“Wilderness is not a luxury, but a necessity of the human spirit”
-Edward Abbey
“Thousands of tired nerve-shaken over-civilized people are beginning to find out that going to the mountains is gong home, that wilderness is a necessity”
-John Muir
Tag Archives: Simple Life
On this new Winter day….
I hope you can take time to savor these sumptuous words from Matt Licata, and absorb with wonder this new winter day…
“On this new winter day, it is so easy to take for granted that tomorrow will come – that another opportunity will be given to witness a sunrise, to breathe into the heart, to be astonished at the crystals in the newly fallen snow, to share a moment of attuned connection with the bunnies on our morning walk.
But another part of us knows it is so fragile here, so tenuous, and that this opening into life will not be here for much longer. Recognizing this, let us surrender the dream of postponement by doing whatever we can to help others, by being fully here and entering into the dark and into the light with them, no longer apologizing for our uniqueness, our sensitivity, and the gifts of our embodied vulnerability.
At the end of this life – which is sure to come much sooner than we’d like – it is unlikely we’ll ask if we accomplished the tasks on our to-do lists, completed some mythical journey of ‘awakening,’ perfected ourselves, ‘healed’ our past, played it safe, got all of our ‘needs’ met, made it big, ‘manifested’ everything we wanted, or achieved all of our goals.
Inside these hearts there may be only one burning question: how well did I love?
Did I pause each day to behold the wonder of just one unfolding here and now moment? Was I willing to take a risk, to feel more, to care so deeply about this life, to let another matter, and to honor *this* very experience, exactly as it has been given?
Did I stay close with the mysterious movement of both sweet and fierce grace as it took form as the others in my life, and as the wisdom flow of feeling, of emotion, and of sensation in this body? Was I willing to fall in love, to truly fall in love with this life, exactly as it is? Was I willing to provide a home, a sanctuary, and safe passage for all of me, an environment of wholeness and integration to dance, rest, and play in?
Was I willing to set aside the unending need to make this moment different?
What is it that remains unlived… for you? How have you been holding back? What are you waiting for? What are the feelings you must re-embody to in order to fully come alive here?
The bounty and the harvest of this world is upon you. It is always already here, erupting in the here and now, and is not waiting. The spell of the ‘next moment’ has been broken.
I hope I make it all the way through this sweetest of ever winter days, but if for some reason I do not, this would have been enough. I have been given so much more than enough.”
-Matt Licata
A Glorious Greeting
“How glorious a greeting the sun gives the mountains.”
-John Muir
Our new year is a gift of 365 mornings resplendent in fresh beginnings and the possibility for sweet reflective endings. Here’s to giving each one of these days as glorious a greeting as the sun gives the mountains, with abundant gratitude from sunrise to sunset.
Happiest of New Years!! May it be brimming with Radiant Health, Adventure, Love, Learning, Deepening, Blessings, Unexpected Gifts and a Peaceful Heart, infused with nature, animals, family and friends!!
“When you arise in the morning, think of what a precious privilege it is to be alive – to breathe, to think, to enjoy, to love.”
-Marcus Aurelius
“I like to walk alone on country paths,
rice plants and wild grasses on both sides,
putting each foot down on the earth
in mindfulness, knowing
that I walk on the wondrous earth.
In such moments, existence is a miraculous
and mysterious reality.People usually consider walking on water
or in thin air a miracle.
But I think the real miracle
is not to walk either on water or in thin air,
but to walk on earth.
Every day we are engaged in a miracle
which we don’t even recognize:
a blue sky, white clouds, green leaves,
the black, curious eyes of a child–
our own two eyes.
All is a miracle.”~ Thich Nhat Hanh
Sweet Solstice
December 21.
Breathing in, the earth surrenders to the shortest day of sun’s light, and the longest dark of night. The wave of light and darkness crests and the sun is welcomed back. Its journey is lengthened each day.
Honoring the earth’s process brings beauty and attention. Deep comfort is found in the unfolding of the unending seasons. The lovely flow carries us, and each day we absorb more of the increasing light.
These gifts of winter solstice are here to be freely embraced.
What precious gifts nature gives.
Today I Rise
“Where are you
little girl with broken wings but full of hope?
Where are you
wise woman covered in wounds?
Where are you? Where are you? Where are you?
Today is the day I will not sit still and give in anymore,
today I rise.
I am bruised but I will get up and walk again,
today I rise.
I don’t care if you ignore my beauty,
today I rise.
Through the alchemy of my darkest night, I heal and thrive,
today I rise.
I move through the world with confidence and grace.
