Religious Art in the News

I just saw this on Jezebel, and had to share:

















"David LaChapelle did a version of The Last Supper in 2003. It was part of his "Jesus Is My Homeboy" series, which depicts Jesus returned to earth to consort with drug dealers, prostitutes, and other people on society's margins. You know, kind of like He did originally." [my emphasis] This image is part of an amazing slide show "a history of fashion's appropriation of art (NSFW)." Fantastic!

Religious Art Round-Up from our trip to NM

While on our Holy Week trip to New Mexico, I got to see lots of great religious art!

I've figured out that I fell in love with my two favorite religious art styles back when we used to live in Albuquerque, 15+ years ago. I came to appreciate the over-the-top realness of the Mexican-style bloody crucifixes, showing Jesus' broken knees, and the crown of thorns in vivid detail. I think of the Colonial Spanish style, so prevalent in New Mexico, the same way: bright colors, and lots of blood.

The second style, that I saw a lot in New Mexico, in both Pagan and Christian religious art works, is devotional. Home shrines were starting to become popular back in the day, and the field has just expanded so much. When we first moved out to NM, without a place to stay, nor jobs in hand, we stayed with Suzanne Sbarge who was working on small devotional shrines. Since then, she has been exhibiting at galleries, including Nu Art, on Canyon Road in Santa Fe. Yay! I love the direction her work has taken - see above. Way to go, Suzanne!

During this April trip, our first stop after we got off the plane was for lunch at the Frontier, of course. After that we checked in to our hotel and walked around Albuquerque's Old Town. I got to stop in to "Santisima" which features lots of New Mexico religious artists. I picked up a few pieces there that I just love. First, a bottle cap brooch by Goldie Garcia. And then, a poster of "Loteria" cards by Brandon Maldonado. Amazing, right?!? I especially love "La Mariposa."

Finally, the piece de resistance was "La Dolorosa" by Johnny Salas, which is similar in style to his piece, "St Veronica," below. He was behind the cash register when we walked into Santisima, and he was super friendly and helpful. He filled me in on the artists in the New Mexico religious art scene. We talked about how he and his mom were preparing to do the pilgrimage to Chimayo on Good Friday, and so if I wanted to get my religious art shopping done, I needed to do it NOW! Well, I was happy to oblige, I can't lie.

It was a great trip for me! If you are into religious art like I am, please be sure to check out the work of these artists!!!

Happy Easter!

Happy Easter Everyone!

I meant to post one last time about my Lenten project, which was to read ALL the Psalms. I did complete it, and achieve that goal! There is one more Psalm that I discovered, Psalm 32, which really spoke to me:

Psalm 32 (New International Version, ©2011), Psalm 32,Of David.

¹ Blessed is the one
whose transgressions are forgiven,
whose sins are covered.
² Blessed is the one
whose sin the LORD does not count against them
and in whose spirit is no deceit.

³ When I kept silent,
my bones wasted away
through my groaning all day long.
⁴ For day and night
your hand was heavy on me;
my strength was sapped
as in the heat of summer.^[b]

⁵ Then I acknowledged my sin to you
and did not cover up my iniquity.
I said, “I will confess
my transgressions to the LORD.”
And you forgave
the guilt of my sin.

⁶ Therefore let all the faithful pray to you
while you may be found;
surely the rising of the mighty waters
will not reach them.
⁷ You are my hiding place;
you will protect me from trouble
and surround me with songs of deliverance.

⁸ I will instruct you and teach you in the way you should go;
I will counsel you with my loving eye on you.
⁹ Do not be like the horse or the mule,
which have no understanding
but must be controlled by bit and bridle
or they will not come to you.
¹⁰ Many are the woes of the wicked,
but the LORD’s unfailing love
surrounds the one who trusts in him.

¹¹ Rejoice in the LORD and be glad, you righteous;
sing, all you who are upright in heart!

I'm glad I undertook reading the Psalms for Lent.

One practice that many people have over Lent is to study the "Stations of the Cross." I had the chance to teach my daughters about them on our recent trip to New Mexico, which happened to fall on Holy Week. We visited the Cathedral in Santa Fe, which has stations that are similar in style to this image of St Veronica with Jesus. I was able to teach them how to recognize her, and when they saw her again in another church we visited they knew who she was. This Colonial Spanish style of religious art is one of my favorites. It's so vivid and colorful!


