened to collect a lot of them when I was attending a Byzantine Church. The Ukrainian pastor did not approve of the commercially made icons. He did not think they were "real" icons, and he put all of them on sale at a steep price cut because of it, and also because we had a huge stock and nothing was selling.

I was the happy recipient of much of it, spending far less than I normally would have spent.

It makes me very happy to be surrounded by pictures of the holy ones.

Have a blessed day.

Silver Rose 

Enjoy!

SAINT WHAT'S-HER-NAME

Saint Ealhswith, wife of King Alfred the Great of Wessex

"The True and Beloved Lady of the English

Saint Ealhswith is one of a large number of saints about whom we know very little.  There are umpteen different versions of her name, which is rather typical for some of these folks during that era.  Etheidwitha is one.  Ealswitha another.  She was a Mercian princess, the daughter of Aethelred Mucil and a female scholar named Eadburgh, who was prominent at court.  Ealhswith was married to a very famous person (King Alfred the Great); we know that she established a convent, Nunnaminster at Winchester Cathedral, also known as Saint Mary's Abbey; and that her children and other descendants were illustrious, William the Conqueror being one of them.  Many of her descendants live in America, and I am one of them.

Customarily, I research a saint on their feast day so that I can come to an understanding of the particular gift(s) to be emulated.  In cases such as these, where little is known, an outstanding feature is usually the fact that the person founded a convent, monastic order, or a grand church, giving land and/or monies for this purpose.

Ruins of St. Mary's Abbey at Winchester

I can barely support myself, so making a big splash with a large piece of land and a fine convent is not something I can do, though I would like nothing better and think of little else on the rare occasion I buy a lottery ticket.  It has been a dream of mine for a very long time, and these days I still imagine that I will establish a community of disabled and/or elderly ladies who will pray their little hearts out with their last bit of energy left on earth.

This is where I have to get creative.  How can I emulate this ancestor of mine?  I have to recall the "little way" of the little flower, Saint Therese, and accomplish the essence of what my ancestor did, in a small way.

By holding a space in which people can be supported in a community of prayer, I am doing my very little bit.  I have a Facebook group called CATHOLIC FAITHFUL SANCTUARY, in which I try to post inspiring items and which I try to maintain as a worry-free zone.  In my home, I have two prayer corners, and, although people do not typically come to my house to pray, I hope that the atmosphere and visual image will be taken home with visitors.

Although I may not be able to found a convent or even join one, I can live a convent style of life, something for which many of these saints are valued.

As I work toward this worthy goal, I ask for your prayers of encouragement and support.

God bless us all.

Silver "Rose" Parnell
(c) 2015

CHRISTMAS LETTER, 2014

MERRY CHRISTMAS FROM SILVER COTTAGE!

Last year at this time, it was a sad state of affairs.  My son, my only child, had just died.  Everything was colored with a dark pall.  During 2014 my service dog died, my television died, my cat contracted stage 3 kidney disease, and all sorts of other problems presented themselves.  It was bleak, but, thanks be to God, the pall has gradually lifted.  

My son, Jason Beasley

Shortly before his death in 2013

One significant event was the interment of my son's ashes at Mount Calvary Catholic Cemetery, free of charge (thanks to the efforts of our bishop!)  The Divine Liturgy that marked the occasion was exquisitely beautiful, respectful and uplifting.  I really DID feel that "closure" people talk about when discussing funerals and services.  I also began to feel an increase in gratitude, serenity and peace.  

Throughout 2014, I received the assistance of several good friends in my church community who fed me, transported me and comforted me in my grief.  Their steady companionship and love, in the spirit of Christ and his blessed mother, have strengthened me in my struggles, and I feel very blessed for the gift of their friendship.

Our Lady, Helper of Mothers

Icon located at Our Lady of Perpetual Help

Byzantine Catholic Church

Albuquerque, New Mexico

During this year, I have made progress, in fits and starts, in establishing my monastic prayer schedule. Due to illness, it is difficult to maintain.

I have always had an interest in languages, so have decided to learn Polish and Ukrainian (which is composed of 70% Polish words.) There are other languages I would like to learn, but I think I should stick to one at a time!

As my prayer life has deepened and increased, my prayer corners have also developed and taken on more space in my apartment.  The one in the living room has a tiny little ceramic creche set on the table.  This is the table where I used to have a television.  A prayer corner is a much better idea!

The prayer corner in the back room is where I do all my formal prayers.

The icons spill over onto the adjoining walls:

...and in the corner!

Another pending project involves learning how to paint icons.  Now, I have done a lot of painting in the past, and have sold a few things, but icons are another matter entirely.  There is a well developed process of producing these beautiful windows into heaven.  I have a couple of books to help me, and I am close to breaking out the acrylic paints and getting to work!

In addition to all of this, I will continue making baby blankets for donation to the Gabriel Project, perhaps some hats for the homeless, and some lace veils and scarves for ladies to wear to church.

It makes me very happy to have the wherewithal to learn some new things and to produce some works of art while helping others at the same time.  God is truly blessing me abundantly, and my spirits are light.

All in all, aside from the difficulties in getting some of my needs met, it is a happy Christmas, full of love and peace and plans for the future.  I pray that everyone is as happy as I am during this lovely time and that the joy of the Christ child is yours throughout the coming year.

God bless us, everyone!

Silver Rose Parnell
Copyright (c) 2014
All rights reserved.