Mary van Balen

The morning after Halloween, my mom's large, silver mixing bowl filled with small candy bars sits on my table, tempting me. Why not have a bit of sweet to start the morning. I had feared this would happen. Being new to the neighborhood, I had no idea if trick or treaters would find their way to my door, so I prepared with a few bags of candy bars. When my neighbor appeared outside in the afternoon ready to take a walk, I asked her about Halloween "traffic."

"Sometimes we get a few," she said. "But not too many. I think they don't know which door to go to." She motioned to the row of flats.

It also doesn't help that my flat is located between two wealthy suburbs. I lived in one for a while and people from all over the city came with vans full of kids in costumes. It was safer. And the take was pretty good.

Before giving in to the call of a snickers bar, I prepared green beans for an evening potluck. Nothing fancy. Frozen French cut green beans, a little butter, salt, and fresh lemon juice. I toasted slivered almonds and put them on top. I saved a small dish to eat later. The longer I looked at the bright green beans and buttery almonds, the less I wanted to wait. Read More 

The parable of the barren fig tree is today's gospel reading. After three years of waiting for fruit from the tree, the orchard owner was ready to cut it down. Why not plant something else? The gardener had another idea. "Sir, leave it for this year also, and I shall cultivate the ground around it and fertilize it; it may bear fruit in the future. If not you can cut it down." LK 13.8-9.

His remark brought another type of cultivation to mind. What do I do to "cultivate the ground" where my soul sinks its roots? What do I do that nurtures my spirit and enables me to share what I have been given?

Our lives are full of choices. How do we spend time? When at work, are we mindful of what we are doing, finding ways to serve even in positions that seem unlikely places for meeting God or sharing Goodness with others? And time when we are not at work? Read More 

Last week I was feeling particularly discouraged. Selling intimate apparel was never my dream job! As I spoke with customers and cleaned out fitting rooms that had been left a mess, I wondered what a person with a graduate degree, an educator, and author was doing in my position. The Holiday shopping season looming ahead did littel to brighten my mood.

I guess I had forgotten the lessons learned from Brother Lawrence about "Practicing the Presence of God." Reading through some of the reflections in Liturgical Press's new monthly prayer guide, "Give Us This Day," reminded me of the call to be present to God in the ordinary events of our lives.

The October "Blessed Among Us" reflection highlighted a woman I have read, Caryll Houselander, an English laywoman mystic whose vocation was to help others become aware of Christ in our world. She was not the stereotypical mystic. She enjoyed a drinking, battled for twenty years to give up chain-smoking, and was left broken hearted by the man she loved. She never married.

Her mystical visions were of Christ in those around her. In one, she saw him suffering in a Bavarian nun, who being German, suffered discrimination during WWII in England. In another, she saw Christ in each person in a busy railway station. In some he was rejoicing, happy, in others, suffering and in pain. Her first book. This War Is the Passion,"was written in 1941 and presented the sufferings of those traumatized by WWII through the perspective of the passion of Christ.

She was an artist, a wood carver, but later in her life, writing became her primary artistic expression. Read More 

By the time my daughter picked me up at my destination, the cell phone mystery had been solved: I left it at home when I put it down on the kitchen counter to hang up my keys before leaving. WIthout the worry of having lost it, I have had a wonderful few days without it. I can't call home and no one can call me. No phone conversations while shopping, riding to the beach, or visiting with my daughter.

Since nothing drastic has happened, I feel no need to communicate with folks back home. One advantage to not having a cell phone is the ability to be unavailable. Years ago, I wrote a column about the dangers of being available all day, every day. What was once a novelty has become a necessity. I have heard people complain when the person they want to call does not answer. Read More 

Lord, it is night. The night is for stillness. Let us be still in the presence of God. It is night after a long day. What has been done has been done; what has not been done has not been done; let it be...

from the New Zealand Prayer Book




After dinner, Dad and I took a walk around the grounds of the nursing facility where he lives, Dad in his wheel chair, me pushing him along. We stopped to wave to a friend who called down to us from her balcony. Dad, always the gentleman, tipped his hat and waved back. Then we were off to the pond. He spotted a couple of geese as we approached and pointed out the "red faces," muscovy ducks that were settled along the walk that circles the water. Excited by our arrival, the large ducks heaved themselves up with tails wobbling and crowded around us. When they discovered we had come empty handed, they settled back into the grass like lawn ornaments.  Read More 

Pay attention, come to me; listen, and your soul will live.


Mid Morning Prayer (Terce) Isaiah 55:3






Isaiah's words from today's Liturgy of the Hours are short and to the point. Why does something as simple as "pay attention" need said, especially when the result is vitality of spirit? Many times my columns, articles, and blogs include references to being present to the moment. Writer, Don Murray, says writers have a few "themes" that provide a core for their works.

Being present to God in the moment is one of mine. Why write about it, coming at it from different directions over and over again? It resurfaces because as much as I know its importance, being faithful to its practice is difficult.

Attentiveness needs time to bear fruit, like planting a seed and watering it. The sprout does not appear immediately, but without water, it will not appear at all.

Lent calls us to attentiveness. God's Spirit may lie quiet and unnoticed in our souls, like plants resting out of sight all winter long. Taking time to be with the Holy One in the stillness of our hearts, in quiet moments snatched from a busy day, nurtures God’s life in each of us and promises to bring it to bloom.
© 2011 Mary van Balen Read More 

PHOTO: Mary van Balen
Unexpected activity on the homefront resulted in my arriving late for Mass,and I walked in while the celebrant was delivering his homily.

Bill, one of the hospitality misinters that morning, gave me an especially long, warm hug. I put my head on his shoulder and thanked him for his welcome. I love my little parish. No one feels judged there. All are welcome, even when they are late.  Read More 

PHOTO:Mary van Balen
"FAITH: May the God of FAITH be with you, sending you miracles and teaching you to expect them. May God show you things that can be seen only in darkness. May your faith see you through the unknowns in your life, calling you to trust the unseen presence of God in them. May your faith serve as a beacon to light the way for other pilgrims on the way. May the blessing of FAITH be upon you." p 60

My group of "Sabbath House" friends sat together after dinner, pondering the blessings that come with struggle and pain in our lives. We read a meditation by Joyce Rupp and then shared our personal struggles and the blessing they offered, however difficult to see or feel at the moment. Read More 

Photo: Mary van Balen
On the last two mornings of September I walked with a friend along paths that wended through her property. New England Asters, golden rod, bindweed, and bittersweet splashed color across fields of browning green grasses and dark stalks that once held summer flowers. Fog hung hundreds of spider webs with crystal drops revealing the variety of design: some webs lay close to the ground, others hung between tall grasses. Later, we sipped tea and ate a breakfast of dates, nuts, and thin toast with butter. A perfect way to say good-bye to summer and September. Read More 

PHOTO: Thich Nhat Hanh, photographer unknown

On the back cover of "Living Buddha, Living Christ," by Thich Nhat Hanh, Thomas Merton wrote: "Thich Nhat Hanh is more my brother than many who are nearer to me in race and nationality, because he and I see things the same exact way."

Perhaps surprising from a Cistercian monk, but not if you have read much of Merton and Thich Nhat Hanh. I took "Living Buddah, Living Christ" with me on a trip to Thailand, knowing I would be staying in a predominantly Buddhist country. (On an earlier trip I read "Buddhism for Beginners" for the same reason: to understand and appreciate the people I would be living amongst.) Read More