Mother Natalia

and really open your heart to Him and really offer Him yourself through presence to Him than it is to recite this particular litany or this particular novena or whatever of just, I'm rattling off the words, I'm not thinking about them, I'm not being present, I'm not, I'm just trying to check the box.

Like that's the thing that it's like, that's destructive.

Well, I think it's the placing in the presence is the key.

Like it's not about reflecting on the words or thinking about the words.

It's that the words are bringing you into his presence.

And so it's about like, am I in his presence as I'm with the person that I'm talking to?

Am I in his presence as I'm doing this work?

Because if so, then I think that the prayer is coming from the heart.

Yeah, I like that a lot.

I would also highly recommend his book, Beginning to Pray by Metropolitan Anthony Bloom, Beginning to Pray.

So excellent.

I don't know if that's where that excerpt is from.

It reminds me, can I share a quote from this book that I brought along with me?

Yes.

You've already made fun of me for the fact that it's large print, but it's what they had at the library.

It's Boys in the Boat by Daniel Brown, and it's about these Americans who went to the Berlin Olympics for rowing.

But I read this the other day, and it reminded me so much of the Jesus Prayer.

As they struggled to regain their form, the Washington freshmen came up with a mantra that their coxswain George Morey chanted as they rowed.

Maury shouted, MIB, MIB, MIB, over and over to the rhythm of their stroke.

The initialism stood for mind in boat.