Summer has ended. Fall has just begun. Hurdling toward shortening daylight and the contraction of things today I am reminiscing about contemplation. NOW is a good time to plant. Hibernating, then germinating in the darkness of uncertainty with time and patience thoughts break open up through thawing grounds. Once their time has come there will […]
growth
It is Graduation Time Again…
If I were 22 again I would tell myself, “Life has so many graduations for you. Enjoy this one from University and know there will be many more ahead!” I would want to take the pressure, which I personally placed on my own shoulders, off – so I could enjoy all the moment had to […]
The Happiest Place on Earth – Selling Mindfulness
“Nothing could be finer than meditating in Carolina…” Wouldn’t it be great if meditation was as American as baseball, hot dogs, apple pie and Chevrolet? I wonder what kind of world we could create if meditation was demystified, re imagined or sold en mass like cereal or detergent? Is it just me or are we […]
“When I Grew Out of…”
“When you feel peaceful joy, that is when you are near truth” ~rumi I smiled when a friend used this phrase in an email recently,“When I grew out of…” It reminded me that, even after the age of 50, we do grow out of things. It let me know that whatever I am going through right […]
We Are All Veterans
“When the Indian saint Ramakrishna was asked why there is evil in the world, he answered, “To thicken the plot.” These very plot thickeners, often the most difficult and insistent ones, can lead us to open our bodies, hearts, and minds.” ~ from A Path with Heart by Jack Kornfield We are all veterans. We all have some […]
Peace From Wanting
“Normally, the test of greatness in the arts is the ability to state deep feelings and perceptions simply, clearly, and well. Indeed, it may well be said that until a person can express a thought clearly and simply, he hasn’t yet fully understood it himself.” ~ Swami Kriyananda, from the book ‘Art as a Hidden […]
Clarity: A Master Class
“What you are, and who you are should provide greater clarity about where you have been and where you are headed. Although one distinguishes spiritual from physical nature, the ultimate unification of the two is the consequence of the struggle for internal, external and eternal – peace.” ~t.f. hodge Clarity really messes up everything I […]
Trust
“THE EDGE, there is no honest way to explain it because the only people who really know where it is are the ones who have gone over.”~hunter s. thompson ‘Soft Verges’ is a sign I saw posted whilst driving in the English countryside last year. Verges are the edges of the road. They are also, “She […]
Don’t Postpone Joy
Today I am here… “Picture in your inner eye, your inner sight, four avocado seeds on the window sill. Three are suspended in a glass of water and have sprouted. One is still dry and papery and brown. Each of the sprouting seeds has its own character. One has two long roots, like two rubbery […]
No Need for Struggle
“Don’t keep pushing against closed doors. Look around for the open ones.” ~ sanyana roman Every now and then I get caught up in wanting a thing that may not be mine. I feel owed it. Or I need it. Or I just would like to have it because I briefly enjoyed it…so it must be […]
Turning the Corner
“…while the voice of social conditioning manifests itself as a stream of thoughts in the head, wisdom often appears as emotions or physical sensations in the body.” ~martha beck Unfoldment Rough hune husks fall away Making tender tendrils shown Creeping vines and shoots gather In a storm of awakening I am anew I am crossing […]
Creating From Wholeness
“I am going to tell a story with great meaning. I am going to make you cry, then make you laugh.” ~ me to myself after dreaming strange things. In my past I have created things (comedy, paintings, writing… even relationships) from a hungry place so I could feel worthy. Creation to fill emptiness, though still good stuff, is weighted down […]