We got back to Philadelphia in time for Easter, which was beautiful with blooming flowers and springtime. I saw this carving on my favorite religious art site, "Idle Speculations" [Happy Easter, Terry!], and remembered all over again why I love religious art so much. The wood looks to me like it is alive, and reminds me of the wooden entombment sculptures that inspired me to start blogging. I have come to believe that the Easter miracle takes away the sadness we see in those faces, the surprise on Mary Magdalene's face was real, but so was the joy of her realization that Jesus was risen. Happy Easter!


P.S. Because of the tardiness of this post, I can now comment on the British Royal Wedding, and say that I'm so stoked that they included two of my favorite hymns, Jerusalem, and "Guide me oh Thou Great Redeemer" [can't find clip of that at the mo']. Just beautiful. Perfect for the Easter season.

Psalm 121

Here's another new (to me) Psalm. Beautiful. [As my Lenten practice this year I am reading through all the Psalms.] I have discovered some gems!

Psalm 121

A song of ascents.

¹ I lift up my eyes to the mountains—
where does my help come from?
² My help comes from the LORD,
the Maker of heaven and earth.

³ He will not let your foot slip—
he who watches over you will not slumber;
⁴ indeed, he who watches over Israel
will neither slumber nor sleep.

⁵ The LORD watches over you—
the LORD is your shade at your right hand;
⁶ the sun will not harm you by day,
nor the moon by night.

⁷ The LORD will keep you from all harm—
he will watch over your life;
⁸ the LORD will watch over your coming and going
both now and forevermore.

Psalm 121 (New International Version, ©2011)

I'm Discovering the Psalms

So far, this is one of my favorite Psalms that I've encountered during my Lenten project of reading all the psalms within ~30 days (I was late to the game). I had never taken the time to read them one by one before.

[This version is called "The Message" which I've linked to below, there are other, "more standard" versions out there. My prayerbook has the "New International" version, which I've also linked to below.]

Enjoy!

Psalm 103 - A David Psalm

^1-2 O my soul, bless God. From head to toe, I'll bless his holy name!
O my soul, bless God,
don't forget a single blessing!

^3-5 He forgives your sins—every one.
He heals your diseases—every one.
He redeems you from hell—saves your life!
He crowns you with love and mercy—a paradise crown.
He wraps you in goodness—beauty eternal.
He renews your youth—you're always young in his presence.

^6-18 God makes everything come out right;
he puts victims back on their feet.
He showed Moses how he went about his work,
opened up his plans to all Israel.
God is sheer mercy and grace;
not easily angered, he's rich in love.
He doesn't endlessly nag and scold,
nor hold grudges forever.
He doesn't treat us as our sins deserve,
nor pay us back in full for our wrongs.
As high as heaven is over the earth,
so strong is his love to those who fear him.
And as far as sunrise is from sunset,
he has separated us from our sins.
As parents feel for their children,
God feels for those who fear him.
He knows us inside and out,
keeps in mind that we're made of mud.
Men and women don't live very long;
like wildflowers they spring up and blossom,
But a storm snuffs them out just as quickly,
leaving nothing to show they were here.
God's love, though, is ever and always,
eternally present to all who fear him,
Making everything right for them and their children
as they follow his Covenant ways
and remember to do whatever he said.

^19-22 God has set his throne in heaven;
he rules over us all. He's the King!
So bless God, you angels,
ready and able to fly at his bidding,
quick to hear and do what he says.
Bless God, all you armies of angels,
alert to respond to whatever he wills.
Bless God, all creatures, wherever you are—
everything and everyone made by God.

And you, O my soul, bless God!

this "The Message" version found here

the "New International" version found here

Lent

* So, here I am, over a week late for a Lenten post. Life has been busy and full recently, and it's hard for me to settle down and focus. But, that's what Lent is all about.

I had the idea to read the Psalms this Lent, and haven't started yet, but I am going to commit to start today. A friend suggested her church's Lenten program, and after reading the "40 Days User's Manual," I'm impressed. I really like the tack they take. And I they too talk about reading the Psalms during Lent, so I'm going to do it!

* Happy St Patrick's Day

Sacred Harp

On the spur of the moment, I went to a "shape note" or "Sacred Harp" sing-along last night. I can't really read music, but can carry a tune. I'm fascinated by how these singers pick the starting note (I don't really get it). And then - Kaboom - everybody is singing, and somehow following the music. They sing LOUD! It sounds strange and amazing at the same time.

