Reflection on the Unfolding of My Word of the Year…TIME

As you know, my word of the year is “time.” Not unexpectedly, this word is unfolding to mean far more than what I imagined in the beginning. Last week I was quite busy with household chores, organizing closets, work, etc. I realized one day that I had not taken the time to say the rosary. I started thinking of ways I could ensure that I don’t miss this devotion, as I feel it is crucial to my sense of peace. I once heard that we should never say “make the time”, but rather, “take the time”, as it is a matter of making something a priority. As I was thinking this, a thought popped into my head (no doubt inspired by the Holy Spirit), “You had time to scroll on Instagram and Facebook. You took the time to order a new dress and a pair of boots.” Yes, I did. Ouch.

Point taken.

As God would have it, a couple of weeks ago I registered for a 90 minute zoom workshop offered on January 16th, and led by Jackie Mulligan of Reform Wellness. The workshop was called Making All Things New in 2021. The overarching theme of the workshop is going from self-reliant to God-reliant. She discusses 8 pillars, or elements, that are essential to well-being. These pillars are nutrition, sleep, stress management, community, personal growth, space, functional movement , and play. Faith has to be part of each of the

pillars. I will not go into detail, but I highly recommend you check out the website:

https://www.reformwellness.co

In the workshop, Jackie discussed creating ‘A Miracle Morning.’ This means prioritizing what is most important, first thing in the morning. Obedience to what is important, will flow through the rest of day. “Win the morning, win the day.” If you want to pray more, and put Christ at the centre of your life, then that needs to be prioritized before everything else. Jackie siad, “The obedience to this in the morning, makes it easier to say yes to things that are life-giving throughout the rest of your day.” Faith has to be at the centre of all of the pillars. Therefore, we need to build up our faith in every capacity so that our lives are Christ centred. Jackie said, “The sacred secret to doing this is the Eucharist. Receiving the Eucharist as often as possible, and staying close to the Eucharist in adoration is the secret to life. Each and every time we receive the Eucharist, we are made new. We must decrease and He must increase.” One way we achieve this is by creating a heavenly rhythm to our lives. We need to shift from busy to balanced, and to live in order. “When you live in order, life will fall in order, and it won’t be so busy anymore.” How do we create this order? Jackie tells us to mirror St.Padre Pio’s advice of eating, sleeping and praying, at the same times everyday no matter what. Religious have a formation that they follow in which they eat, sleep and pray

at the same times everyday. They nourish their bodies through food, their minds through sleep, and their souls through prayer. To create a heavenly rhythm, you have to be obedient to the three things that nourish your whole person. From there you discern the duties that are most important in relation to God and your vocation, be it priesthood, religious life, married, single , or missionary, and you say “no” to everything that is not allowing you to focus on them. We, as Catholics, should not follow the chaotic pace of the world. Ask God,

“How do you want me to spend my day?”

As a side note, I found this daily schedule for the Missionaries of Charity:

Daily Schedule for the Missionaries of Charity:

4:30-5:00 Rise and get cleaned up

5:00-6:30 Prayers and Mass

6:30-8:00 Breakfast and cleanup

8:00-12:30 Work for the poor

12:30-2:30 Lunch and rest

2:30-3:00 Spiritual reading and meditation

3:00-3:15 Tea break

3:15-4:30 Adoration

4:30-7:30 Work for the poor

7:30-9:00 Dinner and clean up

9:00-9:45 Night prayers

9:45 Bedtime

Hannah Hay