Taize

"Quiet minds cannot be perplexed or frightened, but go on in fortune or misfortune at their own private pace, like a clock during a thunderstorm."

- Robert Louis Stevenson

The Taizé Community is an ecumenical Christian monastic order in Taizé, Saône-et-Loire, Burgundy, France. It is comprised of a little over 100 brothers who come from both Catholic, Orthodox and Protestant traditions. Over 100,000 young people from around the world make pilgrimages to Taizé each year for prayer, Bible study, sharing, and communal work.

Though Western European in origin, the community welcomes people and traditions from across the globe. This is reflected in the music and prayers where songs are sung in many languages, and increasingly include chants and icons from the Eastern Orthodox tradition. The music emphasises simple phrases, usually lines from Psalms or other pieces of Scripture, repeated and sometimes also sung in canon. The repetition is intended to aid meditation and prayer.

-courtesy of Wikipedia

When it comes to worship, I am a quiet person. Quakers still practice silent prayer as do I in my personal faith life. I find profound strength, fulfillment, and rest in listening for God.

Besides, what could I possibly tell God that he/she doesn't already know?

I enjoy quiet pursuits: reading, knitting, listening to music.

I practice meditation, breath prayer, yoga

The solicitude of solitude.

Our world is so noisy, both externally and internally, that our own inner voices all too often get lost in the din. I treasure the various methods that cultivate quietude, serenity, and peace.

One of these methods is Taize. The circularity of its structure, the repetition of the central thought, are similar in my mind to saying a rosary.

Or knitting a row.

Much has been written on the meditative effects of knitting. And I will admit to missing that aspect, when I am knee deep in beads and complex lace. Don't get me wrong. There is a time for challenge, exhilaration, and the creation of beauty.

But sometimes spareness and simplicity beckon.

It is in that spirit, that I introduce you to:

Taize

The yarn is a new favorite of mine: the Fibre Company's Canopy, an absolutely luscious fingering weight blend of merino, alpaca, and bamboo from Peru.

The pattern is so simple, a mere 6 stitches wide and 8 rows deep. But the resulting surface texture is wonderful.

I added a delicate picot edging and a simple lace border on the ends.

All in all, she is a lovely little aperitif.

Quiet...

understated...

restful...

repetitive...

comforting...

See why I named it Taize?

Will write up the pattern this weekend and then she's all yours.

Knit, pray, repeat...

Hands to work and hearts to God...