St Edmund's Episcopal Church San Marino

STEDY, September 26, 2018

“Ew!”, a student who will go unnamed screamed last Sunday. An avid juice lover her excitement over finding an unfinished jug from week before diminished when she saw the grape sediment that had collected on the bottom. “I am not drinking that”, she declared and set her cup down in disgust. Antonio and I smiled, just the day before I had shared with him a story I had read from the Buddhist monk Thich Nhat Hanh. It was about a 5-year-old girl named Thuy who was staying with him in his hermitage. She and several of the other children couldn’t understand why he and the other monks meditated every day. They thought it was silly to simply sit. One day she and the others came running in from playing and asked for something to drink. He poured them all glasses of apple juice and Thuy got the last serving but she didn’t want to drink it because of all the pulp that was inside. She looked at it with disgust, set it back on the table and ran outside to play some more. An hour or so later she came back in saying she was still thirsty. Hanh pointed to her glass of juice, still sitting on the table. The sediment had sunk to the bottom and the little girl drank it happily. When she asked why it was now clear, Hanh said it’s because the juice had been practicing sitting meditation. Suddenly she understood why Hanh and the others meditated every night, it was to become clear.

This fall we are working on mindfulness and prayer practices to help our students find ways to deal with their anxiety and stress. Often as Christians we think of prayer as bringing our desires and needs to God, a verbal spiritual to do list for our Creator. Prayer is a time when we can express our needs as well as a thanks to God. It is also a time to simply be still and be reminded that God is God. We don’t practice this often as Christians, in fact we are so bad at being quiet that we even have written prayers for those times when words escape us. In coming weeks our students, and all who read this, will be challenged to spend time in silent prayer, that is simply sitting in God’s presence. We will practice different methods like tracing the letters of the word “still” in our minds with our breath, focusing on just one letter of that word as well as breathing patterns. We will even, like Thuy, try picturing a glass of juice, at first cluttered with pulp that is swirling about and then slowly collecting onto the bottom where it is contained, littering no more.

~ Upcoming Events ~

Sunday, September 30
Mass on the Grass
The Angeloff’s
Following worship there will be a picnic, suggested donations are $10 for adults and $5 for kids. Remember to bring your bathing suits and tennis rackets!

~

Thursday, October 4
Managing Stress in the Teenage Brain
Presented by Dr. Marc Milstein
11 am | Carver Scrim Auditorium
7 pm | HMS Auditorium

Why do teenagers act the way they do? Discover the latest cutting-edge science that uncovers take-home tips and strategies to better understand, support, and help the teenage brain. Learn the surprising science of what happens in the developing teenage brain and why the teenage years are a critical time in brain development. Understand the impact of stress and trauma, why certain types of stress should be embraced, and science-based strategies parents and educators can utilize to teach teenagers effective stress management and resilience.

~

Sunday, October 7
Blessing of the Animals

Team 1 Acolyting
Bring your pet to the close for a special blessing.

Youth Group
Haunted Hayride
7 pm | LA Zoo
$35 for hayride or $45 for entrance to all of the activities
For more information please visit their website here

~

Sunday, October 14
Team 2 Acolyting

Children’s Liturgy
10 am | Chapel

Sunday School
10:30 am | Sunday School Classrooms

~

Sunday, October 21
Team 3 Acolyting

Children’s Liturgy
10 am | Chapel

Sunday School
10:30 am | Sunday School Classrooms

~

Sunday, October 28
Team 4 Acolyting

Children’s Liturgy
10 am | Chapel

Sunday School
10:30 am | Sunday School Classroom

Nightmare Before Christmas
El Capitan Theater

~

Sunday, November 4
Daylight Savings
Team 1 Acolyting

Children’s Liturgy
10 am | Chapel

~ Upcoming Events to Put on Your Calendar ~

Sunday, December 2
Goat Yoga & Craft Fair

Please feel free to contact Heather if you have questions.