What do we expect out of Valentine’s?
Once during school, a boy I liked a lot gave me a handmade Valentine’s card. My reaction? I was absolutely devastated. Let me explain. There on the elegantly shaped pink construction-paper heart, neatly printed in perfectly spaced handwriting, was a beautiful verse about love. Sounds good, but wait. It was a scripture verse about God’s love– not romantic verse about the boy’s devotion to me.
In my youthful way of reading between the lines with absolute confidence in my own conclusions, I decided to my horror that such a card could only mean one thing. Clearly this boy wanted me to know that he only likes me as a friend, does not return my fragile affections, and is letting me down gently by reminding me that at least God still loves me (God, not him).
I tried not to let my disappointment show. Heartbroken, I thanked him for the card and quietly, dutifully forced myself to stop paying attention to him– in painful compliance with his plainly-expressed wishes, or so I believed.
In retrospect, I may have taken that wrong. Probably I blew it with a really nice guy who risked a handmade card only to find me inexplicably ignoring him afterwards and we both drew our own conclusions. Not exactly a storybook ending.
I’ve grown up a bit since then, but I’m still aware that we attach a lot of expectations to Valentine’s Day. If things don’t turn out like we imagined, all that pink and red can give us a severe case of the blues.
What we want
What do people want out of Valentine’s Day? Well, diamonds and cell phones if you believe the ads, and of course gifts are nice. Underneath all that we want to be appreciated, to be loved. Valentine’s gives us occasion to let people know that they are loved and appreciated. That is a good thing.
A couple of years ago, Rebecca Ryskind Teti asked women readers of her blog (www.faithandfamilylive.com) about their hopes for Valentine’s Day. She said that most of them mentioned Read more
Towards a more meaningful 2012!
I have some new types of sessions for you. Focus on what’s really important in the New Year. Packages are available (info below) for you to try different kinds of sessions, or to focus more regularly on one.You matter. Invest in a more meaningful life!
-Ami
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Individual Sessions
Goals
You’ve set goals before. This time you’ll come away with a custom-made plan that spells out the specifics. You’ll be patting yourself on the back at the end of 2012.
Spiritual direction
Seeking a deeper spiritual life? Bring your challenges, hopes, stories or questions. We’ll sort things out in conversation to see where faith and life intersect (or where they don’t yet).
Making sense of your Dreams
Does that dream you woke up with mean anything? It probably does have something to offer you, so let’s explore it.
Life/Career Values
What values, talents and interests take priority for you, and how do you want to respond? I have a life/career planning activity that helps you connect who you are with what you do.
Retirement Values
More than ever you want your life to reflect your values, express your talents, and be fulfilling. I have an activity that helps you connect who you are with what you do.
Coaching session
What changes do you want to make? Tell me about them and let me help you plan to make them.
Happiness Inventory
What things in life are most important to your happiness right now? I have an activity we can use in your session to help you take stock, then set goals in these areas. One more happy person in the world is good for all of us!
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Pricing and Packages
for your private sessions
1 session is $49
2 sessions, $88 (10% off)
3 sessions, $125 (15% off). Mix and match different kinds of sessions, or stick with one.
4 sessions, $157 (20% off). Winter, spring, summer and fall. Check in as the seasons change.*
6 sessions, $220 (25% off) Meet every 2nd month,* throughout the year.
12 sessions, $353 (40% off). Come once a month* during 2012 for less than a dollar per day and keep yourself moving forward all year long.
*Or schedule your sessions closer together if you like– up to you.
Announcing our fall schedule
Want to get back on track this fall? Consider a goals group. Wonder if dreams mean anything? See for yourself at the dreams workshops. Could you use a day apart? Treat yourself to the fall retreat. Here are upcoming events for fall. Registration is now underway. I hope to see you.
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Mastermind/ Goals Group
A new short-term Mastermind group is now forming (the ongoing, original group is now full) to meet for three sessions only, once a month in September, October and November. A Mastermind group consists of four to six positive, motivated people who help each other move forward with goals, decisions, projects or challenges by sharing feedback, ideas and encouragement.
Each person gets about twenty minutes of the group’s focus, during which the agenda is up to you– sharing a goal, a decision you are trying to make, a challenge you are working through –and getting other members’ perspectives, all in support of your success.
Members of the current group have had success in areas including: growing businesses, fitness, starting a community initiative, relating to extended family, getting organized, considering big decisions, and good old everyday problem solving. Your agenda is always up to you. What goals or projects will you bring?
