Dearest monks, artists, and pilgrims, The United States celebrates the feast of Thanksgiving this week. I have always loved this time of gratefulness and sharing with loved ones. My heart overflows with gratitude for this beautiful community we have created together. I delight daily in knowing there are dancing monks all over the world. I share with you an adaptation of a reflection I recently wrote for Spiritual Directors International on gratitude as a spiritual practice: The 5th century monk and mystic Benedict of Nursia counsels in his Rule for monastic life an attitude of contentment among his community. Whatever

Dearest monks, artists, and pilgrims, Today in the Celtic seasonal calendar is the feast of Samhain and in the Christian liturgical cycle the Feast of All Saints (followed by All Souls tomorrow). It is a very special time of year when the northern hemisphere is moving toward growing darkness and is time of preparation for stillness and rest. In the Irish imagination, this is a threshold time, when the veil between worlds feels especially thin. Darkness invites us to rest into the mystery of things. This is one of my favorite moments of the year’s unfolding. Last year at this

Dearest monks, artists, and pilgrims, This fall has been a season full of wonderful opportunities for journeying alongside our beloved dancing monks in person.  When you receive this love note, we will be in the midst of our third pilgrimage group in Ireland, something we love doing because we continually see this amazing landscape through new eyes and are blessed by the community that forms. As many of you know John and I arrived in Galway almost three years ago in the midst of a life pilgrimage.  It can be hard to explain sometimes how we ended up in this