Last week, I was talking to a good friend of mine, Camille, and I told her that I loved to say my daily prayers in my yard. She lit up like a dazzling Christmas tree and said, oh, I never thought to do that!
Our conversation got me to thinking about all the beautiful places that are, on Staten Island, that are peaceful and perfect for prayer. Of course, one of my favorites is my yard, since I usually stop working either late in the morning or early afternoon for my mid-day dailies. Though I do have to put up with the constant banging and hum of the a/c units in everyone's backyards, the mosquitoes and flies, I can't beat the commute. But, aside from my yard, there are quite a few quiet, lovely, places to go. The quickest way to get to all of them is by car.
Since my yard isn't available for everyone here are some suggestions. We have beautiful places like our shorelines ~ Wolffs Pond Park, Great Kills Park, South Beach, and Conference House Park ~ which are great for walking and meditating. We also have our more interior parks i.e. Bloomingdale, High Rock, Silver Lake, Clove Lakes, to name a few, and they all have walking trails available (just bring your bug spray to keep the biting vermin, like ticks, away.) There is probably a small park in your area that is within walking distance too. I have spent quiet time with God in my local park in Annadale, which is lovely.
Here are some of my suggestions for peaceful places for prayer and meditation.
The Grotto of Our Lady of Mount Carmel, 256 St. Mary's Avenue, Rosebank, SI 10305 Vito Grosso was the driving force that, along with the society he founded, created this beautiful shrine to our Blessed Mother. It is open 24-7. You can check out their FB page for more details or click this link: https://www.ourladyofmountcarmelshrineofrosebank.com/.
One of my favorite places to go is to the chapel at Resurrection Cemetery, on the south end of Hylan Boulevard. The main entrance is 361 Sharrott Avenue. If you are going South on Hylan, make a right onto Sharrott and another right onto the grounds. Okay, some people may be a little creeped out by the chapel as it is a repository for people, but just look at this amazing stain glass window at the back of it! You can see it has an amazing depiction of Jesus on the cross in front of the window too. The cemetery is open from 9:00 A.M. to 4:30 P.M. Monday through Sunday. Catholic Mass is held there every Saturday at 9:30 A.M. BONUS! Blessed Dorothy Day is buried in Resurrection Cemetery. She is buried in Section 10, East parcel, which is diagonally across from the office.
Of course, my absolute favorite place to go is to the Perpetual Adoration Chapel at my church. The church is located at 4747 Amboy Road, but the entrance to the parking lot is on Arden Avenue. The chapel is always open (unless there is inclement weather). On off hours, when the building is locked, you can get into the chapel, by going to the door on the right hand side (from the parking lot). There is a doorbell that is on your right that you need to ring in order to gain entrance into the building. The chapel is inside, immediately to your right and has a big, beautiful, stained glass image of Jesus. Rosary beads are available to take in the ante-room of the chapel and you can also write a prayer intention on the small desk in there and leave it in the white basket in front of the Blessed Sacrament. All members that do hours of perpetual adoration pray for the intentions in the basket, but, please remember to pray for those intentions as well.
Mid-island we have the incredible Alba House places of prayer. It is located at 2187 Victory Boulevard. Alba House has a beautiful small, stone, chapel, in which you can light candles, a lovely little garden you can sit in, a grotto of saints and of Our Lady of Fatima, as well as a small walk of the Stations of the Cross. All of these are on the right hand side of the grounds, behind the bookstore. To the left, in the back, there is a Perpetual Adoration Chapel. The entrance to this chapel is located up a small flight of stairs right next to a huge picture of the Last Supper. This place is amazing, if you have never been there, especially the small chapel that has a poignant Pieta in its center. I can promise you that you will feel the presence of God in both chapels. It is truly a place of peace. Both chapels are open 24/7. You may need to ring a bell to get into the Perpetual Adoration chapel though. There is adequate parking there btw, and the adoration chapel is adjacent to additional parking.
Last, but not least, is the wonderful grounds of Snug Harbor. Snug Harbor, once the home of retired sailors, is chock full of beautiful gardens and lush green lawns as well as old buildings. It is on acres of land! It is located at 1000 Richmond Terrace, which is in the north part of the island. It is generally open daily, but the grounds close at dusk. You may want to check their site as well, as they have numerous activities and events there! The website is: http://snug-harbor.org/.
Of course, any place that you can find some peace and quiet, even if it is a designated room or area in your house, is the perfect place to pray. After all, it is all about spending quiet time with God and leaving the distractions at the door. I find it is refreshing to set aside time during the day to just sit outside, breathe deep, feel the warmth of the sun and smell the soft scent of my olive wood beads as they slide through my fingers. It doesn't matter that I'm in my yard. It matters that I am talking to God.
I hope that you can do that as well and that you find the perfect place to enhance your prayers. If you have the perfect place to suggest to the readers of this blog, feel free to leave them in the comments below. I would appreciate your suggestions!