I open my eyes and am ready to face
my wholeness as a woman and my limitless capacities.
I will walk my path
with audacity,
today I rise.
I reconnect with the many aspects of myself.
I am in awe of the reality I can create.
I am a queen,
I am a healer, a wise woman, a wild woman.
I will rise and be.
I am a rebel I will wake up and fight.
I am a mother and I am a child.
I will no longer disguise my sadness and pain,
I will no longer suffer and complain.
I am black and I am white.
There’s no reason to hurt.
Where are you? Where are you?
I call upon Kali to kiss me to life.
I transform my power and anger,
no more heartache or strife.
The world is missing what I am ready to give,
my wisdom, my sweetness, my love
and my hunger for peace.
I weep with the trees and the rivers
and the earth in distress.
I rise and shine and am ready to go on my quest.
Today I rise without doubt or hesitation,
today I rise without excuses, without procrastination.
Today I call upon my sisters to join
a movement of resoluteness and concern.
Today is my call into action,
to fulfill my mission without further distraction.
Today is the day,
today I will start,
to offer the world the wisdom of my heart”
This beautiful short poem of a film (by Films for Action; filmsforaction.org) and the accompanying words were perfect music for the celebration of my birth day…..
http://www.filmsforaction.org/watch/today-i-rise/
And then of course, Maya Angelou’s “And Still I Rise” is immediately
brought to mind…
The Most Valuable Currency There Is
“My soul is not contained within the limits of my body, my body is contained within the limitlessness of my soul. I’ve often said that I wish people could realize all their dreams and wealth and fame so that they can see that it’s not where you’re gonna find your sense of completion. I can tell you from experience the effect you have on others is the most valuable currency there is, because everything you gain in life will rot, and fall apart, and all that will be left of you is what was in your heart.”
-Jim Carey
Milestones
“Sooner or later we all discover that the important moments in life are not the advertised ones, not the birthdays, the graduations, the weddings, not the great goals achieved. The real milestones are less prepossessing. They come to the door of memory.”
-Susan Brownell Anthony
“Life isn’t a matter of milestones, but of moments.”-Rose Kennedy
Flowers Bloom All Around Us
“When we see the Beloved in each person,
it’s like walking through a garden,
watching flowers bloom all around us.”~ Ram Dass ~
As this radiant Fall morning unfolds, I know there will be flowers blooming everywhere today… Looking forward to this day’s walk in the garden.
Not An Ordinary Wednesday
“In just one ordinary moment, sink into mystery, and set aside the urgency to be other than you are. Watch as the trance that something is ‘missing’ melts into the majesty of the here and now.
Allow the dream of the way you thought it was going to all turn out to be taken apart by the reorganizing nature of love.There are colors here, soft eyes to gaze into, and fragrances to enter inside. Precious ones to hold, muddy earth to descend into, and sunsets longing for your presence. Hearts to attune to, nectar to taste, and birdsong which has arrived from the other world. Even the wisteria ones have opened to receive you.There is sadness to embody to, melancholy to dance with, hopelessness to learn from, and peace to rest in. Despair to provide safe passage for, loneliness to explore, and bliss to mingle and play with.See that love will never ask you to abandon your present experience and trade it in for another. In the wild environment of the beloved, each of the senses is unfolding as a portal into true nature and intimacy with all things. Love will only continue to seed you with invitations into the outrageous aliveness of the sacred world.It may appear to be another ordinary Wednesday in another ordinary star. But look carefully, for your lovers are everywhere.Matt Licata
Summer of Love
Summer 2015 has truly been a summer of love. A season filled to brimming with jubilant, sincere, joyous weddings where families and friends came together in celebration and support of couples committing to a partnership through life.
The vows, the radiance, the hope, the steadfast support of family and friends, the beauty, all made for days filled with wonder, deep love, and all the sweet and touching scenes that now reside as forever memories.
It’s so much more than wedding planning! This crazy, busy season has ultimately been a privilege and a pleasure. To share these intimate, sacred, uniquely personal, celebrations of Love, is a honor.
Forever memories were made for me too!
So here’s to Renee & Ric, Fawn & Rick, Lizzie & Alec, Beth & Lucas, Robin & Tyler, Sarah & John, Sara & Kyle and Dane & Nate. May you respect and honor each other as lovers and friends, as confidants and companions on life’s journey. I have faith in each and every one of you to take care of each other, and that you will always honor and keep each other.
All you need is Love.
“In the end, only three things matter: how much you loved, how gently you lived, and how gracefully you let go of things not meant for you.”
-Buddha