with deep awareness,
you touch everything
–thich nhat hanh
room for grief, for relief, for misery, for joy
~ pema chödrön
the miracle is to walk on earth
dwelling deeply in the present moment
and feeling truly alive
– thich nhat hanh
every day
– leonard cohen
the moon in autumn,
a cool breeze in summer,
snow in winter
if your mind isn’t clouded by unnecessary things,
this is the best season of your life
– Wu Men Hui-k’ai
some other place than here
some other time than now
in some other heart than yours
without judgment
that is all
where everything that is
is welcome
peace is this moment without thinking
that it should be some other way
that you should feel some other thing
that your life should unfold
according to your plans
peace is this moment without judgment
this moment in the heart-space
where everything that is
is welcome
– dorothy hunt
the self you leave behind
is only a skin you have outgrown
don’t grieve for it
look to the wet, raw, unfinished
self, the one you are becoming
the world, too, sheds its skin:
politicians, cataclysms, ordinary days
it’s easy to lose this tenderly unfolding moment
look for it
as if it were the first green blade
after a long winter
listen for it
as if it were the first clear tone
in a place where dawn is heralded by bells
and if all that fails,
wash your own dishes
rinse them
stand in your kitchen at your sink
let cold water run between your fingers
feel it
or think about the next thingwalk with the quiet trees,
can you believe how brave they are—
how kind?
model your life after theirs
blow kisses at yourself in the mirror
especially when you think you’ve messed up
forgive yourself for not meeting
your unreasonable expectations
praise fresh air
clean water, good dogs
spin something from joy
open a window, even if
it’s cold outside
close your eyes
breathe
allow the river of it all
to pulse through eyelashes
fingertips, bare toes
breathe in
breathe out
breathe until you feel your bigness,
until the sun rises in your veins
breathe until you stop
needing anything to be different
– julia fehrenbacher
within the body you are wearing, now
inside the bones and beating in the heart,
lives the one you have been searching for so long.
but you must stop running away and shake hands, the meeting doesn’t happen without your presence, your participation.
the same one waiting for you there
is moving in the trees, glistening on the water,
growing in the grasses and lurking in the shadows you create.
you have nowhere to go.
the marriage happened long ago. behold your mate.
– robert hall
the peace of wild things –
when despair for the world grows in me
and I wake in the night at the least sound
in fear of what my life and my children’s lives may be,
I go and lie down where the wood drake
rests in his beauty on the water, and the great heron feeds.
I come into the peace of wild things
who do not tax their lives with forethought
of grief. I come into the presence of still water.
And I feel above me the day-blind stars
waiting with their light. For a time
I rest in the grace of the world, and am free
– wendell berry
I am tempted to think there are no little things
– Bruce Barton
light of your own being
turiya –
He didn’t want science, he wanted poetry.
— Agnes on Joanna Goddard
And they read books and listened and rested and made art
And played games and learned new ways of being and were still
And they listened more deeply
Some meditated, some prayed, some danced
Some met their shadows
And in the absence of people living in ignorant, dangerous, mindless and heartless ways,
the earth began to heal
— excerpt from Catherine M. O’Meara
we create space for what is
To see a World in a Grain of Sand
And a Heaven in a Wild Flower,
Hold Infinity in the palm of your hand
And Eternity in an hour.
– William Blake
reach out your heart
reach out your words
reach out all the tendrils
of compassion that move, invisibly,
where we cannot touch.
promise this world your love–
for better or for worse,
in sickness and in health,
so long as we all shall live
— lynn ungar
— emily capshaw
— jack kornfield
so if you’re too tired to speak, sit next to me, because I too am fluent in silence
point lobos, new year’s eve —
Awaken and remember
May I train my eye to see the beauty in all things
To know and trust the cycles of transformation
The spirals, the shape shifting
To dance with the light and the dark
This is an invitation
To dream your life into being
— Mara Branscombe
I am so small, how can this great love be inside me? Look at your eyes, they are small but they see enormous things
the next time you feel small, sad or lonely, look up at the stars and remember that’s what you’re made of
This is the veil nebula, captured by my husband, the remnants of a massive star that exploded some 8,000 years ago.
I used to think the phrase we are all made of stardust was metaphorical; something found in a children’s storybook to help them drift off to sleep at night like the sandman. I didn’t realize it was literal. Everything we are originates in stardust. All the elements on earth (and in our bodies) are found in the heart of stars before they explode into supernovas. I don’t know about you but I find that stunning. The idea that we are all connected through the life cycles on earth, the planet and the stars. That the very essence of our being is intricately woven together and born from each other.
Grateful to my husband who inspires me every day to see what’s in front of me and clear space beyond my conditioning.
Nádherná slova, četl jsem jedním dechem , děkuji za krásná slova i fotografie. Nutí vše k zamyšlení nad životem. Mějte se v pohodě. zdravím z České republiky z Evropy.
Thank you so much for your beautiful words as well, ‘read in one breath’ is gorgeous; so glad this touched you and thank you for letting me know, x
translation:
Beautiful words, I read in one breath, thank you for the beautiful words and photos. It makes everyone think about life. Have a good time. greetings from the Czech Republic from Europe.
i love how your blog is expanding to incorporate more than just your wonderful recipes. always inspiring me Kelly.
i appreciate you being here Suzanne, thank you for the kindness ♥ i am inspired by you too.
I just love what you have here. Thanks for sharing. I feel so peaceful after reading it, and I will share it with family and friends.
delighted to hear how you received it, thank you for letting me know and for sharing my work with others so that they might benefit too. I’ve been playing around with ways of providing a window into some of the teachings I’ve found most helpful along my journey, while working in snippets of my own, all a work in progress :) thanks so much for your encouragement and feedback.