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Visual Meditation: Autumn in Seattle

*** Again the wind Flakes gold-leaf from the trees And the painting darkens—as if a thousand penitents Kissed an icon Till it thinned Back to bare wood, Without diminishment. -Jane Hirshfield *** -Christine Valters Paintner @ Abbey of the Arts (all photos except for the last one taken at the Seattle Arboretum, end photo taken at Lakeview Cemetery in Seattle) ** Come back Monday, October 27th for our next Poetry Party ** ** Wednesday, October 29th will be our next Sacred Artist Interview with Leah Piken Kolidas **

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October 24, 2008

I long for You so much (a time of retreat)

I long for You so much I have even begun to travel Where I have never been before. -Hafiz (excerpt) Last week on Tuesday I piled my things into the car, the essentials like my journal, my yoga mat, my camera, and of course my sweet Petunia.  We headed north on I-5 to the Canadian border.  Two elements of getting to a retreat that feel important to me are a border crossing and a ferry ride and this time I had the gift of both.  When I arrived at the guard booth though, to my disappointment the guard waved me through with half a

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October 21, 2008

What Endures

Today is the fifth anniversary of my mother’s death. My time away on retreat the last few days was a time of ritual and remembering.  I will post more about the retreat itself in the next couple of days. Thank you for all of your beautiful blessings in comments and emails. Last night after I returned home we went to a friend’s house for Sukkot.  It is a 7-day festival that comes after the Jewish high holy days of Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur and during it, celebrants build sukkahs or tents and live in them as a remembrance of the Israelites time of wandering.  As my rabbi friend reflected, it

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October 19, 2008

Going on Retreat

How necessary it is for monks to work in the fields, in the rain, in the sun, in the mud, in the clay, in the wind: these are our spiritual directors and our novice-masters. They form our contemplation. They instill us with virtue. They make us as stable as the land we live in.  -Thomas Merton On this night of the full moon, I am off for a few days of retreat with my spiritual director Abbess Petunia.  I will be listening to the wind, rain, and sunlight for their sacred whispers.  I will root myself among trees and allow the call of

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October 14, 2008

Sacred Artist Interview: Anne Ierardi

  I am delighted to be returning to these interviews again after a long hiatus.  I was introduced to Anne Ierardi‘s art through my work as art editor with Presence: An International Journal of Spiritual Direction. I am grateful to Anne for saying yes to my invitation to share her insights into the connections between art and spirituality with all of you, my wonderful readers. ______________________________________ Are you rooted in a particular faith tradition?  I’ve had a marvelous faith journey. The tree of life is still growing. My early roots are in Catholicism influenced by Thomas Merton’s ideas on faith as social action

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October 13, 2008

Invitation to Poetry: A Celebration of Poetry!

Our 25th Poetry Party and over a year of poetic inspiration!  I had no idea when I began these how meaningful they would become to me and to those of you who participate by writing or reading. Thank you for the wonderful creative community that forms around each of these. I select an image and suggest a title and invite you to respond with your poems, words, reflections, quotes, song lyrics, etc. Leave them in the comments or email me and I’ll add them to the body of the post as they come in along with a link back to your

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October 6, 2008

Art and Lectio Divina

Go see the delightful collage lucy made inspired by reading from my book!  You can order your own copy here.  For those of you looking for a creative twist on an ancient practice, there is an entire chapter on using lectio to pray contemplatively with art, music, life experience and more as well as using art-making to respond to your lectio divina experience. Come back tomorrow for a very special 25th Poetry Party! PS — if you are thinking of joining us for the Contemplative Art & Movement Retreat let me know– there is only one spot left!  Register here.

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October 5, 2008

The Table as Altar

Two weeks ago I went to a Shabbat dinner at the home of my good friend who is also a rabbi.  On occasion she will invite her “women of faith” friends to celebrate this welcoming in of the Sabbath so central to Jewish life and ritual.  There we were, one Jewish rabbi, one Benedictine Oblate, two ordained Methodist ministers, and two Tibetan Buddhists (one of whom has taken robes). We gathered around the table lighting the Shabbat candles while singing a Buddhist mantra.  We read the prayers in Hebrew, washed our hands, and broke the challah bread and drank wine.  As

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October 3, 2008