Writing and Driving and Life E. L. Doctorow once said that “writing a novel is like driving a car at night. You can see only as far as your headlights, but you can make the whole trip that way.” This passage from Anne Lamott’s book Bird by Bird came to mind while driving with my 15 year old last night. We were talking about growing … Continue reading Like Driving a Car at Night
So there I was zooming down the neural pathways and superhighways of my brain and I remembered that I’d seen somewhere that the insides of our brains look remarkably like the vastness of the universe. Continue reading The Universe Inside
“The quality of life is in proportion, always, to the capacity for delight. The capacity for delight is the gift of paying attention.” ~ Julia Cameron, The Artist’s Way Continue reading In Proportion, Always, to the Capacity for Delight
And it dawns on me. The lesson. These things happen sometimes when something someone says intrigues me so, that I want to ponder it, mull it over, hold it in my hand and carry it like a talisman until its wisdom breaks open for me. Continue reading In the Silence
In which I accidentally discover the Ridiculously Perfect Meditation Stance for a dork like me! Continue reading Monkey Brain and Geese Chatter
It’s Tao Tuesday – a fun little reminder to think these thoughts, to examine these principles, to engage the spirit and delve into this understanding, or non-understanding as the case may be. One day of the week, as originally instigated by Amy Putkonen over at Tao te Ching Daily. She has a whole list of every chapter and articles or responses to every one. I … Continue reading Thoughts on Thinking, the Empty Mind and Not-Doing
First there was a quiet that was deafening. My heart was washed of all the years of torment and bitterness, in an afternoon. Just gone. Daily anger, frustration, strife, vexation. Poof. And what remained echoed in its shiny cleanness. For a couple of days, that roared in my head, or maybe hummed. My thoughts sticking up like little rabbits in a field, curious, investigating, … Continue reading The Vanishing Point where Stillness Bellows
What a completely blissful day. These are the new rockers we picked up at a garage sale this weekend, and this is the view looking out onto our back field in Southern Oregon. It goes on and on and we end up with stunning sunsets all summer long. I sat out here and read the first chapter of The Conscious Parent for a new reading … Continue reading Endless View from Rocking Chairs
There are three kinds of silence. the first is physical, the silence of the outer world. This quiet world is a precondition for the second silence which is spiritual, the silence of the mind. Which mind, purged of distractions, prepares one for the third silence, the silence of mystical meditation. “When thought stops, words halt, and we move through light toward absolute silence.” “Without … Continue reading Stillness Shrinks Us to Our Own Size
No matter what anyone says or does, my task is to be good. Like gold or emerald or purple repeating to itself, “No matter what anyone says or does, my task is to be emerald, my color undiminished.” ~ Marcus Aurelius Antoninus (A.D. 121-180), Meditations And yet, it is such a joy to be found, to have someone say out loud what we ourselves … Continue reading Like Gold or Emerald or Purple Repeating to Itself
The way I am learning to meditate, is to be still and quiet, and allow my mind to settle onto something, whatever it wants to settle onto, and keep breathing. It is a very low-key, no stress kind of meditation. I don’t beat myself up for doing it wrong, because there is no wrong way to do it. I read somewhere that given the opportunity … Continue reading Gratitude, Grace and Green Beans
The last thing you hear on the audio version of this recording is someone saying into the microphone, while the crowd is going crazy, “The Blues Does Not Get Better Than That!” This is Part 2 of the Video of about 12 minutes of performance for a 70th Birthday Bash for John Mayall. This was playing on Pandora while I chopped onions for a stew … Continue reading I Chop Onions and Get Lost in Melancholy for a Moment
We have done a lot of canning this year. Mostly tomatoes and various sauces, because we ridiculously-over-planted tomatoes, by about 40 plants. Yes. We have 48 tomato plants, and I wouldn’t be surprised if our skin tone took on a slight ruddiness after winter and all our put away tomato products! We also did Blackberry Jam, which is easy. You can just turn the jar … Continue reading Jam Jar Half-Full or Half-Empty and Computer Malfunctions
My mind is a complete blank and that is a good thing. Normally, I am filled to the brim with lists of things to do, goals to accomplish, needs to be met, laundry to be folded, or animals to be fed and watered. This morning feels peaceful, still, and dark. I know that later on today, we will be canning the last few batches of tomato … Continue reading Meditations on Relish, the Food, and the Lifestyle!
For me, the challenge is balance. Perhaps my goals are too lofty. Perhaps I have too many things I’d like to accomplish in life. I want a happy family. I have a job that I adore. And I’m a writer. Each of these things is a full-time pursuit. Sometimes my scale tips towards the side of family and we are wrapped up in lots of … Continue reading Getting to the Juicy Part
Last night we watched the family movie, “The Last Airbender.” It is a fantastic tale of a mystic world where people have powers of bending earth, bending water, bending fire, or bending air. Nations form around the four powers. A young boy, perhaps 9 or 10 years old, is the fulfillment of a prophecy. I missed the first part – but I think he was … Continue reading Six-year old Flying Wild Goose
This evening I blew bubbles over my four-year old’s head while he played in the bathtub. He was “making a cake” with plastic bowls and measuring spoons and a spatula, pouring water from one container to another. I just kept blowing bubbles. I blew bubbles until I was in a little zone of meditation. It was lovely and quiet. He was occupied and creating. I … Continue reading A Gazillion Bubbles of Ohm!
