I am delighted to share another beautiful submission for the Monk in the World guest post series from the community. Read on for Beth Fritsch’s reflection on Going into Garberville: Recently while on a silent seven-day retreat at the Cistercian Redwoods Monastery in Whitethorn, CA , I had a strong urge on the afternoon of day four to take myself into Garberville to enjoy an artist’s date in this quaint town nestled on the Lost Coast.  The more I thought about it the night before, the better I liked the idea too.  I found myself chanting soothingly, “I am going into Garberville.”  Before setting out for

I am delighted to share another beautiful submission for the Monk in the World guest post series from the community. Read on for Irvin Boudreaux’s reflection on thin places: “Conceptually, I have known of “thin places” for a number of years but never really gave it a whole lot of thought. Thin places, like many other Celtic traditions, hold a certain mystical fascination for me. The Celts developed this sort of thinking before the long arm of western Christianity invaded their world. Simply put, a thin place was and is just that, a physical location where the separation between the divine and the earth is

I am delighted to share another beautiful submission for the Monk in the World guest post series from the community. Read on for Karen Johnston’s reflection on the chapel of the heart: “I welcome silence. It is a quiet cushion in between everything that captures gentle fluidity. It’s where I become satisfied with the riches of nothing and wear the jewels of the empty. It’s where magnificent infinity is amplified and my awareness becomes keen to truth. Yet, oddly, it is a villain who has escorted me into this great simplicity. The noisy world has forced me to know my truest self. The

I am delighted to share another beautiful submission for the Monk in the World guest post series from the community. Read on for Naomi Kelly’s reflection on lessons from a contemplative walk: “Earlier this summer, my friend and I embarked on a series of contemplative walks in the Adirondack mountains of Upstate New York that she called “Yoga Hikes.” While scoping out some new trails, we visited a small creek near Whetstone Gulf State Park.  At first, the creek’s wide banks were inviting us to walk along and enjoy the vegetation.  There were – birds feet, timothy and clover, the types of grass

I am delighted to share another beautiful submission for the Monk in the World guest post series from the community. Read on for Barb Morris’ reflection on The Way of No Way: “I hate not knowing — now knowing how to do something, not knowing where I am, not knowing what’s going to happen. Like many of us, I’m attached to competence and control. My spiritual focus these days is being in “not-knowing” and being okay with that. I find this difficult. Is it easy for anyone? In the spring of 2014, my husband and I walked the Camino Francés, an ancient pilgrimage

I am delighted to share another beautiful submission for the Monk in the World guest post series from the community. Read on for George Anugs’ reflection the holy and creative process of working with a lathe: “Although the following spiritual practice is written in the form of a recipe, it’s aim is not to be a how-to-guide. It merely demonstrates that in our spiritual nourishment, often overlooked ingredients can play a major role.   Ingredients: A workshop A lathe (other machinery will do as well, but I find the rhythm and sound of the lathe to be soothing) A turning job (not job

I am delighted to share another beautiful submission for the Monk in the World guest post series from the community. Read on for Meg Watson’s reflection initiation & ritual: After 72 years of life, I am finally beginning to understand how important it is to have rites of initiation.  I wrote before about two of the rituals I perform each day, i.e. making my bed and washing dishes.  But as I was remembering a conversation I had with a friend today, I suddenly began to understand what rites of initiation are really about: they are meant to make life sacred. I was thinking