Love and Affection

You yourself, as much as anybody in the entire universe, deserve your love and affection.

She said she learned to 'Mop Dance' Today

How'd I ever get so lucky.??!!

Finding Beauty in all things, we reflect the divine within and outside of us!!



I think we are born knowing all the answers!! The secret's of longevity, the key to happiness - plain and unadulterated; we carry this knowledge with us at the time of our arrival here.

I'm certain the trick is - - not accumulating baggage along the way, and not forgetting the secrets to the great mysteries of the universe.

This little angel still knows!! What a blessing to have children. She reminds me every day how to trust in the divine order of things, and how to make lemonade out of life's lemons!! She mopped the floors for me and Dulcy, and learned how to dance with the mop. She's beautiful!!

Birthday Blessings

Repairing the Spiders Web

Right in the Midst of Fall. I am so thankful for the abundance she brings us!! I love the reminder of the 'slowing down' that the cooler weather and shorter days bring.

I've been reading Return of the Rishi by Deepak Chopra (one of his earlier books). He talks about returning to innocence as the key to re-connecting and repairing the broken world. Traits of trust, simple belief, and devotion are lost from us either in childhood, or somewhere along the way, and recapturing these is difficult and often seems impossible.
He refers to the process as being as delicate as repairing a torn spiderweb. Deepak quotes Emerson from his essay Nature:

"The reason why the world lacks unity, and lies broken and in heaps, is because man is disunited within himself".

How do we learn to trust again??
How do we learn to forgive??
Look within. That's where all the answers lie!! And how do we look within? By being still - by being quiet with the self. Stilling the mind, enough to hear Great Spirit - the Self - God, speaking to us!! Start with the breath.

• Listen to your inhales and get in touch with the quality of your exhales throughout the day.
  
• As you work, as you play, and as you create, pay attention more and more to your breathing. Notice how it changes.
  
  You can only stay TRULY, 100% focused on the breath when the mind is not thinking. The Yogis call it no Thought Breath.

Looking within is a beginning to repairing the delicate spider web of individual and collective innocence in each of us. I'm curious to know what other people think about this idea of restoring trust, and finding innocence once again.
Send me your thoughts, personal experiences, and comments on this topic or anything else.

For me:
Restoring my innocence took a gradual acceptance of myself simply as I am, and learning to be okay with that. Being able to see the child in everyone, helped me regain trust. How does the saying go?.. "Be wise as serpents and harmless as doves"...??

Sacred Medicine Bird

I prayed and asked Great Spirit for guidance.


Owl came to me and told me to use my powers of keen, silent observation to intuit my life situation. Owl brought me messages in the night over the past two weeks through my dreams and meditations; telling me to pay attention to the signals and omens.

- For the truth, no matter how hard it is sometimes to accept, brings further enlightenment, I am told.
Tonight owl befriended me in a very personal way, and helped me in seeing the total truth.


I got to be part of a team of researchers studying the saw-whet owls (we think) just passing through this area. This is the first year, that they have been able to put radio transmitters on the owls and track them to try to find out if these particular owls are sticking around for the winter, or are heading farther south. Hopefully their diligent studies will shed some light on the topic about these darling little beauties. They seemed so magical, calm, and very intelligent, as I got to watch the research team carefully bag the birds from the nets, collect all the data necessary, and then release the birds again; which I felt so privileged to participate in.
Athena, the Greek goddess of wisdom, had a companion Owl on her shoulder which revealed unseen truths to her. Owl had the ability to light up Athena's blind side, enabling her to speak the whole truth, as opposed to only a half truth.
"Owl is called Night Eagle on several medicine wheels used by Amerindian teachers. Traditionally, Owl sits in the East, the place of illumination."

"Owl hunts its prey at night. Not only can Owl see in the dark, it can also accurately pinpoint and identify any sound. This gives it a great advantage when seeking food. Owls are the night hunters. Some Native people are fearful of Owl and call its feathers "deceiver feathers." An Owl feather is silent. You cannot hear owl when it flies, but its prey definitely knows when it strikes, for its beak and talons are razor sharp." (Medicine Cards - Jamie Sams & David Carson)

I found looking into owls ears, when the feathers were pulled back, was the most amazing thing about these particular birds. The eyes and ears are asymmetrical (the owl expert told us) so they can pick up depth perception and pick up on slight movements from far away. The ears looked like large gills on the sides of the head, under the feathers, and you could see the back of the eye ball. Really cool looking!!

"Whatever you can do or dream you can, begin it. Boldness has genius, power and magic in it.'" (Goethe)

(I like this Story from From A Third Serving of Chicken Soup for the Soul, by Jack Canfield and Mark Victor Hansen:)

The Secrets of Heaven and Hell

The old monk sat by the side of the road. With his eyes closed, his legs crossed and his hands folded in his lap, he sat. In deep meditation he sat.

Suddenly his zazen was interrupted by the harsh and demanding voice of a samurai warrior. "Old man! Teach me about heaven and hell!"

At first, as though he had not heard, there was no perceptible response from the monk. But gradually he began to open his eyes, the faintest hint of a smile playing around the corners of his mouth as the samurai stood there, waiting impatiently, growing more and more agitated with each passing second.

"You wish to know the secrets of heaven and hell?" replied the monk at last. "You who are so unkempt. You whose hands and feet are covered with dirt. You whose hair is uncombed, whose breath is foul, whose sword is all rusty and neglected. You who are ugly and whose mother dresses you funny. You would ask me of heaven and hell?"

The samurai uttered a vile curse. He drew his sword and raised it high over his head. His face turned to crimson, and the veins of his neck stood out in bold relief as he prepared to sever the monk's head from its shoulders.

"That is hell," said the old monk gently, just as the sword began its descent.

In that fraction of a second, the samurai was overcome with amazement, awe, compassion and love for this gentle being who had dared to risk his very life to give him such a teaching. He stopped his sword in mid-flight and his eyes filled with grateful tears.

"And that," said the monk, "is heaven."

The Magic of White Sage

Together may we be protected
Together may we be nourished
Together may we work with great energy
May our journey together be brilliant and effective
May there be no bad feelings between us
Peace, peace, peace

(From the Kato Upanishad)

White sage is considered sacred by many Native Americans ; it is used to make smudge sticks, a type of incense. White sage is believed to cleanse a space of any evil spirits or 'negative' energies that may be present, while also bringing in 'positive' energies. This power is said to be released from the plant by the burning of the leaves, which are typically bundled into a wand or stick. Today many Native American tribes still use the stems and leaves for smudging as part of purification ceremonies.

I spent the day yesterday making sage wands for puja. Much of what I rolled up yesterday I trimmed on Friday under the Full Moon. It's much like pruning Bonzai. A very meditative process that really requires patience and care to not break the delicate, brittle branches. This time of year they have gone without water for awhile now and are fragile. Because the sage grows in big, thick bushes, it's a full-yogic practice of bending, stretching, and reaching into awkward positions. Long legs definitely help!! : )

As I packed and wrapped the sage into rolls to dry, I chanted a peace invocation - A prayer for peace and harmony. It is my hope that these prayers unravel and get carried by the sacred smoke as the sage wands are burned. May the prayers be sent in all four directions to the ends of the Earth, so that whomever the smoke finds and touches instantly feels a greater peace and harmony come upon them!!

Here's the prayer:
OM Saha nav avatu, Saha nau bhunaktu, Saha viryam karava vahai Tejasvi nav adhitam astu ma vidvisha vahai
Om Shanti Shanti Shanti

Be well!! Many blessings of great Abundance and Beauty!!
OM