If you've never heard of Sacred Harp, you can check either wikipedia or this documentary movie site for Awake My Soul. Take a listen to the music and be amazed.

Religious Art?

A dear friend shared these images from a blog review of Mary Sibande, a South African artist's work. When I look at these two images, I see religious art.

In the image on the left, she's holding a staff that in iconography represents a martyr. On the right, I see a "Madonna:" the blue robe, the crown-like halo, and the hands in a blessing pose.

Do you see what I see?

Egypt

UPDATE 3: Egypt's Muslims and Christians join hands in protest - BBC

UPDATE 2: A little history: The Road to Tahrir

UPDATE 1: NY Daily News reports that "Muslims Return the Favor, Join Hands with Christian Protesters in Tahrir Square."

click for image: http://yfrog.com/f/h02gvclj/

I saw this photo by accident. I actually can't recall how I saw it in the first place. Maybe it was when I opened my Twitter account for the first time in like, a long time. [Hey, I'm 40, what an I say?] But it, and its caption, brought tears to my eyes and blew me away:

A pic I took yesterday of Christians protecting Muslims during their prayers #jan25

posted by @NevineZaki

At first I wasn't sure that that was really what the picture was of. I wondered, could I trust this to be true? I read some more of NevineZaki's feed, and 'checked it out.' But then I thought, Does it really matter if this photo is staged or not? Isn't the beautiful thing the idea behind the caption? That one group of people would make a human chain to protect another group of people while they pray? And the answer I came up with is, No, it doesn't matter if the photo was staged, it's the message that counts: we are all G!d's people, and we need to pray.

Maybe it's a coincidence, but I watched Defiance last night. It's a great action movie (with the very talented actors, Liev Schreiber & Daniel Craig in the lead roles, [sigh]) about Eastern European Jews hiding out in the BelaRussian forests. At one point, Craig's character says, "If we should die trying to live, at least we live like human beings." The protesters in Egypt are doing something huge, just like the Bielski brothers. They are peacefully demonstrating for something they believe in and are willing to die for. It is scary to watch - scary because I fear for their safety, but also amazing, heartening, and hopeful.

This week, as Nicholas Kristof said, ‎"A quick lesson in colloquial Egyptian Arabic: Innaharda, ehna kullina Misryeen! Today, we are all Egyptians!" or in written form:

النهارده احنا كلنا مصريين :)

"Secret of Kells"

Finally, I watched the Secret of Kells last night after blogging about it last March [thank you Netflix & Wii!]

The movie was amazing. The animation was the most beautiful I've ever seen in a movie. The story came alive. The way the story unfolds is captivating, and brings the illuminations from the actual Book of Kells truly alive. No spoilers here, but WOW - the overlay of history, religion and the natural landscape are just incredible.

It reminds me of another Canal+ collaboration: "Azur & Asmar" (US title: Princes' Quest). So gorgeous, and another fantastic story which entwines history, culture and extraordinary Persian-style tile work designs.

Great Book!

La Segunda and I have been (re)reading this book over the past few weeks - we can't put it down! Moses: When Harriet Tubman Led Her People to Freedom, by Carole Boston Weatherford and Kadir Nelson. The pictures are amazing. But what has captivated me is the book's description of prayer. I think this book captures "how to talk with God" perfectly. In my experience, it's not easy to hear God's voice, but oftentimes, when I look back, I can see where I felt God's guidance. Harriet seeks God's help and we can see how he guided her. This is the best book I've seen for children or adults, that describes prayer so well.

