The lost art of rituals and ceremonies

The lost art of rituals and ceremonies.

When I think back to when I was a kid my life was full of unacknowledged rituals and ceremonies. It was a part of daily life.

Maybe this was why kids were so well adjusted before the distraction from life due to social media. 🤔

Rituals and ceremonies can bring comfort, boundaries and security within.

A ritual for many; kids said prayers at night, it gave them a moment in time each day to ask God or the universe to bless their family, friends and pets. Kids expected God to be listening and slept well knowing that.

Meals back when I was a child were a ceremony where we shared and celebrated our day. We didn’t say grace but we did have to sit at the table as a family. We had to use our best manners and asked to be excused. We never thought about making time to do this. We just did.

As I have aged I feel that I have distanced myself from consciously acknowledging  daily rituals or ceremonies. Steve and I usually have dinner in front of the tv…well, unless it’s pasta night. Then Steve puts on his spaghetti shirt and sits at the table with Tank sitting eagerly at his feet waiting for a wayward noodle 😉 We have lost the art of conversation. We laugh at Everyone Loves Raymond or answer Jeopardy questions. He answers…I listen. 😂

I no longer go to church on Sundays. I loved going to church alone. It was my ‘me’ time.  I loved listening to my ministers ability to take a passage and relate it to her everyday life. I went home every Sunday and shared the message with Steve.

Two new rituals that you have heard me chattering about on my past couple of  blogs  include journaling and meditating.

Having rituals keeps us connected to what really matters. We enter into a state of mind that differs from our day to day awareness. We are acknowledging that a period of time or an event has a significant meaning to it. We, therefore pay closer attention and are more aware of the underlying vibrations  that so often go unrecognized but are always there. Simply put…we stop and smell the roses.

We can reclaim this lost art by reminding ourselves throughout our day that our lives are precious and not to be taken for granted. We can be as simple as we want…A silent pause before a meal to say thank you, a prayer of gratitude at the end of the day. We can choose to be more elaborate by lighting a candle or creating a prayer or meditation area.

Simple or complex, it doesn’t matter…as long as we recognize a moment in time with an attitude of appreciation.