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Reflections

Category: Advent Christmas Epiphany

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A Spirituality of Blessing for Advent ~ A Love Note from Your Online Abbess

A Blessing for Paradise*Sacred Source of Joy,help us to see glimpses of heaven all around us, in the urgency of each spring’s blooming,in the simple gifts of water to bathe in and drink,in our morning tea or coffee,steam rising in prayer,in the dog’s pleading eyes,or the warm embrace of a friend,in the food which nourishes usand the herbs given freely for healing. May we behold the way sunlight illumines and moonlight glows,may we treasure moments of laughter.May we see Paradise shimmering forth wherever we look, savoring moments of ease and hope in whatever forms they take, to strengthen and nourish

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Gratitude Blessing + The Love of Thousands Prayer Cycle Day 7~ A Love Note from Your Online Abbess

Gratitude Blessing*Spirit of Generosity,we come to you with hearts overflowing with gratitudefor your abundant creation.As we awaken each morning, help us to remember this day is a gift,this breath is grace,this life a wonder. Remind us with every flower we see,every act of kindness,every moment of connection to something so much biggerthan ourselves,to whisper thank you. Cultivate in us a sense of aweand trust in your lavish grace. Let each word of thanks we offer expand our heartsuntil delight inhabits usand we know loveas our sustenance. Dearest dancing monks, artists, and pilgrims, The 5th century monk and mystic Benedict of

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Spirituality of Blessings and The Love of Thousands Prayer Cycle Day 6 ~ A Love Note from Your Online Abbess

A Blessing for Creativity*Spirit of Holy Imagination,we ask you to bless our visionwith the wisdom to see what is possible. Help us trust our desire to createthrough color, word, shape, gesture, and song. When our fingers trembleat picking up a pen or marker,connect us to the joy of playing on the white page, drawing,doodling, dabbling, dreaming,letting our livesbe a canvas for expression. When judgments ariseand the inner critic yells, guide us to hear our intuitionswhispering the way aheadwith quiet confidence. When our feet feel restless,inspire us to play music and dance freely until peace descends again. Connect us to the

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New Year Blessings ~ A Love Note from Your Online Abbess

Dearest monks and artists, I pray this note finds you well and thriving as we move through the season of Christmas and this turning point of the calendar to a new year.  I have had a time of mini-sabbatical these last few weeks as my health continues to be a challenge. Rest is such a gift and I am grateful for the space to ease my fatigue and pain. As I sit in quiet moments, my heart always turns to this beautiful work I am privileged to do and to you, our beloved dancing monks, who make this work such

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Winter Solstice Wisdom and Offerings ~ A Love Note from Your Online Abbess

Of Price and Worth Let the ordinary be in your hand; hold it open and imagine a bird landing, offering all it possesses in trust to come to you. Learn to look for the little things that weigh nothing at all, but fill the heart with such light they can never be measured. -Kenneth Steven, Seeing the Light Dear monks, artists, and pilgrims,  We are delighted to be offering two programs this week to help you slow down and savor the gifts of this time of year as we wait for the tipping point of darkness to light in the

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Give Me a Word Retreat ~ A Love Note from Your Online Abbess

Dear monks, artists, and pilgrims,  In ancient times, wise men and women fled out into the desert to find a place where they could be fully present to the divine and to their own inner struggles at work within them. The desert became a place to enter into the refiner’s fire and be stripped down to one’s holy essence. The desert was a threshold place where you emerged different than when you entered. Many people followed these ammas and abbas, seeking their wisdom and guidance for a meaningful life. One tradition was to ask for a word – this word

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Preparing for Advent + Prayer Cycle Day 7

Dear monks, artists, and pilgrims,  Today we share the final two audio podcasts of our 7-day prayer cycle on the theme of The Love of Thousands. The theme for morning is on ancestral earth and deep time, honoring that our ancestors are not just our human kin, but the mountains whose minerals form our bones and the seas that swim in our blood. We are connected to all of life. The evening theme is the love of thousands, bringing the whole journey through honoring angels, saints, and ancestors together.  Advent begins in a week! Every year before Christmas since 2008 we have

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