Rituals
At Time Out For Women, one of the speakers (Jennifer Brinkerhoff Platt) spoke about rituals. I've thought about what she said off and on ever since then, but as the holidays are nearing, rituals have been more on my mind.
What is a ritual? Google tells me that a ritual is "a religious or solemn ceremony consisting of a series of actions performed according to a prescribed order." It can also be "a series of actions or type of behavior regularly and invariably followed by someone."
Jennifer Platt referred to a ritual as
Writing this blog has become a ritual for me. I look forward to having some quiet time to sit down and try to focus the ideas that are jumbled up in my head. I spend time thinking about what I will write about, gleaning ideas, maybe discussing topics with others. When I sit down to actually write, I usually turn off my background music, I don't check my email or facebook. I get frustrated when the phone rings and disrupts my focus. Afterwards, I enjoy rereading the blogs I've written, or checking my stats to see if others have read them.
Many other things could be daily or weekly rituals: family or personal scripture study, family or personal prayer, attending church, taking a walk, enjoying a "quiet time", (When I was a child, after lunch every day was quiet time. My mom would send all the kids to their rooms for a nap or other very quiet activity for an hour or two so she could rest and recharge.) date nights, trips to the temple, the library, or parks, mornings, bedtimes, meal times - just about anything we do on a regular basis could be turned into a ritual.
During the holiday season, there is opportunity for a lot more rituals, or traditions. Raking autumn leaves into mazes and houses could be a ritual. Dressing up to go Trick-or-Treating could be a ritual. Listing things we are thankful for could be a ritual. Decorating for Christmas could be a ritual. Baking holiday cookies could be a ritual. Decorating gingerbread (or graham cracker) houses could be a ritual. Going caroling could be a ritual.
Jennifer Platt's point seemed to be that we need to have more rituals in our lives - that we need to give more thought to the things we are doing, and do them more deliberately. Watching an episode of Studio C on Monday evenings after Family Home Evening didn't start as a ritual. It happened because that is when the new episodes were aired, and my children were dying to watch them. Since then, my children have begun looking forward to the new episodes each week, watching the shows with undivided attention, and remembering, discussing and re-watching episodes later in the week. Watching Studio C has become a ritual. I don't mind this ritual too much, although I get frustrated when the kids still need to pack their lunches - and they won't do it until the show is over. It is something that all my children enjoy doing together, which is a good thing, I think.
On the other hand, my personal scripture study is probably something that should be a ritual, but isn't yet. While I am pretty good at getting in some scripture reading every day, I don't often set aside sufficient time for it or actively look forward to it; it is frequently just something I do to check off my list so I can get to bed. Too often, I'm not fully engaged in studying the scriptures. Sometimes I catch myself letting my thoughts wander, with my eyes several verses ahead of my brain. Sometimes I'm just reading because I want to get through the assignment for Institute or Sunday School; not because I'm really interested in what is being discussed. And occasionally I shut the book when I'm done and move on with my bedtime routines without pausing to think about what I've read, and the next night I find it difficult to find my place because I no longer remember what I read the night before.
So... I need to make my personal scripture study into a ritual. I need to set aside a (different) time for it (probably last thing before I go to bed isn't the best time for me), prepare for it, look forward to it. I need to be fully engaged while I am studying, and I need to think about and remember the things that I study.
What about you? Do you have rituals in your life? Are there things that you could develop into rituals? I'd love to hear your thoughts and opinions!
What is a ritual? Google tells me that a ritual is "a religious or solemn ceremony consisting of a series of actions performed according to a prescribed order." It can also be "a series of actions or type of behavior regularly and invariably followed by someone."
Jennifer Platt referred to a ritual as
- something we look forward to and prepare for,
- something we fully participate in, and
- something we remember after.
Writing this blog has become a ritual for me. I look forward to having some quiet time to sit down and try to focus the ideas that are jumbled up in my head. I spend time thinking about what I will write about, gleaning ideas, maybe discussing topics with others. When I sit down to actually write, I usually turn off my background music, I don't check my email or facebook. I get frustrated when the phone rings and disrupts my focus. Afterwards, I enjoy rereading the blogs I've written, or checking my stats to see if others have read them.
Many other things could be daily or weekly rituals: family or personal scripture study, family or personal prayer, attending church, taking a walk, enjoying a "quiet time", (When I was a child, after lunch every day was quiet time. My mom would send all the kids to their rooms for a nap or other very quiet activity for an hour or two so she could rest and recharge.) date nights, trips to the temple, the library, or parks, mornings, bedtimes, meal times - just about anything we do on a regular basis could be turned into a ritual.
During the holiday season, there is opportunity for a lot more rituals, or traditions. Raking autumn leaves into mazes and houses could be a ritual. Dressing up to go Trick-or-Treating could be a ritual. Listing things we are thankful for could be a ritual. Decorating for Christmas could be a ritual. Baking holiday cookies could be a ritual. Decorating gingerbread (or graham cracker) houses could be a ritual. Going caroling could be a ritual.
Jennifer Platt's point seemed to be that we need to have more rituals in our lives - that we need to give more thought to the things we are doing, and do them more deliberately. Watching an episode of Studio C on Monday evenings after Family Home Evening didn't start as a ritual. It happened because that is when the new episodes were aired, and my children were dying to watch them. Since then, my children have begun looking forward to the new episodes each week, watching the shows with undivided attention, and remembering, discussing and re-watching episodes later in the week. Watching Studio C has become a ritual. I don't mind this ritual too much, although I get frustrated when the kids still need to pack their lunches - and they won't do it until the show is over. It is something that all my children enjoy doing together, which is a good thing, I think.
On the other hand, my personal scripture study is probably something that should be a ritual, but isn't yet. While I am pretty good at getting in some scripture reading every day, I don't often set aside sufficient time for it or actively look forward to it; it is frequently just something I do to check off my list so I can get to bed. Too often, I'm not fully engaged in studying the scriptures. Sometimes I catch myself letting my thoughts wander, with my eyes several verses ahead of my brain. Sometimes I'm just reading because I want to get through the assignment for Institute or Sunday School; not because I'm really interested in what is being discussed. And occasionally I shut the book when I'm done and move on with my bedtime routines without pausing to think about what I've read, and the next night I find it difficult to find my place because I no longer remember what I read the night before.
So... I need to make my personal scripture study into a ritual. I need to set aside a (different) time for it (probably last thing before I go to bed isn't the best time for me), prepare for it, look forward to it. I need to be fully engaged while I am studying, and I need to think about and remember the things that I study.
What about you? Do you have rituals in your life? Are there things that you could develop into rituals? I'd love to hear your thoughts and opinions!
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