Spring brings phlox. White, purples, pinks. They're soft, delicate, peaceful. I adore them. When in bloom, they're always nestled throughout the sacred space in my temple room in small understated vases. But I treasure the Black-eyed Susan's cheerful orange-yellow glow. They have a fire for life but not without graceful countenance. I just walked in the door from picking my first gathering of the season. Spritely, joyful Susan's deserve larger vases: one white and blue in delicate ceramic design, the other deep ruby-wine glass vase. When I must discard my yellow bundles of love, I put them in the dirt on both sides in the front of the … [Read more...]
Why is it so difficult for us to accept total love and forgiveness?
I drive a dirt country road with Meena, my granddaughter, carefully strapped into her car seat, which deer, squirrels, armadillos, possums, and foxes regularly cross. For a good distance, huge limbs of Live Oaks on both sides stretch out to meet the other, forming a canopy. Spanish moss dangles and plays in the sunlight of different times of the day. As I pass under, my mind engages in mystic ideas. Usually not for long. Local residents use this stretch of road to dump their garbage: washing machines, mattresses, love seats, puppies, kittens, and deer carcasses. Last year, someone propped a deer's severed head, eyes opened, on a tree … [Read more...]
And Then There Is Rest
Maybe getting back into a schedule after Spring Break triggered my malaise. Or perhaps my unrest was triggered by working on financial requirements for medical bills with one friend diagnosed with Stage 3 breast cancer. Or maybe the dullness enveloped me as I waited for news from another friend who spent the week in the hospital with her husband in the Critical Care Unit. Off and on during the week I also had thoughts about an essay I had just completed. "Is it worthy of trying to find a publication for it?" Writing the essay had taken more than a month of multiple rewrites and intensive mental energy—it came at a price. I had achieved an … [Read more...]
The First Five Minutes
I like to set my inner compass for the day before I lift off the covers and begin moving. I begin by thinking about what is scheduled for the day, who I will interact with, what I'll do. First I note without judgment my thoughts, sensations, mood, and emotions, and breathe into them with acceptance. I gather myself—all parts. The multiple voices in my head and the variety of feelings, and I think and feel through how I would like to interact with the day. This self cooperation with all our parts shouldn't be underestimated or undervalued. I use it many times, not just during my first five minutes, to manage stress, anxiety, increase work … [Read more...]
Heroine of Your Journey
I studied mythic story structure according to Joseph Campbell in A Hero with a Thousand Faces and Christopher Vogler's The Writers Journey: Mythic Structure for Writers to prepare myself for a rewrite of my memoir. A friend explained he saw his life in terms of mythic structure. He regularly speaks in metaphors and I found his perspective of life fascinating. I've rarely considered my life, or life in general, from a mythic story perspective. What fascinated me was that when I laid out the sequencing of Three-Act story structure, archetypal characters, and overall quest structure of the hero/ine in mythic story stucture my life's … [Read more...]
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