“Instructions for living a life: pay attention. Be astonished. Tell about it.” –Mary Oliver

I’m Cameron Bellm, and I’m pretty much always thinking about the link between attention and prayer. Years and years ago, I stumbled upon Mary Oliver’s sphinx-like statement, “Attention is the beginning of devotion,” and I’ve been puzzling over it ever since. I believe that attention is the thing that draws us into the presence of God, and also the thing that draws us into recognition of the deep sacredness of one another. The matrix of those two things is what I live for.

I sometimes feel like my head is a balloon soaring up somewhere high above my shoulders, but I come by it honestly, having spent seven years earning my PhD in Russian literature (Dostoevsky forever). Language is still a beautiful mystery to me, but these days I employ it as an expression of the spiritual life, as a mode of prayer, as a glimmering reflection of the God who is Logos, the Word.

My husband and I live in Seattle with our two sons, and the beauty of this part of the country is a balm to the soul (even with the nine months of rain!). I’m a writer and retreat leader and a margin-focused Catholic with an ecumenical and interfaith heart. My work is for everyone. I’ll send out a newsletter once a month or so because I am an inveterate Enneagram 9 and never want to make anyone uncomfortable.

I write the Spirit & Verse column at Jesuits.org, film/tv/book reviews for National Catholic Reporter, and devotionals for Brick House in the City. I’m the author of A Consoling Embrace: Prayers for a Time of Pandemic, and No Unlikely Saints: A Mental Health Journey with Sacred Company. And I’m so glad you’re here.

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Contemplative notes to link our modern lives with our ancient faith

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Spiritual writer in the contemplative tradition