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Infinitely Precious

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Practice Being Real

September 3, 2023September 3, 2023 ~ James ~ 3 Comments

Why do you blog? Yesterday, I received the gift of my wife reading her way through my blog thus far. As we talked later, she shared that each successive post seemed to become more reflective of “me,“ the person she has come to know and love. Sometimes it is easier to hide behind words than … Continue reading Practice Being Real

Out of Focus

September 2, 2023August 30, 2023 ~ James ~ Leave a comment

I realized this morning what is arising in me: I feel scattered. It is a natural feeling from time to time. My presence is not gathered here; I am all over the place in my thoughts and feelings. Perhaps that feeling sounds familiar to you? Perhaps being scattered wouldn't bother me too much except I … Continue reading Out of Focus

Wrestling Adventures!

September 1, 2023 ~ James ~ Leave a comment

How are you feeling right now? How am I feeling? Adventurous. This weekend we are traveling to watch a WWE (World Wrestling Entertainment, Inc.) Smackdown event. If you believe this is unusual for me, you are correct. Since our children became teenagers, we stopped giving them physical gifts for their birthdays, offering them their chosen … Continue reading Wrestling Adventures!

Joy of Being Thankful

September 1, 2023August 30, 2023 ~ James ~ Leave a comment

I find it meaningful to begin my day in gratitude. So I have a gratitude practice. Gratitude Practice (summarized) Open my journal. Close my eyes and “breathe myself here.” Open my eyes and say, “I am thankful for…” Write name by name what arises from that statement. When I reach a “stopping point,” repeat out … Continue reading Joy of Being Thankful

Receive and Release

August 31, 2023August 31, 2023 ~ James ~ Leave a comment

What daily habit do you do that improves your quality of life? I begin each day with meditation. If I do not begin my day that way, the experience of the day is altered, seeming less “real” and more reactive. This daily practice of “letting go” helps me live more awake and attentive to the … Continue reading Receive and Release

Tech-Challenged Technophile

August 30, 2023August 30, 2023 ~ James ~ 1 Comment

What was the last thing you searched for online? Why were you looking for it? I enjoy, invest in, and regularly play with/utilize technology in a variety of forms. I imagine I am “tech-savvy.” Searching for simple tech how-to’s on the web is embarrassing for me. Yesterday I as listening to the Acoustic Hits playlist … Continue reading Tech-Challenged Technophile

Life As It Is and Could Be

August 29, 2023 ~ James ~ 1 Comment

What TV shows did you watch as a kid? There were three notable shows that immediately come to mind from my childhood. The first was Mutual of Omaha’s Wild Kingdom, a show about nature and the realities of animals. I remember looking forward to the show weekly even when it was a repeat. Marlin Perkins … Continue reading Life As It Is and Could Be

Deep Silence before Dawn

August 28, 2023 ~ James ~ 2 Comments

What's your favorite time of day? I have a weekly habit of arising at 5:00AM on Sundays, in the pre-dawn hours. There is something about how the Silence envelopes me at the time that brings an inner peace. I was not a morning person at all most of my life. I rose early only occasionally … Continue reading Deep Silence before Dawn

Another Beautiful Day

August 27, 2023 ~ James ~ 1 Comment

Sundays are the day I consistently rise before the sun. I am awake by 5:00 AM and in “my chair” by 5:10 with a cup of coffee and the Silence as companions. This morning was no different and completely different. My space is at the back of our house, a small room addition with windows … Continue reading Another Beautiful Day

A Dream Last Night

August 26, 2023August 26, 2023 ~ James ~ Leave a comment

Tell us about the last thing you got excited about. Awakening this morning, I was excited to remember a dream. It is rare for me to recall one at all, let alone clearly. Here is how I might summarize it: I was back at university; the grounds were very familiar from the time I was … Continue reading A Dream Last Night

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  • Inhabiting Place: Learning to Be Here
  • Inhabiting Rest
  • Inhabiting Work: Letting the Inner Life Grow Hands
  • Inhabiting Relationship
  • Inhabiting Grief: Loving What We Cannot Keep
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You are infinitely precious and unconditionally loved for the gift you already are.

James Henry

Inhabiting Wonder - Infinitely Precious

What happens when we simply look, without naming what we see? In this episode of the Infinitely Precious podcast, James Henry continues the Inhabiting series with a reflection on inhabiting wonder. Wonder is the sense of awe that arrives before we name, explain, or capture an experience.From a night sky with no light pollution to a pine tree outside his window, James explores how the instinct to name things can make us feel we’ve finished seeing them. He asks what it would be like to sit with the Mona Lisa, a sunset, or a morning rock from the garden without reaching for a label. He also asks why we so often photograph a moment instead of being in it.James draws on Richard Rohr’s insight that mystery is not unknowable but infinitely knowable. He tells the story of a summer walk in the woods, where he realized that the cacophony of lawnmowers, birdsong, a chirping squirrel, and his own footsteps was a unique, irreplaceable, unrepeatable moment. He also returns to the Japanese art of kintsugi, whose golden repairs still fill him with wonder, and to Jesus’s invitation to become like children.This episode is for anyone seeking a contemplative spiritual practice of presence, attention, and awe. It is especially for those who feel their days have become a backdrop, and who want the ordinary to feel strange and alive again. It closes with a simple invitation: spend a few moments with one ordinary thing as though it were your first time.Remember, you are infinitely precious and unconditionally loved for the gift you already are.In This EpisodeWhy wonder happens before we name, describe, or explain what we encounterHow the instinct to name things can make us feel we’ve “finished” seeing themThe Portuguese word for looking (rooted in the word for “eye”) and what it means to simply lookWhat Jesus may have meant by becoming like the least of these children: the ability to be in aweWhy taking a photo, or a selfie, can keep us from the experience we’re trying to preserveHow wonder restores the ordinary and makes familiar things alive againRichard Rohr’s teaching that mystery is not unknowable but infinitely knowableA woodland-walk story: a unique, irreplaceable, unrepeatable moment of soundKintsugi as a picture of wonder, forgiveness, and being changed by repairA simple practice: spend a few moments with one ordinary thing as if for the first timeHow to support the Infinitely Precious podcast through the donation link on the website ★ Support this podcast ★
  1. Inhabiting Wonder 14:40
  2. Inhabiting Place 13:41
  3. Inhabiting Rest 15:31
  4. Inhabiting Work 14:34
  5. Inhabiting Relationship 15:49
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