Color Me Converted

Friday, Sep. 23, 2016

One of my friends called last night’s activity “Coloring with Jesus.” That name’s probably going to stick, even though it sounds like something geared for elementary-age kids rather than a group of women with only three things in common: They’re Catholic, they know me, and they were willing to spend a couple of hours coloring so I could write about the experience.

Perhaps I should start at the beginning. As a kid I wasn’t any good at coloring. I couldn’t stay within the lines and my finished pictures never looked anything like I wanted them to, so when adult coloring books came on the market, I figured it was yet another fad that would pass me by.

Then a friend mentioned that she found coloring restful, and shortly thereafter I got a press release offering review copies of two adult coloring books designed for prayer and meditation. The close timing between the two events caused me to ask Pauline Books & Media to send the books for me to review. (Full disclosure: They were sent gratis.)

Both “Our Lady’s Garden” and “Windows into Christ” have the subtitle “A Coloring Book for Prayer and Meditation.” Each image in the books is accompanied by a short scriptural quote or prayer. 

As suggested by the title, the first book, by Brazilian illustrator Veruschka Guerra, has primarily floral designs, several of which include the Virgin Mary. The other book features renderings of 50 stained glass windows from Chartres Cathedral.  

The first time I sat down with the books was after a very stressful day. I put on some Gregorian chant, read the Bible verse that accompanied the page, and started to color. (I didn’t request the optional CDs with music by the Daughters of St. Paul that compliments the books. In retrospect, I regret that decision because the sacred music definitely contributed to the experience.)

As I chose the colors for a floral motif to work on, the day’s tension ebbed away, and I found myself imagining God’s joy as he selected the shape and hue of the petals of roses and iris and violets and other flowers with which he decorated the earth.

Forty-five minutes later, I was sorry when the CD ended, but happy that I had created beauty during that time.

A couple of nights later four friends joined me for a little wine, a little chocolate and a lot of coloring. I ripped pages out of the books (Suggestion to the publisher: Make them perforated!) and each friend selected one. They were equally divided between the two books; some preferred stained glass and some were drawn to the Virgin Mary.

I requested that everyone read aloud the verse that accompanied their drawing, and then we sat and talked and colored. The conversation ranged from work to faith to politics to family. We laughed and teased and learned a little more about each other. Outside the sun set and the stars began to shine, and we kept coloring.

When we finally wrapped up for the night, I asked whether we would have had the same discussion without the coloring; the consensus was that having something “fidgety” (to use my friend’s expression) was a calming influence, and we probably wouldn’t have stayed as long if we hadn’t been coloring.

I’d recommend Coloring with Jesus to anyone who wants to try something different in their personal prayer life, or as a reason to get together with friends. The two books by Pauline Books & Media mentioned in this column are available locally at Immaculate Heart Religious Gifts & Books, 726 East 12200 South, Draper.