I am delighted to share another beautiful submission to the Monk in the World guest post series from the community. Read on for Sharon Dawn Johnson’s reflection Yearning For Second Spring. Seasonal Thresholds Aroused at first light, the sun peeps over nearby urban rooftops as I open the curtain – rejoicing to greet the Spring Equinox, a thin place for threshold crossings. Greeting the liturgical Hour of Dawn is unusual for me – despite my middle name. What awaits me today? My mind scurries ahead to my fibre arts group meeting. My current artwork-in-process, Yearning For Second Spring, is mostly complete now, I estimate. Following

I am delighted to share another beautiful submission to the Monk in the World guest post series from the community. Read on for Christina Lelache’s reflection and photo essay on the community of wildflower saints. Early in 2022, I began to feel a need for a new way to connect with God on Sunday mornings. My point of contact for many years had been through attending worship at church, often in a leadership role. I had stepped away from attending Sunday services when I began my leave of absence from pastoral ministry, and although my spirit breathed a sigh of

I am delighted to share another beautiful submission to the Monk in the World guest post series from the community. Read on for Susan Fish’s reflection on meeting Jesus by a cedar tree. Imagine walking to a river, my spiritual director says. Sit with Jesus and place your concerns in the water for God to carry. I see myself resting among the exposed roots of a cedar tree, leaning back as the psalmist does in Psalm 131, like a weaned child against its mother. I begin to pray in this way. The next summer, my husband and I visit Lake

I am delighted to share another beautiful submission to Monk in the World guest post series from the community. Read on for Kathleen Deyer Bolduc’s reflection In My Own Backyard. One of my most powerful contemplative practices is to ask God for a dream when I am unsure of which way to turn. God always gives me an answer, sometimes in surprising ways.  In the midst of health challenges that include debilitating fatigue, I’ve been seeking to discern what’s next for Cloudland, the contemplative retreat center I run with my husband. It’s becoming very difficult to design and facilitate retreats