I have been listening a lot these days.  My life feels full and rich and I am also feeling a bit gluttonous for wanting it all, not really wanting to say no to anything.  There is a playful, exuberant little girl inside of me relishing the sheer abundance of possibility.
And yet there is also my inner hermit who […]

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Today I am continuing our theme this week of illumination.  Several weeks ago I did my Sacred Artist Interview with Jan Richardson.   I shared the kinship I have felt with Jan because of her love of illuminated manuscript and the way they serve as inspiration for her own work.  Several years ago Phil Cousineau edited these two […]

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I first encountered Laurie Mika’s work when I saw one of her mosaic classes offered.  While paper arts and photography are my primary art forms, I sometimes like to extend myself into the world of mosaics, where broken pieces are transformed into something of beauty.  Her class was full, as most of them are, but I visited her […]

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I didn’t end up finishing a post for yesterday because I have been getting ready for a two-week trip I am leaving on this Saturday.  For several months now I have been studying and working with Bowen Theory and some genealogical work as well.  I first started seeing a Jungian analyst for spiritual direction about a […]

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On Monday I received a very disheartening email.  The bookstore at the Graduate Theological Union where I did my graduate studies will be closing its doors.  They simply can’t keep up with online retailers anymore.  It is such a fine source of theological resources and the fact that a university bookstore can’t stay open is very sad to […]

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“But when the shadow is given conscious recognition we will find that it has much of positive value to add to our personality, often giving us the earthiness, or instinctuality, or zest for living, or humility that is exactly what we need to complement our personality and become a complete human being.” -John A. Sanford, Dreams: […]

Posted in Photos, Poetry, Abbey Bookshelf | 4 Comments »

I adore poetry and often find it to be a source of profound wisdom as valuable to me as other sacred texts. I sometimes write them myself and post them, although they often stay tucked in the pages of my journal. I love to lead poetry-writing exercises in some of my retreat and training programs, and of course I adore hosting […]

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How refreshing a Sabbath day can be.  I feel a little more spaciousness in my soul, more light-heartedness about the work I still have to do. I spent much of the day lounging in pajamas and reading through some books I have had sitting on my shelf calling to me. (Does it count as work if […]

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I love Ash Wednesday.  We have so few rituals that are quite so earthy.  Everyone is welcome to come and receive those ashes on the forehead, that reminder that we are from dust and to dust we shall return.  It doesn’t strike me as morbid in the least, but a compelling reminder of the preciousness […]

Posted in Monastic Spirituality, Lent, Abbey Bookshelf | 7 Comments »

For some reason in the past week or so I have stumbled upon three books that I desperately want to have in my hands — (you know that ache you get when you see a title that you know will be simply brilliant and marvelous and potentially life-altering?) – but none of which have been published […]

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