Happy New Year 2021

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Out With 2020

Wow. It has been a year. A year of challenge for everyone.

The pandemic burst into our lives, marched into all our dwelling places and made itself at home, settling into every room of the house, as if it would never leave.

Loss Moved In

There was a great deal of loss. Loss of friends, family, and animals. Loss of homes, jobs, and income. While we struggled under the weight of the pandemic, any type of loss seemed even more intense, heart-aching, harder to bear.

There was a loss of vacation travel. On a more somber side, there was a loss of travel to see loved ones, family and friends. We missed holidays. birthdays, births or deaths. We felt the loss of being close together, a hand shake, a kiss on the cheek, a long hug.

We are picking ourselves up now. Everyone holds out hope for an end in sight. Perhaps the vaccines along with community exposure will lift enough of us into a sort of herd immunity.

Silver Lining For Other Creatures

While we lived in lock-down, the planet breathed a sign of relief while it had a break from our incessant activity and pounding on the Earth. In nature reserves, birds were able to relax and have the security to build nests, lay eggs and hatch their young. People were not trampling on their nesting grounds.

It makes one wonder if we couldn’t allow our national parks and nature reserves to have a month or two each year without any of us stomping through them.

Less air pollution was markedly visible above the cities worldwide. Water quality improved. In Venice alone, the lack of cruise ships promoted cleaner water. Noise pollution decreased. While not everything was perfect, poaching increased during the pandemic, we could perhaps look at what was beneficial and see how we could mimic that in normal conditions.

When lockdowns become less and our activities ramp up, we might find that we have less time for meditation. Yet, in such a strong environment of loss, past wounds of loss can open again and become tender. It’s important to remember that the time spent in our meditation is what nurtures us in our world of activity, bringing us more balance and awareness.

A Blessing for The New Year

Let’s welcome a blessing for the new year. What is a blessing? The dictionary defines it as:

– the act or words of a person who blesses:
– a special favor, mercy or benefit:
– a favor or gift bestowed by God, the invoking of
God’s favor upon a person:
– praise devotion, worship, grace said before a meal:
– approval or good wishes.

Another fun fact regarding the definition of the word blessing – whenever animals gather in groups, they are identified with a collective noun, like a pride of lions, a gaggle of geese, or a swarm of bees.

If you should ever stumble upon a group of unicorns, they are formally named… a blessing of unicorns.

As we say goodbye to 2020, we offer this blessing – a poem by John O’Donahue. Beannacht is the Gaelic word for blessing and currach is the word for boat.

Beannacht, by John O’Donahue

On the day when
the weight deadens
on your shoulders
and you stumble,
may the clay dance
to balance you.

And when your eyes
freeze behind
the grey window
and the ghost of loss
gets in to you,
may a flock of colours,
indigo, red, green,
and azure blue
come to awaken in you
a meadow of delight.

When the canvas frays
in the currach of thought
and a stain of ocean
blackens beneath you,
may there come across the waters
a path of yellow moonlight
to bring you safely home.

May the nourishment of the earth be yours,
may the clarity of light be yours,
may the fluency of the ocean be yours,
may the protection of the ancestors be yours.
And so may a slow
wind work these words
of love around you,
an invisible cloak
to mind your life.


Be sure to take a few moments to listen to Mr. O’Donahue recite his poem. His voice and accent capture the wild, sea-whispering Celtic wind.

In With 2021

As we enter 2021, we lift our eyes to this new cycle and we’re filled with hope that this year will be softer and kinder. We invoke a well-known blessing of our own:

May the longtime Sun shine upon you and guide your way home.

Wishing you and yours a new year filled with healing and love. Stay safe. Stay healthy.

Happy New Year!

Our Great Ocean Blue

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World Oceans Day

Each year, on June 8, we celebrate our planet’s oceans. It’s a day to call attention to this vast resource and the importance of restoring and keeping its ecosystem healthy.

Here’s a quote from the World Oceans Day website:

“A healthy world ocean is critical to our survival. Every year, World Oceans Day provides a unique opportunity to honor, help protect, and conserve our world’s shared ocean.

The ocean is important because it:
Generates most of the oxygen we breathe
Helps feed us
Regulates our climate
Cleans the water we drink
Offers a pharmacopoeia of medicines
Provides limitless inspiration !”

World Oceans Day started out with encouragement from Canada in 1992. This country is acutely aware of the our oceans as it has three different oceans on its borders, a feat no other country can mimic. For example, while England is entirely surrounded by an ocean, that ocean is essentially the same one.

In 2008, the United Nations officially recognized World Oceans Day. Today, it’s an opportunity to celebrate our oceans and to learn how we can protect our natural resource.

Our Wide Oceans

Over 96% of all of Earth’s water exists in the oceans. If we expand our awareness, we see that even our oceans are in flux and constant change. It’s just that we’re so tiny and our perspective so limited, we don’t perceive it. This quote from USGS reveals that our oceans are, indeed, in flux over wide expanses of time.

