I am rock happy. Not a rock hound—I don’t spend time in deserts with a pick digging for geodes. Though I do find the odd rock on mountain trips or along river beds, the vast majority of my rock allies come to me on beaches. I used to hoard rocks. Once in my 30s, I corralled some friends to help me move. At one point some of the men grumbled about the weight of ten or so extra heavy boxes and said to me: “Yikes, what do you have in here, rocks?” I was afraid to tell them they were correct, for fear they’d refuse to carry them up the long flight of stairs. Most of those early finds have long since been returned to a fine shore.
Continue reading...18. April 2009
First they appear as ruddy dots of hope, then pink buds emerge among a few chartreuse leaves. Next the bulbous buds, large and rosy with obvious promise, swell. Curvaceous. Ripe. Wanting to open, eager, they overwhelm the tiny leaves which cannot grow apace. Then the moment comes—the sun works its alchemy and magnolia soulangiana buds unfold in floppy, flagrant, fragrant opulence. Open and vulnerable.
Continue reading...17. April 2009
Fifty or sixty geese set out across the Strait of Juan de Fuca toward Canada while I was watching today. They are flying high up on a strong current, their fluid vee undulating with each set of wing beats. Though I’ve heard small flocks of them arriving at the lagoon for weeks now, this is the first formation I’ve seen this year. I want that sure knowing for myself, a confidence in my direction that requires no maps. I want that steady, elemental pull toward a goal that cannot be denied or deterred. Which of all my dreams is my true north?
Continue reading...16. April 2009
Pieces of sunlight drift by my window as I first open my eyes this morning. Goldfinches are back! Yet I cannot hear them sing. Even the bay is quiet—dead calm, flat waters, slack tide. Barely any bird sings. It’s as if the earth has inhaled and is holding her breath—all anticipation, receptive to the unfurling of spring and the reinvigorating of her body. It’s a pause in the flow of life, a moment to glance backward and forward. Now the trio of ancient firs on the bluff glitters in the morning glow all lit up with sparkly life—goldfinches bouncing along the boughs.
Continue reading...14. April 2009
Can you find a place that reflects you back to yourself, a place that shows you the way toward inner stillness? Can you find a place where the cares of daily life slip off your shoulders like a silk shawl slipping to the ground? Can you create such a place in your mind, color it richly and make it real? Can you go there whenever you like? For me that place is Lake Crescent in the Olympic Mountains. This is how it looked last week when I returned from Neah Bay, with the blushing alders painting the lake pink. I am never more centered, grounded and calm than when I walk along and sit beside this magnificent lake.
Continue reading...13. April 2009
Words to inspire: “When you take a flower in your hand and really look at it, it’s your world for a moment. I wanted to give that world to someone else.” ~Georgia O’Keeffe
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Click on any of the following links for more information:
What Is Meditation?
How To Meditate in 5 Easy Steps
Setting the Mood to Meditate
Benefits of Meditation
Expanding Your Current Meditation Practice
Why I Meditate and How It Affects Me
19. April 2009
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