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by Fiona Vidal-White

Several weeks ago, Fiona shared a model for conducting a retreat that helping individuals get in touch with their prayer life and mindfulness. Here she offers a list of resources that can be tapped into for developing such a retreat.

Meditations

• The PBS program, The Buddha offers many educational resources.
• For using with young people, check out The Still Quiet Place.
• “The Zone” or “flow” concept is described by Míhaly Csíkszentmihályi  and can be used to understand more about mindfulness.

Poetry

Using poetry helps focus the mind on images. The Poetry Foundation is a good search engine for certain poets and poetry. Mary Oliver’s poems epitomize mindfulness (Mary Oliver: New and Selected Poems, Volumes 1 and 2 and a number of other shorter collections). Children’s poetry collections are also great because the include illustrations. My favorites are The Oxford Treasury of Classic Poems and Caroline Kennedy: A Family of Poems. Stirling also publishes a series, Poetry for Young People in which a single poet is studied and illustrated (about 20 poems each).

Art

Any book covering an art collection is full of resources. These are expensive when bought new, but can often be found in second-hand book stores. Some favorites:

• The Smith College Museum of Art: European and American Painting and Sculpture, 1760-1960 is great.
• Andy Goldsworthy is a sculptor whose medium is the natural world – leaves, flowers, ice, snow, stone, wood, vines. The beautiful pictures of his work can be seen as both art and inspiration to go out and find materials that you can create with. Andy Goldsworthy: A Collaboration with Nature (Harry Abrams, publisher)
• America’s Glorious Quilts by Dennis Duke (Hugh Lauter Levin, publisher) is a huge book of quilts through the ages. Masters Art Quilts (several volumes) is a collection of modern art quilts from Lark Crafts Publications.
• Material World and others by Peter Menzel compare the belongings and lifestyles of families from different cultures.
• Doorposts and other books of religious calligraphy by Timothy Bott

Song

Think and pray on what you hope for your retreat. Find a short song, hymn refrain or verse that people will be able to learn by heart. Teach it as the beginning of the event and sing it several times more, especially when you are re-gathering after time apart. The following were chosen as not needing accompaniment. A solo instrument would be a great help:

From Wonder, Love and Praise

• Ev’ry time I feel the Spirit – 751 (refrain)
• All who hunger – 761 (A verse and the refrain, or just the refrain)
• As we gather – 763 (Choose one verse)
• Taste and see – 764 (Refrain, with solo verse if possible)
• Baptised in water – 767 (First or last verse)
• We all are one in mission – 778 (First or last verse)
• Heleluyan – 783
• Pelotsorona – 784
• Santo, Santo, Santo – 786
• We are marching – 787
• Peace before us – 791
• Many are the lightbeams – 794
• I want Jesus – 805
• If you believe – 806
• Thuma Mina – 808
• Bless the Lord my soul – 825
• Laudate Dominum - 829
• Ubi Caritas – 831
• Veni sancte spiritus - 832

 From My Heart Sings Out

• I thank you Jesus – 10
• Give thanks – 8
• Peruvian Gloria - 11
• Halle, Halle Halleluia – 18
• I will praise your name - 25
• Holy, Holy, Holy – 26
• Your kingdom come oh Lord – 27
• Know that God is good – 31
• Take oh take me as I am – 46
• Behold I make all things new – 47
• Bread of life – 48 (Refrain)
• May the God of Hope – 54  (Refrain)
• Yo soy la luz del mundo - 75
• Sing oh People – 101
• Oh the Love of my Lord – 147 (Choose a verse)
• The tree of life – 149  (Choose a verse)

Ending songs in My Heart Sings Out

• Let us now depart – 53
• Blessing songs – 55, 56, 57
• In you our hearts find rest – 145
• God to enfold you – 146

Fiona Vidal-White is a musician, Christian educator and Liturgist with a Bachelor’s Degree in Performing Arts, a Master’s Degree in Sacred Music (BU), and most recently, a Master’s Degree in Elementary Education (Lesley University).  Her passion for transformative change, in Sunday worship and in the whole wide church, is a gift from her father. She is the editor of “My Heart Sings Out.”