Have an awesome day and remember to pray for our brothers and sisters in Texas and Louisiana!
Mare
Our conversation got me to thinking about all the beautiful places that are, on Staten Island, that are peaceful and perfect for prayer. Of course, one of my favorites is my yard, since I usually stop working either late in the morning or early afternoon for my mid-day dailies. Though I do have to put up with the constant banging and hum of the a/c units in everyone's backyards, the mosquitoes and flies, I can't beat the commute. But, aside from my yard, there are quite a few quiet, lovely, places to go. The quickest way to get to all of them is by car.
Since my yard isn't available for everyone here are some suggestions. We have beautiful places like our shorelines ~ Wolffs Pond Park, Great Kills Park, South Beach, and Conference House Park ~ which are great for walking and meditating. We also have our more interior parks i.e. Bloomingdale, High Rock, Silver Lake, Clove Lakes, to name a few, and they all have walking trails available (just bring your bug spray to keep the biting vermin, like ticks, away.) There is probably a small park in your area that is within walking distance too. I have spent quiet time with God in my local park in Annadale, which is lovely.
Here are some of my suggestions for peaceful places for prayer and meditation.
The Grotto of Our Lady of Mount Carmel, 256 St. Mary's Avenue, Rosebank, SI 10305 Vito Grosso was the driving force that, along with the society he founded, created this beautiful shrine to our Blessed Mother. It is open 24-7. You can check out their FB page for more details or click this link: https://www.ourladyofmountcarmelshrineofrosebank.com/.
One of my favorite places to go is to the chapel at Resurrection Cemetery, on the south end of Hylan Boulevard. The main entrance is 361 Sharrott Avenue. If you are going South on Hylan, make a right onto Sharrott and another right onto the grounds. Okay, some people may be a little creeped out by the chapel as it is a repository for people, but just look at this amazing stain glass window at the back of it! You can see it has an amazing depiction of Jesus on the cross in front of the window too. The cemetery is open from 9:00 A.M. to 4:30 P.M. Monday through Sunday. Catholic Mass is held there every Saturday at 9:30 A.M. BONUS! Blessed Dorothy Day is buried in Resurrection Cemetery. She is buried in Section 10, East parcel, which is diagonally across from the office.
Of course, my absolute favorite place to go is to the Perpetual Adoration Chapel at my church. The church is located at 4747 Amboy Road, but the entrance to the parking lot is on Arden Avenue. The chapel is always open (unless there is inclement weather). On off hours, when the building is locked, you can get into the chapel, by going to the door on the right hand side (from the parking lot). There is a doorbell that is on your right that you need to ring in order to gain entrance into the building. The chapel is inside, immediately to your right and has a big, beautiful, stained glass image of Jesus. Rosary beads are available to take in the ante-room of the chapel and you can also write a prayer intention on the small desk in there and leave it in the white basket in front of the Blessed Sacrament. All members that do hours of perpetual adoration pray for the intentions in the basket, but, please remember to pray for those intentions as well.
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| Easter Sunday at the chapel |
Mid-island we have the incredible Alba House places of prayer. It is located at 2187 Victory Boulevard. Alba House has a beautiful small, stone, chapel, in which you can light candles, a lovely little garden you can sit in, a grotto of saints and of Our Lady of Fatima, as well as a small walk of the Stations of the Cross. All of these are on the right hand side of the grounds, behind the bookstore. To the left, in the back, there is a Perpetual Adoration Chapel. The entrance to this chapel is located up a small flight of stairs right next to a huge picture of the Last Supper. This place is amazing, if you have never been there, especially the small chapel that has a poignant Pieta in its center. I can promise you that you will feel the presence of God in both chapels. It is truly a place of peace. Both chapels are open 24/7. You may need to ring a bell to get into the Perpetual Adoration chapel though. There is adequate parking there btw, and the adoration chapel is adjacent to additional parking.
Last, but not least, is the wonderful grounds of Snug Harbor. Snug Harbor, once the home of retired sailors, is chock full of beautiful gardens and lush green lawns as well as old buildings. It is on acres of land! It is located at 1000 Richmond Terrace, which is in the north part of the island. It is generally open daily, but the grounds close at dusk. You may want to check their site as well, as they have numerous activities and events there! The website is: http://snug-harbor.org/.
Of course, any place that you can find some peace and quiet, even if it is a designated room or area in your house, is the perfect place to pray. After all, it is all about spending quiet time with God and leaving the distractions at the door. I find it is refreshing to set aside time during the day to just sit outside, breathe deep, feel the warmth of the sun and smell the soft scent of my olive wood beads as they slide through my fingers. It doesn't matter that I'm in my yard. It matters that I am talking to God.
I hope that you can do that as well and that you find the perfect place to enhance your prayers. If you have the perfect place to suggest to the readers of this blog, feel free to leave them in the comments below. I would appreciate your suggestions!
Have an awesome day and remember to pray for our brothers and sisters in Texas and Louisiana!
Mare
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