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.

This summer I am on a blog book tour to share more about my newest book The Soul of a Pilgrim: Eight Practices for the Journey Within. I am delighted this week to be interviewed on video by my lovely friend and colleague Kayce Stevens Hughlett at her website Live it to Give it. Today it is my delight and privilege to share with you a recent interview with friend and colleague, Christine Valters Paintner. Christine is the online Abbess at Abbey of the Arts. She and I have been friends for many years and both find great pleasure in discussing

This summer I am on a blog book tour to share more about my newest book The Soul of a Pilgrim: Eight Practices for the Journey Within . This week I am being interviewed by Sibyl Dana Reynolds at Sacred Life Arts: SLA: “Beginning again is essential.” Returning to those things that feed the soul…art-making, meditation, etc. Can you suggest some ways to become unstuck to begin to reconnect to one’s source of inspiration and spiritual center? CVP: It may seem counter-intuitive, but for me one of the best ways to get unstuck is to stop trying so hard. We often feel “blocked” and then

For the next eight weeks I am on a blog book tour for The Soul of a Pilgrim: Eight Practices for the Journey Within, offering guest posts or interviews at a different stop each week. This first week I am interviewed at Carl McColman’s website. Here is a brief excerpt: Can you briefly share with the readers the story of the book? Was it directly a result of your own move/pilgrimage, or what other factors may have contributed to its gestation? Yes, it has really been the fruit of several years of embarking on what my husband and I call ancestral