Here's the review from the Powell's Bookstore site:

"In this gorgeous, poetic picture book, Weatherford (The Sound that Jazz Makes) depicts Harriet Tubman's initial escape from slavery and her mission to lead others to freedom as divinely inspired, and achieved by steadfast faith and prayer. The author frames the text as an ongoing dialogue between Tubman and God, inserting narration to move the action along. On the eve of her being sold and torn from her family, Tubman prays in her despair. In response, 'God speaks in a whip-poor-will's song. 'I set the North Star in the heavens and I mean for you to be free.' ' The twinkling star encourages Tubman: 'My mind is made up. Tomorrow, I flee.' The book's elegant design clearly delineates these elements — Harriet's words in italic, God's calming words in all caps drifting across the pages, the narrator's words in roman typeface — and makes this read like a wholly engrossing dramatic play. Nelson's (He's Got the Whole World in His Hands) finely rendered oil and watercolor paintings, many set in the rural inky darkness of night, give his protagonist a vibrant, larger-than-life presence, befitting a woman who became known as the Moses of her people. His rugged backdrops and intense portraits convey all the emotion of Tubman's monumental mission. A foreword introduces the concept of slavery for children and an author's note includes a brief biography of Tubman. Ages 5-8. (Sept.)" Publishers Weekly (Starred Review) (Copyright Reed Business Information, Inc.)

Sports is like a religion in Philly

Philadelphia got an early "Cliffmas" gift. Shall we all sing Carlos?

I'm a Phanatic.

On my Mind

Last night I watched War Dance, a beautiful documentary about children in Northern Uganda, on a recommendation from a dear friend. I know a little bit about Uganda from a blog I read, "the Journey", but I had no idea how gorgeous the landscape is. Both the movie and the blog start with pretty simple ideas: children from the war zone preparing for a dance competition, a missionary taking in abandoned girls and forming a family through adoption. But the messages of hope, resilience, love and strength that pour out of both are astounding.

I also got my alumnae magazine in the mail over the Thanksgiving holiday. One of the features was on the recent conference that was held there: "Heritage and Hope: Women's Education in a Global Context". Reading the article, the speakers all seemed to have some good things to say. And then I came to the highlights from Nicholas Kristof's Keynote:

Kristof expressed his distress over the political polarization between US Christian evangelicals and secular feminists, particularly in the area of reproductive health that prevents them from joining forces to combat such abuses as human trafficking.
"There are a lot of Christian evangelical groups in Sudan and Congo that have done fabulous work," he said. "At the end of the day, everybody believes passionately that 14-year-old girls should not be kidnapped and locked up in brothels."
Squeamishness over talking about sexuality also concerns him. "One of the impediments to girls' staying in high school that most people have learned about only in the last decade is the difficulty of managing menstruation," he said. "Girls never raised it with school authorities or aid workers before because the subject was taboo. If you can keep a girl in high school by providing her with sanitary pads, that is such a cheap intervention." pg 25, Alumnae Bulletin, November, 2010

That stopped me cold. He is SO RIGHT. I feel that polarization a lot. As a liberal Christian, I can see both sides of each coin. And meanwhile, there is work that all of us could be doing. We can't do everything, perhaps, but we could do something, instead of arguing amongst ourselves. Right? What can I do? What can we do? What do you think?


P.S. There are [of course] a bunch of non-profit organizations that have sprung out of the above-mentioned projects. Half the Sky, out of Nicholas Kristof's work, Shine Global which supported War Dance, and Amazima Ministries which grew out of "the Journey". Go check them out, and see if they appeal to you. Maybe these groups are the way forward for action.

P.S. on Vampire Post

P.S. I had a thought after writing the vampire post that maybe the whole deal with vampires is they are focused on satisfying their own desires, completely independent from others. [In Twilight, one of the things that makes the Cullens so unusual is that they have formed a "family". And also, they do not kill and drink the blood of humans, only animals.] They live in isolation and from gratification.

I think the idea of vampires has taken hold and taken off at the same time that people have pulled back from religion, or a spiritual life that is outward-focused. Instead of trying to work for something greater than themselves, people are fixated with their own needs and wants.

Need time to mull.....

Vampires & Christianity

A Facebook friend just asked for opinions on this WashPo article. I had to take some time to collect my thoughts - it's been a busy day - and I felt like Arnold Horshack ["OOoooh, Oooohhhh!!!] I have a lot of ideas about vampires.

The gist of the article is that vampires are the mirror image of Christianity, and the subtext is that Mormons are in the thick of it (I'll get to that in a minute).

I agree. Here's how I see it in the breakdown, Christianity vs. the vampire myth:

Blood: First things first. Christians "drink Jesus' blood" every time they participate in communion (the ritualized remembrance that Jesus gave his life for us, to redeem our sins, and to show God's enduring love for the world.) Through this blood, we humans are given everlasting life.
Vampires drink blood to survive - it is the only nourishment they can handle. They can never get enough, and must feed. Some vampires are called immortal, some "undead." Only through death/killing* are able to drink blood. To become a vampire, they need to share blood, or be bitten by another vampire, often, it seems, through trickery. [To me, this "shared blood" imagery has always reminded me of AIDS, "Share the love, don't share the needle."]