- Will meet at Halifax once a month in September, October and November.
- Cost: $49 on or before September 8; or $59 after September 8.
- To register, print this form , answer the four questions on the form, and mail with payment.
Dreams Workshop Series
Dreams playfully speak real wisdom into our waking life if we pay a little attention, and the Bible has many examples of dreams’ significance. Explore dreams in different ways in this three-part series, including dream theater (acting out a dream) and Gestalt dreamwork if there is interest. If you participated in this series before, you are welcome back; with dreams, the material’s always new.
- Meets on three Mondays: September 26, October 17 and November 21, 6:30 -8:30 p.m.
- Cost: $39 on or beforeSeptember 12, $49 thereafter.
- To register, print this form and mail with payment.
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Creative Day Apart Retreat
Come apart from the clutter of life to an October morning set apart for something different. A lovely home in a quiet setting offers space for reflection. We’ll guide you in a few simple, creative endeavors that encourage deeper listening within yourself and with God on this half-day retreat.
Chris Butterworth of Halifax will co-facilitate this event with Hudson. Butterworth brings a wealth of retreat experience and a passion for helping others discover their gifts.
- Saturday, October 22, 9:00 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. at 484 Mountain Road, Halifax
- Led by Chris Butterworth and Ami Hudson
- Cost: $35 on or before October 8 or $45 after October 8
- To register, print this form , complete and mail with payment.
Finding Balance
Locally organized Mothers of Preschoolers (MOPS) will host Ami Hudson for an October 12 program, “Finding Balance: How not to lose yourself as responsibilities grow.”
- For further information about MOPS, contact Molly Kemp at mkemp621@hotmail.com or see www.mops.org
Biblical Herb Gardens
Learn about herbs found in the Bible and their relevance to the times with some historical facts and folklore thrown in, plus how to make a Biblical Herb Garden in your own yard. Led by Marjani “Rev” Dele, Ami Hudson and Kathy Conner Cornell, this Saturday Garden Forum also includes “Making Herbal Vinegars” with Cornell. In cooperation with the Halifax County Master Gardeners and held at the Southern Virginia Higher Education Center, the Garden Forum is set for
- Saturday, November 5, 9:00 a.m. - 1:00 p.m.
- To register ($15), contact the Southern Virginia Higher Education Center’s College for Life Long Learning
Questions?
For more information or to register for events, call (434) 476-4111 or sign up for updates at www.AmiHudson.com. You may also click here to contact Ami. Ami Hudson, M.Div. is a Christian spiritual director who offers sessions for individuals and couples, workshops, speaking and retreats through her office at Halifax, VA.
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How friends strengthen marriage
Earlier this month I came across this article by Katherine Rosman, “Why Friends Help Strengthen a Marriage.” She asks a group of couples who are friends, “Why is time spent with friends so good for a marriage?” and writes what they came up with. Check it out. Maybe it will encourage us to make more time for getting together with friends this summer.
Becoming Franciscan
You might not know it by looking at them. They don’t wear the hooded brown robe. But Lynne and Bill Quackenbush of Halifax County were professed to the Secular Franciscan Order Sunday, April 10 in a service outside Greensboro after three years of study, prayer and preparation. Then they returned to their active lives among us here in Halifax County.
You don’t have to be single or celibate to join the Secular Franciscan Order, nor do you live in a monastery. Secular Franciscans include married people as well as unmarried, women and men. They live in their homes with their families and go about their work in the world, hence “secular.”
What, then, distinguishes Secular Franciscans from average people in the pews? Members of an official order of the Catholic Church, Secular Franciscans make a lifelong commitment to live the Gospel. They profess a Rule of life which guides their group’s values and principles. Members meet in their local fraternity regularly for ongoing formation. They draw inspiration from St. Francis– “the closest imitator of Christ that I know,” said Bill– and from St. Clare.
Their Story
Lynne and Bill Quackenbush came to Halifax County in 2005. They thought they’d retire to the Shenandoah Valley, but the rolling hills of Halifax won out since one of their daughters, Tracy Q. Martin, lives locally (two other adult children Bill and Jennifer live on the west coast).
While each is originally from New York, Lynne and Bill met in Scottsdale, Arizona, where Lynne’s sister worked with Bill at American Airlines. Once the introduction was made, “We just knew,” said Lynne, a career nurse who served in a hospital emergency room and at a wound care center. Meanwhile, Bill’s work with American Airlines (in sales, management and relating to government and military) took the couple to Utah and Texas.
They weren’t always churchgoers. Bill was Read more