Hi friends! I hope this little post finds you well and at peace after our completely unusual Easter celebration. I have been musing since we began sequestering ourselves a few weeks ago about the best possible way to communicate with those of you who have been so supportive of my work. To be honest, I’ve been a bit of a mess. As such, I’ve tried to spend a few weeks being “quiet” to get my head and my heart right. All around me, I see my fellow “workers in the vineyard” creating lovely resources that are designed to help all of not only survive this time of social isolation but also to help us thrive.
A new update from @LisaHendey on life and work... Update from the Ball Chair! Share on XI’ve tried a few things myself as well. But, to be honest, the results were leaving me not uplifted, but rather a bit depressed. So I “pulled the plug” and spent last week trying to regroup a bit. Holy Week offers us that beautiful opportunity to seek solace in silence as we draw near to the Cross in anticipation of Easter’s glory. I kept thinking to myself, “If you have nothing helpful to say, then say nothing.”
I’m still not sure I have anything “helpful” to say. But I did wake up this morning realizing that my work continues and that there are things I want to share with you. So I’ve decided for the time being to start a little weekly “update” to summarize in one place some of the most important news related to my work. I was inspired by my awesome son Adam, who recently started a patreon page to support his work as a musician. On his page, Adam has been sharing regular updates about his work. I love reading those each week!
(OK, yes, this is a motherly “plug”! Find and support Adam Hendey here…)
So here, in no particular order, are some of the things that are happening in my office this week. I’m calling this “Update from the Ball Chair” because my red office orb is one of my favorite places to work these days.
- E-book sales! My publisher Ave Maria Press has deeply discounted hundreds of their e-books, including mine. You can find all of my books on their site here. If you go to Amazon or Barnes & Noble directly you’ll find the books there as well. The prices are deeply discounted, with The Grace of Yes only .99, The Handbook for Catholic Moms and A Book of Saints for Catholic Moms only $4.99 and The Catholic Mom’s Prayer Companion only $2.99.
- Virtual Rosaries – This week, I’ll be leading a LIVE Rosary on the Ascension Press Facebook page at 4 pm Eastern on the Ascension Facebook page. I will be praying the Glorious mysteries of the Rosary, using Father Peyton’s Rosary Prayer Book.
- Storyteller Read Aloud – On April 21, I’ll be doing a live read-aloud of my Paraclete Press picture book I Am God’s Storyteller at 11 am ET. Let’s hope I’m out of my pjs in time! Register for the storytime here and find more great Paraclete events here.
- OSV News – Recently, I’ve had the opportunity to begin writing for Our Sunday Visitor. My article there last week highlighted the NCEA’s FREE upcoming virtual conference for educators. That begins tomorrow, but it’s not too late to register. Find the article and registration details here.
- Chime Traveling – I’ve begun recording my Chime Travelers series of books for limited-time use in classrooms and the first of those videos are now live at YouTube here. The videos will remain online through June, so feel free to share them with your favorite young readers. If you’d like a free ZOOM visit with your classroom, drop me an email to lisahendey@gmail.com to see about scheduling.
- CatholicMom.com Webinar – I’m delighted that even though we had to cancel our in-person event, our CatholicMom.com “Day of Mercy” will now be taking place as a free online series of brief webinars. You can register for the first event being held on 4/21, featuring Fr. Willy Raymond, here. Register for my FREE webinar, being held on 4/28 here.
- Catholic Film Critics – Though I’m still learning about this new realm of my work, I’m delighted to share that I’m now a member of the International Catholic Film Critics Association. This new organization unites critics from a variety of publications in one venue to offer you the latest perspectives on film and television. I’m honored to have my reviews featured here.
- Podcasts – My latest Breadbox podcasts are here and my recent conversation with Danielle Bean about quarantine fitness is here. You can also find my CatholicSeniors.com article on that same topic here.
Wow, seeing all of this summarized in one spot makes me realize that I’ve actually been up to more than just snuggling under a weighted blanket in the ball chair. I hope you find this roundup helpful and that you’ll keep my work in your prayers. More importantly, please join me in praying for all of our elders (like my parents) and all of our front-line employees and health care workers (like my husband) this week. I’d love to hear what’s up in your life, so feel free to leave me a comment, prayer intention, or cup of coffee (or something stronger) below.
A question for you: Have you felt the need to be “productive” during this time, or are you simply trying to get through day-by-day (like me!)?
I’ve been trying to be productive, but even with all the time I’m saving by not having to commute to work, I still find it hard to sit down and write my dissertation. I try to be gentle with myself and say it’s okay if I take mental breaks, but it’s hard when you feel like everyone else is being MORE productive.
One thing that has helped me is keeping lists of what I’m doing each day. It gives me a sense of accomplishment, even if I didn’t finish all of my to-do tasks!
I’m a catechist and signed up for the NCEA Virtual conference. It looks like some of the sessions could help me as I try to connect digitally with my students and their families. Thanks for the info.
Cindy, I really hope you enjoy it!
Amy, I think that’s a good idea. I have this bizarre sense of “I’m not getting anything done”. I know that’s not right… I’m busy all day long every day (mostly with my parents!) Keeping track of even small tasks might help me mentally!