Spirituality
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Honoring our Ancestors
It is that time of year of holidays that focus upon the honoring of ancestors of various types. As I write, it will be Halloween (or Samhain or Day of the Dead) in a few days. And beneath the plastic masks and store-bought candies and blown-up decorations of skeletons and such, this time is spiritually Continue reading
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Hummingbird in my Garden
When people ask me if I have a pet, I usually say ‘no.’ But sometimes, when I sit in my backyard, I feel as if I do. Of late, my (sort-of) pet is a hummingbird – a female who I watch every morning as she flies between the two red hummingbird feeders I have placed Continue reading
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Summer Solstice
Summer solstice falls on Friday, June 20th. This date when the day is the longest, and night the shortest of the year, is a powerful moment of annual shift. In many spiritual traditions, the summer solstice is associated with the element of fire. Of the four elements (fire, water, earth, air), fire is the one Continue reading
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Jerusalem Mourn
Jerusalem, I sing to you now –Song of longing, song of lamentSong of the ancestors yet to be bornSong of crucifixions of soulsStill being carried out nowin your holyName. Jerusalem, I sing to you ofJustice gone awry, ofSacred soil so sacrosanct,Crystallized into coarseunleavened bread thatcrumbles and decayswithout a breathof fresherDays O Child of place,O Place Continue reading
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Chinese New Year and the Elements
Wishing you a happy Yin Wood Snake year! The Chinese New Year officially begins on Wednesday, January 29th, 2025. This is the when the second new moon after the winter solstice falls. Because it follows a lunar cycle, the start date differs year to year according to our solar calendar. So February 4th is often Continue reading
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Our Dragons
We are just over half way through the Chinese Year of the Wood Dragon. How are you doing? Of the twelve animals of the Chinese Zodiac, the dragon is the only one that is not quite real. At least in the sense of being born, and eventually dying, in a physical body. Perhaps for this Continue reading
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The Tao of Haruki Murakami
To seek knowledge is to gain every dayTo hear the Tao is to lose every dayTo lose and to loseUntil one is empty of doing Wei wu wei means nothing not doneTo control the world is to be empty of doingThose who are busy doingCannot control the world. This quote is the 42nd of the Continue reading
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The Seasons in our Lives
I love springtime. Ever since I was a child, it has been my favorite season of the year. I recall my utter happiness when the crocuses would first pop up along the roadside on my hometown in Connecticut and I just knew that my heart would open wide and I could soon be running around Continue reading
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THESE TIMES
Fourteen years ago, in mid-December, I met the man who I am now married to at a Shopper Christmas party. One week later, my mother passed away peacefully on the night of the winter solstice. I nestled close to her now cool body until the ambulance arrived. This year, there will be no Shopper party Continue reading
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PATIENCE
When my daughter was in nursery school, her favorite song starred a snail and had the following refrain: “Be patient, be patient, don’t be in such a hurry/when you get impatient, you only start to worry.” These words have popped back into my mind in the last few weeks, as we have been dealing with Continue reading
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