I am delighted to come in second place in the Galway University Hospital Arts Trust Annual Poetry Competition (and I had two poems on the shortlist). Here is the poem I submitted: This is not a poem but a rain-soaked day keeping me inside with you and you loving me like a storm. This is a record of a hundred mornings when the sun lifted above the stone hills outside my window. This is not a poem but me standing perfectly still on the edge of the lake in autumn, watching a hundred starlings like prayer flags fluttering. This is my

The wonderful folks at the Spirituality and Practice website have named Christine Valters Paintner’s book The Soul of a Pilgrim: Eight Practices for the Journey Within a best spiritual book of 2015! From the book: “Pilgrimage calls us to be attentive to the divine at work in our lives through deep listening, patience, opening ourselves to the gifts that arise in the midst of discomfort, and going out to our own inner wild edges to explore new frontiers.” Click here to see the list of all 50 best spiritual books>>

When I long to go on retreat, it is most often the sea or the forest which call to me. Everything in nature can become a catalyst for my deepened self-understanding. The forest asks me to embrace my truth once again. The hummingbird invites me to sip holy nectar, the egret to stretch out my wings, the sparrows to remember my flock. Each pine cone contains an epiphany; each smooth stone offers a revelation. I watch and witness as the sun slowly makes its long arc across the sky and discover my own rising and falling. The moon will sing

Thank you to everyone who participated in our annual Give Me a Word! We had over 1700 in the mini-retreat and over 650 leave their words at our blog post here. Above is a word cloud composed of our community words. If you don’t see your word visible, please trust that it dwells in the spaces as an essential element to the whole. We are delighted to announce the random drawing winners: One signed copy of either Soul of a Pilgrim, Eyes of the Heart, The Artist’s Rule, and Water, Wind, Earth, and Fire (winner’s choice!): Judy (Hope), Alison (Spaciousness), Kristen Vincent (Trust), Kate (Trust) One space

Last week we added one last set of dates for pilgrimage in Ireland this coming year: August 30-September 7, 2016.  We filled several of those spaces and had a bit of shifting around from other dates, so right now we have the following availability: (click links to go to pages with descriptions) Writing on the Wild Edges in Ireland – May 3-11, 2016 (ONE SPACE) Monk in the World: Pilgrimage to the Sacred Edge of Ireland – August 30-September 7, 2016 (THREE SPACES) The Soul’s Slow Ripening: Monastic Wisdom for Discernment – Pilgrimage in Ireland – September 20-28, 2016 (TWO SPACES

This past week Christine appeared on the radio show “Out of the Fog” with Karen Hager where she discussed her latest book Soul of a Pilgrim.  Tune into the recording where they discuss welcoming in discomfort, preparing for the journey, and coming home again. Click here to listen to the program>>

The Abbey is going to take a sabbatical from the weekly newsletters through August. Look for us back in your in-box in early September. Please note: If you subscribe to the daily nourishment, you will still receive those Monday-Saturday during this time. Blessings on the Celtic Feast of Lughnasa! To join us in honoring the rhythms of the Celtic wheel of the year, consider registering for Sacred Seasons which is a yearlong journey including reflections, poems, songs, dance, and more for each of the eight thresholds of the natural cycles. You can work through the materials year after year.