“Of course, nothing involving the water cycle is really permanent, even the amount of water in the oceans. Over the “short term” of hundreds of years the oceans’ volumes don’t change much. But the amount of water in the oceans does change over the long term. During the last Ice Age, sea levels were lower, which allowed humans to cross over to North America from Asia at the (now underwater) Bering Strait.

During colder climatic periods more ice caps and glaciers form, and enough of the global water supply accumulates as ice to lessen the amounts in other parts of the water cycle. The reverse is true during warm periods. During the last ice age glaciers covered almost one-third of Earth’s land mass, with the result being that the oceans were about 400 feet (122 meters) lower than today. During the last global “warm spell,” about 125,000 years ago, the seas were about 18 feet (5.5. meters) higher than they are now. About three million years ago the oceans could have been up to 165 feet (50 meters) higher.”
— USGS

We don’t how many different species call the ocean their home. Currently, scientists know of around 226,000 ocean species. 

It could be that more than 90% of the ocean’s species are still undiscovered. Some scientists estimate that there are anywhere between a few hundred thousand to a few million more to be discovered. Well, that’s quite a range!


The Beginning Of Our Oceans

You have to go back in time, far, far, back in time to find the origins of our oceans. In fact, you’ve got to start with alien origins. Our oceans fell from the sky, but not as rain.

We truly all are star-dust.

Those little molecules of two hydrogen and one oxygen atoms that make up water were floating in a planetary nebula into which our Sun was born. The water molecules came together by chance on carbon and silicon dust grains. Our precious water fell to earth in frozen lumps from space. (Just as a reference, the rings around Saturn are composed of dust and ice.) Our planet was also pummeled by comets and asteroids that were rich in alien water.

Planet Earth is the original Goldilocks story. In relation to the Sun, we’re in the perfect place to maintain our oceans.

Unlike Venus which is too close to the Sun. The solar radiation tears apart the water oxygen and hydrogen molecules. Hydrogen slips off into space. Goodbye, water.

And unlike Mars which is too far from the Sun. There isn’t enough solar radiation to keep water moving. All the water there turned into runaway glaciers.

We’ve got just the right balance to maintain our oceans. Not too hot, not too cold.

To read more about the watery space journey of our oceans to Earth, please click on this link: Alien Origins of Earth’s Oceans.

Connect To Our Oceans

In our awareness, we reflect on our deep connection to salt water, all the way down to our own bodies which are filled with saline water. We can take the time to learn more about specific oceanic mammals and creatures – there are many to choose from. How about starfish, seahorses, or the different types of whales? Or what about those deep ocean creatures that don’t see the light because they live so far down in the ocean’s depths?

Celebrate Our Oceans

On World Oceans Day, we remind everyone of the major role the oceans have in everyday life. They are the lungs of our planet, providing most of the oxygen we breathe. 

June 8 is a day to celebrate together the beauty, the wealth and the promise of the ocean. And to remind ourselves to care for the oceans, every day, throughout the year.

Brave and Beautiful Bees

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World Bee Day

World Bee Day arrives with fanfare on May 20, but of course, we know that EVERY DAY is world bee day. These little pollinators are our life blood. Bees provide our daily bread as they seed pollen throughout the plant world and our crops.

“Why a World Bee Day?

By observing World Bee Day each year, we can raise awareness on the essential role bees and other pollinators play in keeping people and the planet healthy, and on the many challenges they face today.”

Bees In History

Thousands of years ago, the Egyptians gave honor to our bees. Bee drawings are found on obelisks and in hieroglyphic representations. Pots decorated with a bee and filled with honey were found in the tombs of the pharaohs.

If you have an Instagram account, you can connect with Ben’s Bees, a delightful beekeeper in Australia. He loves to share all things bees: honey, history and fun facts. in this photo, he talks about bees in Egypt and how they were revered.

An Egyptian writing describes how working bees fall from the tears of the Sun God Ra. Well, that sounds about right, doesn’t it?

The Bee Shortage Is Real

My parents lived in Washington State and their home had a large lot where they had raspberry vines and apple trees. One summer they told me that they didn’t have any apples or raspberries, because there were not enough bees to pollinate the flowers. I was horrified and couldn’t believe this was really happening. My heart was crushed.

I suggested getting a beekeeper to place a hive or two on their property, but they were in their 80s and sadly, the process had already started for them to move to a smaller place. Their house was sold and they moved away. I still wonder what happened to their wonderful raspberry vines and apple trees. The beautiful apple pies and homemade raspberry jam that my parents carefully crafted are cherished memories of delicious family-shared treats.

Help Our Bees

One thing we can do is support local beekeepers. Buy local honey. Yes, it costs more, but you also know you are getting pure honey and not honey laced with corn syrup that’s been imported.

