I have walked the labyrinth at Prairiewoods many times. Each time, the experience offered something new, maybe unexpected, an insight. On one summer morning, several years ago, a butterfly became part of the journey. I have no photographs of that specific day, but the wonderful memory remains. LABYRINTH The border stones still cool from…
What spiritual seekers require for today’s challenges is a deep dive into the “imaginal realm,” a liminal space which hovers between the visible and invisible, the spiritual and the material worlds. Noted spiritual author Cynthia Bourgeault says the “imaginal realm” finds its native home in the heart. It can be accessed through a pervasive perennial awareness…
The Stephen Schwartz musical Pippin is a parable about the meaning of life set in early medieval Christendom. The protagonist, Pippin, fictional son and heir to the throne of the Holy Roman Emperor, Charlemagne, embarks on a quest to find his purpose in life, his “corner of the sky.” “Rivers belong where they can ramble,” he…
Lightning bugs spark my way. There in the darkness but unseen in the light. Nature’s light, chaotic and beautiful. Temporary and divine in their definition of impermanence that defines all. Firefly flash in space bright and bold. Cold fire without heat. Advancing and exploring. Here then there but still showing “… the way, and the…
Who I am is always happening Always growing or shrinking like a flower Embodying my space, breathing myself into it I envision a sphere of protection around me But who I am and what I do comprise the universe And yet I am always melting into it And at the core of the wax Eternity…
Wisdom shines brightly and never fades. She is seen by those who love Her and is found by those who seek Her. —Wisdom 6:12 Wise Woman Maya Angelou has been on my mind. I look to my bookshelves, to books I’ve had since I was a child and I find her there—I Know Why the…
What does evolving spirituality look like today? In the context of COVID-19, we have been courting the advent of conscious evolution by our grand—albeit somewhat disorienting—entry into the Ecozoic Era, suddenly eclipsing the Anthropocene at the speed of light. The wider “We” has been not only encroaching on the notion of monolithic anthropocentrism, and obliterating…
What are you noticing as we begin the autumn season? What are you seeing, now several weeks after the derecho storm? I am noticing trees and stumps and so much beauty. The forest in my neighborhood has opened up again. As I move along with the trees, the light pours in. The canopy is open…
As the Prairiewoods artist-in-residence, I have the privilege of spending time at Prairiewoods in a variety of seasons, meandering through the prairie, visiting Grandmother Oak, slowly turning in circles as I walk the labyrinth. A little over a year ago, I waded into Dry Creek—not dry at all!—and perched on a rock with the water…
“To make a prairie, it takes a clover and one bee, One clover, and a bee, And revery. The revery alone will do, If bees are few.” —Emily Dickinson When I was a child, I was known for being able to fall asleep anywhere. Once I laid down on a busy sidewalk to snooze while…