IF YOU MUST CRY Some days. Some days are harder than others. Some days are a little more challenging. Some days everyone gets a little down, even Michelle Obama. “Whenever I find myself growing grim about the mouth, whenever it is a damp drizzly November,” Ismael bemoans in Melville’s Moby Dick. Then, Ismael goes…
On this the 25th anniversary of my sister’s death I am still inspired by her spirit and guided by her wisdom. There is a Navajo prayer that offers this phrase, “A beautiful one came into my hands”. I have been blessed to share the life of a beautiful one, my sister, Debra. Her life…
PLANTED IN PENNIES Do you remember the old rhyme “Find a penny pick it up all the day you’ll have good luck”? Does anyone pick up a penny any more? Do most of us dismiss a copper glint on the sidewalk as unworthy of our effort? Seeing a penny and picking it up has always…
Discovering Ourselves in the Time of Pandemic When you live with a chronic illness that keeps you bedridden for days at a time you learn to live life in your mind. You either learn to be comfortable with yourself or you don’t. If you don’t you make yourself and everyone around you miserable. When the…
Yesterday, my book club faced the new reality. We had a phone conference book club meeting. It went surprisingly well. While some chose not to participate, those of us who did found a comfortable space to shelter us. We heard the familiar voices we heard every month. We dove into the story, the messages, the…
My poetry comes from secret messages from nature, from a moment when a sentence, a phrase captures me with its rhythm and the words tumble onto the page. Mostly, my poetry is formed by wild, willful words that seek their own space and way to the page and to the receptive reader. As a member…
What can we ever give to another more sacred and more loving than acceptance of who they are and what they bring to our life. Oh, the inexpressible comfort of feeling safe with a person: having neither to weigh thoughts nor measure words, but to pour them out. Just as they are—-chaff and grain…
I hope you have a mug that fits your hands just right. One you can wrap both hands around and warm your fingers clear through as you savor your morning brew. Holding that warm, just-right mug in your hands, You can watch the sunrise growing loud with vibrant colors that fade quietly into a fragile…
Meister Eckhart was a German theologian, philosopher and mystic. Among his many inspiring sermons and writings he wrote one entitled, “How all Creatures Share an Equality of Being.” In that sermon he wrote that animals do not love half-halfheartedly. He pointed out that we have a deep level of shared energies, and shared being with…
New Year’s Resolutions Do you make New Year’s resolutions? That deep-felt sincere intention to do something different, something new or stop something not helpful? The mindfulness movement is everywhere these days. It can overwhelm us with its “shoulds”. The message is old and repeated through many approaches and schools of thought. We are commanded to…