A Soul Session Snack Platter

You don't have to eat it all.

Sunday Soul Session

Well hello, come on in…

Have a read, or click above to listen to me read to you. Sunday Soul Session is a monthly gathering I host at home, thanks for joining me for my online alternative. Usually there is hot tea, twinkly lights and a (relatively) clean living room in a (hopefully) quiet house. Introductions are made, and I always love to acknowledge the connections between this month’s group. We pay attention to our breathing as we quieten ourselves. I offer some thoughts on a topic such as simplicity, or nurture, sharing a few observations and wisdom gleaned through the month. I often share from my own processing, the areas I hope to ponder a bit more. We then take reflection time with journaling prompts and a couple of creative ideas. I know many of us long for a bit of breathing space to pay attention to this messy beautiful life we get to live. It’s challenging to find that slower rhythm alone, and it’s a lovely paradox that time in company can somehow help us to find a personal pause.

Finally there’s the opportunity to share some of our thoughts around the circle together (although there’s no pressure). As ideas and reflections are shared, we are shaped and inspired by our listening to one another.

I love my spiritual direction work: hosting and holding space for us to consider the divine and the deeper things in life. My own spiritual accompaniment¹ has given me time and space to care for my soul, and be aware of God throughout seasons of faith shift and hectic family life. 

But I know not everyone is comfortable discussing the divine, and I wanted to host a space for soul care that was not explicitly religious. So this is how Sunday Soul Sessions began. I always make a snack platter, and that’s how I think of the Soul Sessions and this ‘host of soul spaces’ email: take a bit of what you fancy and enjoy it. There are no expectations for you to ‘complete’ or consume the whole thing, just notice what resonates and chew on it.

Autumn Snack Platter with cute tiny impractical pumpkin

It’s my delight to hold space and set a table for others to get in touch with their depths. Yes, soul space can be found in deep listening and a lit candle, but it can also be warm conversation in a group, or a solo savoured cup of tea and a journal. There are after all a host of soul spaces.

An invitation to ponder…

What helps you to take a moment to get in touch with your depths?

Where are the soul spaces in your life?

Do you notice any attraction or resistance as you consider taking soul space for yourself?

Perhaps take some time to journal² or doodle your responses.

Some lovely links…

Gillian Eilidh O’Mara’s Substack The Light on the Sea is a thoughtful, colourful and delightful corner of the internet. She is also offering monthly downloads of some of her heart-warming art.

For January’s Soul Session snack platter I followed Shauna Niequist’s tutorial which was slightly more savoury than my norm, but still quite delicious.

The Next Right Thing podcast by Emily P. Freeman has been a regular listen of mine for a while (it helps that the episodes are short). I loved this episode ‘Why Sabbath is for Everyone with Ruth Haley Barton’. It has prompted lots of discussion around the question what does it mean to have a restful, communal practice of Sabbath?

On my Instagram I recently shared a blessing I wrote for Hope Restored, a collaborative project between Foolproof Arts and Restore Glasgow to encourage creative engagement with the issues around Human Trafficking.

And finally…

If these emails sit in your inbox making you feel guilty, you have my full permission to delete them! You can always find them on the website and I personally find it a calmer experience reading using the Substack app, rather than reading in squeezed email inbox time. My hope is that they’ll invite you to take a quiet moment and pay attention to the questions your life is asking you.

All of my Substack content is free, but there may be paid options in the future. It’d be lovely to hear back from you in the comments section. One of the things I love at Soul Sessions is seeing the common strands that come from the personal ponderings.

Thanks for reading ‘a host of soul spaces’, I’ll leave you with these wise words…

“Listen to your life. See it for the fathomless mystery it is. In the boredom and pain of it, no less than in the excitement and gladness: touch, taste, smell your way to the holy and hidden heart of it, because in the last analysis all moments are key moments, and life itself is grace.”

Frederick Buechner

1. I prefer the term Spiritual Accompaniment to Spiritual Direction, but use them both interchangeably.

2. Or just sit and think about them if you can hold a train of thought that long! I think that’s part of why I appreciate writing things down so much: it helps me to hold on, explore and and discover as I write.