“Ten times a day something happens to me like this –
some strengthening throb of amazement – some good sweet empathic ping and swell.
This is the first, the wildest and the wisest thing I know:
that the soul exists and is built entirely out of attentiveness.”
-Mary Oliver
“I place on the altar of dawn:The quiet loyalty of breath,The tent of thought where I shelter,Waves of desire I am shore toAnd all beauty drawn to the eye.May my mind come alive todayTo the invisible geographyThat invites me to new frontiers,To break the dead shell of yesterdays,To risk being disturbed and changed.May I have the courage todayTo live the life that I would love,To postpone my dream no longerBut do at last what I came here forAnd waste my heart on fear no more.”-John O’Donohue
“I don’t know
if the sunflowers
are angels always,
but surely sometimes.
Who, even in heaven,
wouldn’t want to wear,
for awhile,
such a seed-face
and brave spine,
a coat of leaves
with so many pockets—
and who wouldn’t want
to stand, for a summer day,
in the hot fields,
in the lonely country
of the wild-haired corn?
This much I know,
when I see the bright
stars of their faces,
when I’m strolling nearby,
I grow soft in my speech,
and soft in my thoughts,
and I remember how everything will be everything else,
by and by.”-Mary Oliver, from “By the Wild-Haired Corn”, Long Life : Essays and Other Writings
“Cure yourself, with the light of the sun and the rays of the moon. With the sound of the river and the waterfall.With the swaying of the sea and the fluttering of birds.
Heal yourself, with the mint and mint leaves,with neem and eucalyptus.Sweeten yourself with lavender, rosemary, and chamomile.Hug yourself with the cocoa bean and a touch of cinnamon. Put love in tea instead of sugar. And take it looking at the stars.Heal yourself, with the kisses that the wind gives you and the hugs of the rain.Get strong with bare feet on the groundand with everything that is born from it.Get smarter every day by listening to your intuition, looking at the world with the eye of your forehead.Jump, dance, sing, so that you live happier.Heal yourself, with beautiful love, and always remember …you are the medicine.”
-Maria Sabina
“In the rush to return to normal, use this time to consider which parts of normal are worth rushing back to.”
-Dave Hollis
“Live in fertile soil. Take in nutrients like your life depends on it. Breathe fresh air, in and out. Take a break from the rapids, surrender, and the current will either carry you or kick you out towards its gentle edges. Move away from depleting habitats. Leave a sedentary mind and body for the one that is waiting for you on the other side of this and any other present uncertainty. Your future gains certainty when you rise, like your voluntary breath, actively inspiring, consciously and unconsciously inhaling and exhaling.”
-Erika Putnam
“Even in movement there is stillness If we would but awaken.
Between our breaths breathing in and breathing out, Between the blinking of our eyes and the beating of our heart,
In that space, as time begins falling into the timeless We focus on that still point and cross the threshold
Awareness rises.”
-Bob Holmes
Magic exists. Who can doubt it, when there are rainbows and wildflowers, the music of the wind and the silence of the stars? Anyone who has loved has been touched by magic. It is such a simple and such an extraordinary part of the lives we live.”
-Nora Roberts
“We are all visitors
to this time,
this place.
We are just passing through.Our purpose here is to observe,
to learn, to grow
to love….and then,
we return home.”— Aboriginal proverb
“Everything that slows us down and forces patience, everything that sets us back into the slow circles of nature, is a help. Gardening is an instrument of grace.”
-May Sarton
This summer solstice has been an embrace, an opening, a huge release and a tremendous expansion – inner and outer. What a gift!
Mother Earth in her wisdom, in her sustaining and nurturing power and love, is as ever, guiding, comforting, and expressing beauty in myriad ways.
The wild roses at home are radiating wonder holding rain drops as precious gifts.
It is all a gift to me.
Happy Summer Solstice!
“I too have known loneliness.
I too have known what it is to feel
misunderstood,
rejected, and suddenly
not at all beautiful.
Oh, mother earth,
your comfort is great, your arms never withhold.
It has saved my life to know this.
Your rivers flowing, your roses opening in the morning….”-Mary Oliver
