ceremonies
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Clearing and Cleaning for the Year to Come
One of my fondest memories of the year I spent teaching English in rural Japan back in the 1980s was New Years. I was a recent College graduate with minimal preparation for being dropped into a part of Japan that was still quite traditional in mores and cultural patterns. My first New Year’s surprise happened Continue reading
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Peace, Darkness and the Tree
She was waiting for me patiently, like always, when I stopped by to say “hello” to her the other day. She was quite a bit taller than the last time I had seen her a few months ago. The summer sun must have been good to her, as had the autumn rains. Only one wrinkled Continue reading
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Living Stones, Loving Earth & Now
Life as we know it is changing, shifting. We can feel it in our bones and in our hearts. Many are the explanations offered for these new times we struggle to wrap our minds around. For those who truly follow the ancient Toltec/Mayan ways, this is because we are in a time of transition from Continue reading
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Honoring the Mountain, Honoring the Water
Imagine partying non-stop for a month, as a sacred act. That’s what goes on throughout much of the Ecuadorian Andes starting on the summer solstice. In a tradition that extends back to long before the Inca in this part of the globe, communities and villages celebrate Inti Raymi, or the sun festival long and hard. Continue reading
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The Peace Tree – Episode #2
One year ago, I wrote my monthly column about the peace tree in Keene: a special elm sapling donated to a state-wide peace conference held in Keene in 2012. At the opening ceremony of this conference, we made a blessing for peace over a large bucket of sacred water and all the participants offered small Continue reading
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