It’s been said that eating honey from your local environment helps provide positive exposure to local pollens and can help to lessen hay fever allergies. We’re not sure how much of that is scientifically true, but it’s a lovely idea.

If you have a backyard, plant some bee-friendly plants. You can also do this on a balcony with potted plants. Eliminate or decrease the amount of pesticides or herbicides that you use. Consider having a wildlife-friendly backyard.

Maybe you have the opportunity to support local bees and beekeepers even if it is as simple as buying their local honey..

“Today, bees, pollinators, and many other insects are declining in abundance. World Bee Day provides an opportunity for all of us – whether we work for governments, organizations or civil society or are concerned citizens – to promote actions that will protect and enhance pollinators and their habitats, improve their abundance and diversity, and support the sustainable development of beekeeping.”

As we celebrate our bees every day, we hold in our hearts that there will be a great planetary awakening that recognizes and protects our precious bees.

Long live our Bees!

Earth Day Inside Our Homes

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Celebrate Earth Day

It’s April 22 and today we celebrate Earth Day! Except this year, much of it will be spent inside or practicing our new activity of social distancing, so gathering together for Earth Day events won’t be quite the same of past years.

We Belong To The Earth

We are reminded in this quote that our human lives are tied to our planet. Even if you succeeded at living on Mars, you would not just run out the door of your house for a walk in the park. Firstly, you’d need to climb into your spacesuit that would provide oxygen. And heaven help you if your unit failed.

No oxygen? It will only take a couple of minutes for that to no longer be a problem. As in, you will have expired and oxygen will no longer be needed for your lifeless body.

Well, on that cheery note, let us give a moment of thanks to our trees and plants that contribute oxygen to this planet.

Oxygen = breath = life. Our precious breath that allows us to be here. It’s the cry of a newborn baby as his lungs fill with life-sustaining air. It’s our breath in our meditations. Our lifeline to this planet is our breath. We are deeply connected to our precious earth.

Ideas For A Locked-Down Earth Day

Rainier Fruit from Washington State put together some ideas for creating Earth Day habits that we can do at home and that extend throughout the year. Because, truly, Earth Day is not just a day. It’s a way of life.

Rainier’s ideas are easily translated into our daily lives. Do you remember your parents telling you to turn off the lights if you’re not in the room? That’s an easy one.

Leftovers are a great way to decrease waste and to help your budget. Make an initial investment in some reusable containers to store leftover foods in the refrigerator. Glass is great for tomato or oily based foods. For plastic containers, make sure they are BPA-free.

Can’t stand eating the same meal two days in a row? Make use of your freezer. Divide leftover meals into single-serve containers. Let them defrost in the refrigerator and voilà, a meal you can enjoy a week, or even a month, later.

Eating-up your leftovers has the added benefit of decreasing your time spent cooking. A little reheat on a stovetop or in a microwave makes a quick and satisfying meal.

Just say NO to plastic, one-time use water bottles. Klean Kanteen is my go-to for sustainable bottles, but there are a lot of different companies that fulfill this purpose. You can also get reusable, insulated containers for when you visit your favorite coffee shop. Decrease your use of single-use coffee cups.

If you carry an 8-ounce coffee container into Starbucks (double espresso, touch of milk), they take it and you might even get a 5¢ discount for using your own container. Hey, every little bit helps!

If you like big coffee drinks, hot or cold, the insulated mugs come in all sizes to accommodate various caffeine-concoctions.

In Touch With Nature

For those of us stuck in small apartments where it’s difficult to get out, our need for nature looms more strongly than we ever realized. It’s easy to take nature for granted until we can’t be in it.

Given how much our planet sustains us, we want to make sure it’s cared for in a responsible way. Sometimes it can feel overwhelming. This big planet – I’m just a small human, what can *I* do to help?

Each of us can help in very small ways. If you never leave a piece of trash on the highway or in the park, that is one less piece of trash. If you put into practice just a couple ideas this year, and then add to that next year, and so on, when it’s all added together, we begin to make a difference.

Enjoy and connect to Planet Earth today and every day!

Happy Easter

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It’s Easter Sunday

“The same power that raised Jesus from the dead is inside of you.”
— Joel Osteen
 

A New Dawn by John

It’s Not Outside Of You

Powerful words from Joel Osteen. He speaks of an active participation, your participation, not something unattainable floating in the sky out of reach. He calls to the resurrection, a renewal, within you.

Don’t be fooled be the world of outer appearances. It’s not outside of you, it’s inside you. You are not just a materialistic thing, you are the living, breathing experience of your life, your heart, your inner light.

Christianity points to a resurrection, a coming into the Light. You have the power to step into it.

