Hungry Ghost Festival

My hungry ghost altar

Tonight is the Hungry Ghost Festival. The ghosts have been wandering the land since the new moon; by now they must be very hungry, so it's a good idea to offer them food.

In China both Taoists and Buddhists perform rituals to soothe the sufferings of the dead. The Taoist name for the Hungry Ghost Festival is the Zhong Yuan Festival, and Buddhists call it the Yulanpen Festival; think of it as a summertime Halloween celebration!

Agenda:

1. Prepare offerings

2. Family feast

3. Hungry ghost ceremony

Habitat Haven

I had a visit from a botanist from Habitat Haven early this month, who sent me a report, and 6 certification objectives, which I will list here-

Agenda:

1. Remove invasive and nuisance weeds

2. Plan new naturescaping

3. Wildlife stewardship plans

4. Stormwater management

5. Pesticides reduction

6. Education & Volunteerism

Slow progress

I'm making slow progress on my big passion project, writing a book about Nature-Culture. The research of a new topic - water, drought, and pollution - is daunting. I have so much to learn. Also, I continue to be very busy with social obligations, doctor appointments, fundraiser events, and childcare. The trick is to get organized the night before so I don't eat into my writing time in the morning.

Agenda Today:

1. 

Read 

"Brainstorm"

2.

 Five days of passion

3. Outdoor preschool brainstorm

September Transitions

September is a transition month - the last weeks of the sun-baked summer, and the beginning of autumn. September's element is earth, which grounds and gives strength. And I need grounding, because Autumn is a wild and energizing time, when seeds ripen, and the everything is at its peak of unruliness. 

Even though I am feeling the urge to draw inward, now is not the time to completely retreat. September is a time to be open, and to respond to whatever life brings me; I am looking under rocks and turning things upside down. I am sorting out the ideas that come to me, holding each up to the light to see if it’s a keeper, looking and listening for crazy wisdom. I am maintaining an unruly kind of discipline. I am celebrating each new day and the Truth it brings.

This is the season to awaken the wild woman within and break some rules! I ask the important questions and misbehave (with integrity). But I am happily aware that I will never have an orderly shelf-full of the Truth. Truth is a mystery- it shifts and twists out of my grasp, and hides in the shadows. I am comforted to know this, because it releases me from the need to have all the answers. My real work is to ask all the questions.

Agenda:

1. Journal query

2. Read "Step into Nature"

3. Proaction
4. Reciprocity plans

5. Pockets

Being Aware

Being aware is partly a practice of being in the moment and partly a practice of education. I need to be aware of an issue before I can shift my thinking or change my actions. 

I also need to be aware of my threshold for bad news and my limited ability to process and build better habits! Slowly, Turtle.

Agenda: 

1. Read "Present Moment Awareness"

2. Nature-Culture awareness

3. Inspiration and awe practice

Doing Without Trying

Monday is my day to reset for the week and get my ducks in a row - make some plans for health and home, and prepare for Grandson fun.

Agenda:

1. Read "The Sweet Spot"

2. Home projects

3. Plan for Nature-Culture flow

4. Creative visualization