We welcome you to submit your reflection for possible publication in our Monk in the World guest post series. It is a gift to read how ordinary people are living lives of depth and meaning in the midst of the challenges of real life. There are so many talented writers and artists in this Abbey community, so this is a chance to share your perspective. The link to the reflection will be included in our weekly newsletter which goes out to more than 11,000 subscribers. Please follow these instructions carefully: Please click this link to read a selection of the posts and get a feel for

This past April we led one of our Writing on the Wild Edges retreats on the beautiful island of Inismor off the coast of Galway. We will be sharing some of the writing which participants gave us permission to share here in the next few weeks. Up next is are two poems by Michelle Winter. (If you’d like to join us, we have our dates open for 2018 – August 26-September 1) Orienteering Orienteering For getting our bearings: A compass is useful and a map to identify our latitude longitude our altitude and depth A poem, or two and, perhaps, Courage to help

This past April we led one of our Writing on the Wild Edges retreats on the beautiful island of Inismor off the coast of Galway. We will be sharing some of the writing which participants gave us permission to share here in the next few weeks. We continue with haiku and photos from spiritual director Ann Smith. (If you’d like to join us, we have our dates open for 2018 – August 26-September 1) Ancient prayer grows from the stone. Small fern speaks life into hopeful hearts. Warmth of holiness. Sanctuary of silence. Eternity speaks. I offer my heart on

This past April we led one of our Writing on the Wild Edges retreats on the beautiful island of Inismor off the coast of Galway. We will be sharing some of the writing which participants gave us permission to share here in the next few weeks. We begin with Julie Mitchell, who traveled from Australia to join us. Accompanied by Angels The pilgrim walk did not begin well. Fifty steps along the way hail sheeted in from the east, mocking the splash of red designer umbrella in a landscape of deepening grey. The graveyard offered unexpected refuge. Limestone sentinels received

Thank you to everyone who participated in our 2017 Give Me a Word invitation! We had almost 1000 participants take the online retreat to help a word choose you. Above is a word cloud made from all the words submitted by January 6th. Please note some appear larger when they were submitted more frequently. Some are quite tiny but are there in the spaces between. We have done our random drawing and are delighted to announce the winners: One space in our upcoming New Year’s online retreat – Spiraling Inward: Seven Celtic Spiritual Practices – Carol Moyle (Openings) One signed copy

January 9-April 11, 2017 (with group spiritual direction on Thursdays) with Christine Valters Paintner, PhD (limited to 12 participants) Stories offer us a map of transformation. We step inside their dream space. We are invited to release our thinking and striving minds, to surrender to a wisdom that is far deeper and more expansive. They call forth new archetypal energies within us that have been hidden and forgotten. In the ancient Celtic stories Selkies are shapeshifters, they move between worlds. They are women who take the form of a seal when in the sea and human form on land. These