Love/Lust: Love is important to Christians (as it is to most religions), but we are explicitly told that through Christ's blood we have proof of God's love. We must "‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul. Love him with all your strength and with all your mind.’(Deuteronomy 6:5) And, ‘Love your neighbor as you love yourself." Luke 10:25-28. This is a chaste love, or a love that encourages us to help others (feed the poor, help the sick, etc.) It is not carnal love; lust is considered a sin.
But for vampires, lust is a great tool. Like the image above, a succubus is similar to a vampire - seducing humans to (spiritually) weaken them. Vampires use lust to lure their prey and feed. The opening scene from The Hunger [nsfw], one of my favorite movies of all time, shows this. I thought Twilight handled teenage desire so well. I mean, the books are terribly written, but you get it! And I thought the first movie was excellent at showing lust: [sigh], Edward.

Human Weakness/Vampire Strength: Humans are weak. We struggle, especially with lust, and generally with things we desire.
Vampires use lust and our other desires to ensnare, but they also have "super-human strength."

Light/Dark: Christians talk about "seeing the light." Each of us "has the light of God within us."
Vampires move in the dark, and can't go out into the light. In some vampire stories they will be burned if they go out into sunlight, or will turn to stone. In Twilight, they sparkle. What can I say there, other than the author, like me, grew up in the age of Disco?


* Which brings me to Twilight. I was not aware of the specific reference to Mormonism in vampire lore that is described in the WashPo article, but it does make Stephanie Meyer's take a little more interesting.

Edward Cullen is her vampire hero. He turns most of the dichotomies I've described above on their heads. He's a "vegetarian" vampire, meaning, like "Louis" in Anne Rice's Interview with the Vampire, he feeds only on animals, not humans. Edward inspires terminal lust in Bella Swan, but refuses to let her act on her wild desires. He begs her to reconsider her wish to "become like him" because he is "concerned for her soul." He believes he is damned to hell for his undead state. The Cullens, like all vampires, have incredible speed and strength, and some of them even have "super powers." Edward's is that he can read other people's and vampires' thoughts - all except Bella's. And lastly, yes, he sparkles in daylight, but he also wants to help humans. He's one of the good guys.

I usually agree with Jung, and I think that vampires do "embody aspects of ourselves that we reject, hide or are ashamed to confront." But now, with Edward being so darned good, what are we to do with this myth?

A Fractal Escape

As a way to escape all my disbelief about the political spin and general ridiculousness that surrounds us in our pop culture, I have turned to Math.

Surprised? Me too. But, with the recent death of Benoît B. Mandelbrot, the man who "discovered" fractals (or at least was the most recent person in modern memory to be able to cogently describe the difficulty of measuring non-straight lines.)

HERE is a great way to make your own fractal images, and wow is it fun!

Enjoy! Thanks BoingBoing for the link.

Spirituality news!

So the friend of my friend, Rainn Wilson, has come out with a new book, SoulPancake. The website of the same name is where I got the idea to do my Lenten Spiritual Exercise. Boy was that life-changing! I found an interview with Rainn here. Great stuff!

Happy Halloween, Happy Samhain, Good Day of the Dead to you all!

A Shout-Out

Here's a shout-out to Dr Walt Lowe, Professor of Systmeatic Theology, Emeritus from Emory, who taught a four-week seminar at our church this past month. (See the course description below.)

I had several "aha" moments throughout the course, but Dr Lowe's description of "how we know the Messiah has come" [as the 13th Century Jewish scholar said, "the world will smell different."] just spoke to me loud and clear.

