My mother was devoutly Catholic. She was also very superstitious.
Though putting shoes on a table isn’t particularly hygienic at the best of times (like if they’re new) for my mother, it was cause for panic. It was a harbinger of impending death.
Stir with a knife. Stir up strife.
Black cat on your path. Look out!
We used to tease her a lot about her superstitions. Here response was to pray for us with another Hail Mary.
And, though her faith was firmly embedded in Catholicism, her roots were grounded in the land of her birth and the Hinduism of Southern India.
In my parent’s home, the Crucifix along with statues of Mother Mary and Jesus Christ dominated. But there was always a place for Shiva and Brahma. And, because my father liked to stir things up, there was always a Buddha or two sitting on a shelf high above our heads. As a little girl, I loved to rub the Buddha’s belly. No matter how high the Buddha sat, I’d climb up on a chair or reach up on my tiptoes and rub away. My mother told me it would bring me good luck.
I still have a Buddha on a shelf in my kitchen along with a statue of Shiva and an elephant with its trunk upturned (its good luck). The crucifix my mother carried around the world with her since leaving India decades ago, sits on the mantel in my studio and yesterday, I carefully placed the figurines of Jesus and Mary that sat on her bedside throughout her life on the side table by the sofa. A tiny Laughing Buddha stands with them.
My parents taught my siblings and me to listen and see and feel and know and honour everyone. Not by the labels of society, but by their hearts. They taught us that there is room for everyone at the table no matter where they came from, where they were going, or what they brought to the table.
If Buddha and Christ could stand side by side on a counter, why couldn’t we sit side by side at a table?
Yesterday, after finishing rearranging and organizing my studio, I delved back into the altered book journal I’ve been creating in honour of my mother. “My Mother’s Prayers”.
It is not an accident that the left side of the page has a prayer card of Mother Mary. Just as it is not an accident that Brahma graces the right side of the page tucked beneath the purple flowers I painted in remembrance of my mother.
As my parents taught me; There is no ‘Us and Them’. We are not our faith, or colour of our skin or land of our birth. We are our hearts and there are no accidents in the human heart. There is only Love.
Namaste.
Dare Boldly 
I wish all parents had brought their children up this way and that everyone followed the golden rule. Life around the world would be different. Nicely written.
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Me too Bernie!
And thank you.
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How grateful I am that we were raised believing that there is “room at the table” for everyone regardless of religious/personal views or skin colour. Our parents weren’t perfect but I believe they raised us as best they could. We were indeed Blessed.
Love you little sis…loved this blog!!
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Thanks biggest sis! I love you too! And yes, we were blessed. ❤
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Amen to that!
Many years ago, When I brought home a friend, Austrian by birth, my father, a decorated WW II officer, accepted her graciously. He was chastised by some of his former soldiers for doing so. My Father simply said, ” it was my war, not my daughter’s.” Now if we can somehow project this concept that there is “room for everyone” in this world then have we reached Utopia? Alas, given recent events worldwide methinks we are now even further away then ever.
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What a wise and loving man your father was Iwona. ❤
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That’s RIGHT!
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❤
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Wouldn’t it be wonderful if these values were taught in our school system today. Many were not blessed to come from a family that believed in these very important statements made in your blog today. Our world would not be where it is today if we all chose to live and follow these principles. You are such a great example of your upbringing by the way you live your life. Saving this read……..bless you!
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Yes, it would be a wonderful world Val. And… in some ways it is… and then… there are those places/spaces/moments it definitely is not. Sending you much love and many hugs. Thank you and bless you too! ❤
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Superstitious I am not……………
Catholic I am not………….
What I am is a woman who belives we are all equal and people should be treated with respect even those who piss us off.
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I love your response and who you are. ❤
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So beautiful, I love every word of this post, and your lovely journal images too!
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