It’s a journey, that’s for sure. And yet, it’s one that each of us can make. Indeed, some say it’s the destiny of all humans, no matter how long or how many lifetimes it takes them to get there.

It’s Inside You

Easter and its promise of greater light, the resurrection of our heart – we can relax into the rebirth that is offered to all of us. The light is within you.

Allow yourself some time to focus on this light, within and without, and share this holy day with Christians all around the world.

Easter is now and always.

Ring Out Wild Bells

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Call Out To The Wild Sky

It’s time to say goodbye to 2019 and a big hello to our new year of 2020.

Ring Out, Wild Bells

Ring out, wild bells, to the wild sky,
   The flying cloud, the frosty light:
   The year is dying in the night;
Ring out, wild bells, and let him die.

Ring out the old, ring in the new,
   Ring, happy bells, across the snow:
   The year is going, let him go;
Ring out the false, ring in the true.

Ring out the grief that saps the mind
   For those that here we see no more;
   Ring out the feud of rich and poor,
Ring in redress to all mankind.

Ring out a slowly dying cause,
   And ancient forms of party strife;
   Ring in the nobler modes of life,
With sweeter manners, purer laws.

Ring out the want, the care, the sin,
   The faithless coldness of the times;
   Ring out, ring out my mournful rhymes
But ring the fuller minstrel in.

Ring out false pride in place and blood,
   The civic slander and the spite;
   Ring in the love of truth and right,
Ring in the common love of good.

Ring out old shapes of foul disease;
   Ring out the narrowing lust of gold;
   Ring out the thousand wars of old,
Ring in the thousand years of peace.

Ring in the valiant man and free,
   The larger heart, the kindlier hand;
   Ring out the darkness of the land,
Ring in the Christ that is to be.

Alfred Lord Tennyson (1850)

Happy New Year 2020

As we speed around the Sun of our solar system, another year has passed.. Whirling, stumbling, whisking ourselves into a froth as we count down, and then count up, another year, another decade.

We humans like to count things. We like to measure and and delineate our hours and days. It helps us to feel organized and to make sense of a wide world without borders that looms before us.

The cosmos whirs on without a thought of numbers or counting. What is a year to the universe? Does the universe count its cycles? Maybe it measures things in a universal breath. How long is a breath-in and a breath-out in the deep, dark vastness of outer space?

Inhale. Exhale.

The Light In Our Hearts

Alfred Lord Tennyson, coming from his Victorian background, rings in Christ who represents the light. Whatever our religion or spiritual beliefs, we keep the light burning bright in our hearts as we welcome a new year and move into winter.

The Winter Solstice has passed.

Even in the dead of winter the days are slowly growing longer, carrying us forward into spring.

A little more light each day.

Let that light warm your heart along the way.




Tumble Into Autumn

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Fall Into The Autumnal Equinox

The equinox of autumn arrives. It’s a time when most places on Earth will see approximately 12 hours of daylight and 12 hours of darkness. For a brief moment, light and dark hang in equal balance.

But, nature never stands still, and in the next breath, we begin the shift to shorter days and longer nights. The dark night reigns supreme until the winter solstice occurs when the light of day will assert its dominance once again.

We stand witness to a perpetual dance between light and dark, ceaselessly turning in a slow-motion tango, never letting go of one another.

When Is The Fall Equinox

The fall equinox marks the symmetry between light and darkness. It’s a recognition of the day the sun crosses the celestial equator, signifying the transition from summer to fall.

“Because it takes the Earth about 365.25 days to orbit the Sun – (it’s why we have a leap year every 4 years) – the precise time of the equinoxes varies from year to year, usually happening around six hours later on successive years. On leap years, the date jumps back an entire day.”
— Melissa Breyer, Tree Hugger

In the Northern Hemisphere, the fall equinox occurs each year between September 21 to 23. Occasionally, it can fall on September 24. In 2019, we will mark the equinox on September 23.

“FALL WEATHER
It is the summer’s great last heat,
It is the fall’s first chill: They meet.”
— Sarah Morgan Bryan Platt
 
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Falling Bits Of Color

Right on cue, with cooler temperatures and shortening days, the leaves begin to turn colors. They tumble to the earth and we tumble with them into our sweaters, boots and steaming mugs of coffee.

Just as the trees can’t hold on to their leaves, we, too, can’t hold on to summer. The brilliant colors of orange, red and gold carpet the earth and serve as a reminder to celebrate the changes.

Buried deep within the sap of the trees, the life flame remains. It curls up, sleeping, waiting until it is called forth by lengthening days and the warmth of spring.

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Fall Meditations

Fall is a time to meet up with your inner self, a time for self-dialogue. As we shift into autumn, we set our intentions and open ourselves to receive the darkening days and falling leaves. Cooler weather encourages moments of contemplation with expanding awareness the balance of dark and light in the equinox. Our meditation supports the light within us that is always there even in the darkest of times.