One of the final thoughts Dr Lowe left us with was a quotation from Thomas Merton, whose icon I included here, by my favorite religious artist, Robert Lentz:

MY LORD GOD, I have no idea where I am going. I do not see the road ahead of me. I cannot know for certain where it will end. Nor do I really know myself, and the fact that I think that I am following your will does not mean that I am actually doing so. But I believe that the desire to please you does in fact please you. And I hope I have that desire in all that I am doing. I hope that I will never do anything apart from that desire. And I know that if I do this you will lead me by the right road though I may know nothing about it. Therefore will I trust you always though I may seem to be lost and in the shadow of death. I will not fear, for you are ever with me, and you will never leave me to face my perils alone.
Thomas Merton, "Thoughts in Solitude"

Here's what the course was about:

The first session begins with a brief introduction to two major revolutions in twentieth century theology. These are the confessional theology of Karl Barth, who drafted the church's statement against Nazism, and the liberation theology of Jurgen Moltmann, many feminist theologians and a variety of other champions of the dispossessed. We sketch the present unfortunate situation in which each of these theologies views the other with considerable suspicion. Finally, to better understand this situation, we focus on how the two movements deal with the problem of evil and the good news of redemption.

The second session takes up the natural question, given the relationship above--namely "Where do we go from here?" The instructor's view is that a situation in which Christian theology constantly finds itself with one hand or the other tied behind its back is simply unacceptable. Fortunately, a new perspective currently in the process of opening up may point beyond the impasse. This is the new scholarly discovery of the formative role played by apocalyptic in the message and ministry of Jesus, and the writings of St. Paul. We will consider how many modern assumptions are challenged and transformed by this new development.

There is always a risk of getting carried away by the latest fad. Therefore the last two weeks will ponder some remarkable parallels between the possibilities just described and the greater orthodox tradition. We will do this through close reading and discussion of portions of Thomas Merton's marvelous summation of the tradition, entitled New Seeds of Contemplation. Members of the class are encouraged to obtain a copy from a library, local bookstore, or an understanding friend. Toward the end of the last session we will draw our thoughts together, with special reference to the life of the church and the presence (or absence) of Jesus.

Dead Sea Scrolls in the News

The Dead Sea Scrolls will be digitized in an agreement between the Israeli government and Google. This is great news!

The scrolls were found between 1946-1956 in caves just north of the Dead Sea in what is now Israel. It's a dramatic story, and the scrolls' discovery has added a whole new dimension to Biblical scholarship. They are like a message in a bottle across the ages.

The trouble has been getting access to the texts. My awesome cousin was able to see an exhibit of 15 of the scrolls in St Paul, MN recently, but that has been one of the few opportunities the public has had to see these scrolls at all. In a few months, we will all be able to see them, and scholars can go to work.

For a glimpse into some of the information from the scrolls, and what kinds of conclusions can be drawn about Biblical times, I recommend the PBS Frontline video "From Jesus to Christ".

Good stuff to remember down the pike

A FB friend just shared this article from the NYT with me, and I thought I'd re-post the list of stuff to remember when the going gets tough:

1 . Teenagers need to make dumb mistakes to get smart.
2 . Be ALERT but not ALARMED.
3 . Be compassionate and concerned but not enmeshed.
4 . Love them but do not worship them like idols or despise them when they let you down.
5 . Be observant without spying or prying.
6 . Pretend you have seven kids: Dopey, Bashful, Sleepy, Grumpy, Doc (the “know it all”), Sneezy (Does he have a learning disability? An undiagnosed handicap of some kind?), Happy (Is he too laid back? Where is his passion, focus, ambition and drive?) and that which ever of these seven appear in your child’s form on any given day, they are all just going through a phase
7 . When they come to you in distress, resist responding like a concierge, talent agent or the secret police. Assume that they are capable of figuring out — through trial and error — how to solve their own problems.
8 . Be forewarned that the college Common Application asks about “paid” employment with the word “paid” in bold. Remind yourself that ordinary chores and nonfancy paid jobs provide a great education in ordinary but vital life skills.
9 . Remind yourself that watching dumb YouTube videos is a healthful form of decompression and entertainment for teenagers.
10 .Remind yourself that they are unlikely to fulfill all of your dreams or all of your nightmares.
11. Remember that a snapshot of your teenager today is not the epic movie of her life.
12. Recognize that once they get to college, FERPA (Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act) laws don’t allow parents to see their child’s grades so it’s a good idea for students to learn the relationship between effort and outcome long before they go.
13. Plan parental obsolescence, raise them to leave you. The Talmud requires that parents teach their child how to swim.
14. Put the oxygen mask on yourself before you put it on your child.
15. Find support in other adults instead of letting shame or fear about your teenager’s twisting path cause you to isolate yourself.

It helped me to see this.