Still Quiet Moments: Loss & Healing

As we sit with our sadness, we may decide not to waste time chasing the wrong things. The pot of gold at the end of the rainbow likely no longer appeals to us because we understand the impermanent, fleeting beauty of the rainbow’s hues – knowing such splendor will not last. Knowing it is not meant to be here forever, but nevertheless wanting desperately to grasp each precious moment.

2017-07-24T09:57:12-04:00April 4th, 2017|Categories: Daily Living, Spirituality|Tags: , , , |1 Comment

2016: The Year We Learn to Love Better

How do we achieve these goals? One way is to begin working together. We can honor our cultural, ethnic, religious, gender, and race differences while also embracing our commonalities. We can try to understand that the real enemies are ignorance, greed, fear, hate, and prejudice. We can refuse to follow any leader who promotes hate. We can joyfully decline to be governed by fear. We can embrace our power to make a difference.

2017-07-21T14:36:35-04:00January 3rd, 2016|Categories: Daily Living, Spirituality|Tags: , , , |1 Comment

Forgiving the Apology that Never Comes

Forgiveness isn’t easy to write about or to practice in our lives. When the church community I loved broke apart (not once but twice) over disputes regarding two different ministers, the issue of forgiveness was raised by those who opted to leave. I wasn’t able to tackle the topic then. Even now, two years later, I find forgiveness an unsettling area of discussion. I can’t point to one simple solution or easy fix, especially when no one admits fault or wrongdoing yet many people feel deeply hurt.

2017-07-21T14:07:49-04:00June 10th, 2014|Categories: Daily Living|Tags: , , |0 Comments

Sharing Our Sacred Stories

Our lives are worthy, not because of what we do. And certainly not because of what we own, where we live, or how we look. Each of our personal stories—regardless of the details—is sacred. They are sacred because we are spiritual beings. As Marge Piercy once shared in a poetry workshop that took place right after 9/11, art is how we give shape and meaning to our lives. Sharing our stories (and other creative expressions) is also how we connect with one another.

Healing Our Wounds – In Service to Humanity

There are people struggling with the ills of poverty, outlandishly expensive (but necessary) medical procedures, destruction of beautiful, natural environments, and all the challenges and loss that life brings to each of us. There are also millions of people joining together to find new solutions to age-old problems. In Buddhism we are taught, “Do not turn away from suffering. Learn to see others through the eyes of compassion. Create a better future for our children.”

Toward Peace & Healing

Perhaps in 2013 we can find ways to bring peace into our lives and create more peace in the larger world community. To do so, we might have to examine our emotional triggers. We may have to understand the conflict and anger within ourselves. We might need to listen to the suffering we have caused others. We may have to share our own sources of suffering. “Practicing nonviolence is first of all to become nonviolence. … This applies to problems of the family as well as to problems of society.”

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