Being thankful

1 Thess. 5: 16 - 21 (nrsv)

¹⁶Rejoice always, ¹⁷pray without ceasing,¹⁸give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you. ¹⁹Do not quench the Spirit. ²⁰Do not despise the words of prophets,^{* 21}but test everything; hold fast to what is good;

See the definition for quench here, in particular 1a & 2b.

I am aiming to not quench, or allow to be quenched the Spirit. The Spirit of God as the independent Entity that It is, and the Spirit within me (the Comforter - also called Advocate and Helper that Jesus tells us of in John 14:26). In order that this Spirit be allowed to thrive in my life, I will name all the things that I am thankful for, I will rejoice because of them (and because God is simply worth being thankful for), I will pray consistently, and I will remember to hold fast to what is good.

What I am holding fast to. The good things. What I am thankful for:

• For the health of my family, both by blood, by water, and by spirit, I am thankful.
• For health in my body - I have felt mildly unwell, I have been uncomfortable. Yet, God has preserved my health by and large, I am thankful.
• For the love and support of many people, I am thankful.
• For a sound mind, and the ability to manipulate my faculties and functions (yes, yes, I realize that sanity is all in mind of the beholder *smile*), I am thankful
• For the ability to further my education, and learn from esteemed and intelligent scholars, I am thankful.
• For the means with which to have shelter, connection, and sustenance, I am thankful.
• For the ability to laugh, chuckle, smile, smirk, and gaze with benevolence, I am thankful.
• For the mind to even be thankful, I am thankful.

What are you thankful for today? I promise you, you have something to be thankful for - this list is certainly not exhaustive! But it is a start!! And despite some of the rain clouds (and snow clouds) that rolled over here today, just remembering that there is much to be thankful for brings some peace, some stillness, some calm back into view.

It's funny how practicing these small things, like praying over things you can be thankful for, are for your good. Yes, God is pleased when we remember that the picture is bigger than what is on the immediate (though, the immediate can be of immense importance) horizon; but I believe that when we commit to the simple practices (like this one) the blessings the practices bestow upon the practitioner (or worshipper) are manifold.

In blessing, you are blessed.

Be blessed dear hearts. Vaya con Dios.

Things I'm thinking On...

Instead of inundating you with words, I thought I'd share with you some things I am thinking deeply on, with pictures and a few captions explaining what the images are about (in my humble opinion) and why I care (in brief!)

Journey with me, if you will....

Firstly, Libations: In Ghana, there is a tradition of pouring water, or a pure liquor (so, not a cocktail, but a singular liquor, gin or schnapps), and saying a prayer at the beginning of any important event: an important meeting of important people, for religious gatherings, baby out-doorings (introducing a child to the community) and other events of import.

Why libations? Well, for a paper I have to write. Also, because the principles behind libations make me think of the ways in which American Christians (and a lot of Christianities) venerate the saints who have passed. It could be said that Jesus is our greatest ancestor. Now, venerated ancestors don't just happen, they become ancestors through living exemplary lives. Much the same way that we (Americans, Westerners, Western Christians) uplift exemplary Christian figures - they become persons we admire even in death, we learn from the way they lived, emulate them even. In fact, we are supposed to model the life of Jesus! I am contemplating our fear of connecting ourselves to this tradition, in which ancestors (those who are great ancestors, and those members of our family who have simply gone on to the next life) are called upon so that they can continue to be a part of the community of the living. We, Western Christians, invoke Paul, Peter, the disciples, the early Christians (of Scripture, and of historical records), when we refer to our books of discipline, our doctrines and creeds, when we sing hymns and so on. Why do we avoid our connection to the bearers of our traditions? (Yes, I'm speaking to you Africans in the diaspora.)

Bonus on the Image: This image might actually be of Dr. Kofi Asare Opoku, who we did meet while in Ghana. He's awesome.

Secondly, Adinkra Symbols: One, they intrigue me because of their very existence. Often, we faun over Chinese, Japanese, Korean calligraphy.

I instantly was in love with this iconography - can't be dyslexic with adinkra symbols. And I love that there are proverbs and sayings behind the symbols. Like so much of West African culture, each image has a meaning, and various applications and connections to other aspects of the culture.

This lovely symbol is called nyame nti (by God's grace).

I think it mimics a kind of large fern tree that I have actually seen in Ghana. And the real tree just raises in me the emotions of flexible strength - it looks like the plant danced out of the ground. Perhaps, the tree says to us, by being flexible, by stretching and bending to reach the light, we can still grow tall. Don't be deterred! Just keeeeeeeeep reaching!!!

Lastly, for the Womanist Warrior in me, I have been contemplating pleasure, emotion, passion and love as a Black woman. I am thinking deeply on the meanings, workings, effects of pleasure in all forms. One particular pleasure I've had on my mind is... unabashed, unfettered, unencumbered love for the self.

What would it mean for me (and for you, if you're in this camp) to fully love every single part of me - and to be in love with the me God gave me.

Note/Credit: this picture comes from the fantabulous Mickalene Thomas. Check her out here (fore-warning: some images are racier than others, ie: breasts, hips, expressions of erotic ecstasy).

Also, what does sexy really mean? And what are our (Black women's) fears, hopes and dreams around the topic of romantic love, and/or sex (coitus!)? And how do those fears, hopes and dreams make us operate in the real world?

Do I have answers to all my questions? No. But am I having fun turning the thoughts over in my mind? Absolutely!! Let's strike up a convo about it - I'm itching to have conversation partners on these topics.

to call

walk in, set down your keys, flop onto the bed

knowing that there's something else you should do

besides lay down your sleepy head

looking into the inside of your eyelids

... you sigh as you drift off instead

and you see her about a year before

smiling back at you, easy and light hearted there

priceless lips, shining eyes

you long to see this girl again

and you see yourself about a year before

holding on to hope and believing that everything good was coming

confident, without a care

if only you were still that man

That one wakes your conscience,

Back to reality, but your eyes refuse to open

So you keep watching

Remembering that now the picture is dimmer

Fuzzier. The sound quality is not that good.

The lips are still priceless, and you still feel hope

But you wonder, is she still that girl, am I still that man?

That one moves your heart

And your eyes obey.

If you ever hope that you're both still in the right place...

You have reach out and call.