photo: Michelle standing in the forest
I adore my husband and know I am blessed to count him as my closest friend.  Even with that gift in my life, I hunger for the friendship and support of other women. 
My dear friend Michelle lives in Vancouver now and with me in Seattle, we have to be intentional about […]

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A story from the desert fathers: Abba Lot came to Abba Joseph and said: Father, according as I am able, I keep my little rule, and my little fast, my prayer, meditation and contemplative silence; and, according as I am able, I strive to cleanse my heart of thoughts: now what more should I do? […]

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The art of savoring is at the heart of the sacred art of living.  Savor this lovely reflection by Rose Marie Berger and may you be inspired to savor these days of summer. . .
(from the July issue of Sojourners, an amazing progressive Christian magazine focused on peace and justice):
I’ve had the joy of visiting a small Christian community […]

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So much of the work I do is making a safe space for folks to remember the delights of creative expression and to explore and play with paint, markers, collage, poetry, movement, words, and sound. I always introduce the practice of art-making in the context of prayer, hoping to convince others that God can really […]

Posted in Art and Spirituality | 2 Comments »

I tend to listen to music while I am driving.  When I am at home I cherish silence and stillness, so I find car trips especially good times to explore new music.  It was a treat to listen to Trish Bruxvoort Colligan’s CD Splash! Bathtime and Bedtime Music for Grown-Up Girls (don’t you just love […]

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I couldn’t resist sharing this photo I just took. Today we hit record temps of 95 degrees (and no one has air conditioning in the Northwest because normal summer temps are 75)! So despite my sweltering, when I took my pooch out I had to revel for a few moments in the beauty of this […]

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Lost
Stand still. The trees ahead and bushes beside you
Are not lost. Wherever you are is called Here,
And you must treat it as a powerful stranger,
Must ask permission to know it and be known.
The forest breathes. Listen. It answers,
I have made this place around you.
If you leave it, you may come back again, saying Here.
No two […]

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Sunrise over Georgia Strait, Sunshine Coast, BC
I am up in British Columbia for a couple of days on the Sunshine Coast with a dear friend of mine. As I sit on the deck looking out over Georgia Strait to evergreen covered islands I am aware that nature is a holy text for me, an icon, a […]

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Good poetry begins with

the lightest touch,

a breeze arriving from nowhere,

a whispered healing arrival,

a word in your ear,

a settling into things,

then like a hand in the dark

it arrests the whole body,

steeling you for revelation.

In the silence that follows

a great line

you can feel Lazarus

deep inside

even the laziest, most deathly afraid

part of you,

lifts up his hands and walk […]

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Creativity arises out of the tension between spontaneity and limitations, the latter – like the river banks – forcing the spontaneity into various forms which are essential to the work of art or poem.   - Rollo May
The creative life requires this gentle tension between freedom and structure, or spontaneity and limitations as May says.  This […]

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