Blue Moon Sabbath

Sunday is my day to be quiet (at least for a while), with the spirit, in contemplation and prayer, and in community with nature and/or other bipeds. This Sabbath is unusual because II'm not alone in the house - and I need a plan for how to be quiet with a partner: Well, I'll start off with my usual quiet morning writing time, and flow directly into Meeting for Worship. Then scoot outside for time alone in the garden. After that, quiet will be an inner feeling I carry with me!

Today is also the full moon called the Blue Moon, because it is the second full moon in May. Actually, the original definition of a blue moon is a fourth full moon in one season, but I'm going with the newer definition - the second full moon in a month - because I don't have any better name for this moon. Both are correct, because it's folklore, and folklore is fluid!

Agenda:

1. Read "12 Tiny Things"

2. Review, refine, and shift

3. Balance journal

4. Celebrate balance

5. Truth walk ceremony

Prepare for Caregiving

Caregiving is not my forte. I'm not patient with weakness, and I am generally selfish with my time. Also, my Patient is not the best patient! He will be crabby and he will push my buttons. But we love each other and love will carry us through this.

Today, as I wait in the hospital, I'm gearing up for the stresses I will face in the days ahead.

Agenda:

1. Read "That Clear and Certain Sound"

2. Hospital Beingness

3. The procedure

4. After-care

5. Caregiver roles

Tuesday

Tuesday is my day to look at my social and emotional self and make an effort to shift my perspectives around how I view and treat the people in my life.

Agenda:

1. Ongo journal

2. Synergy and hope plans

Full Hare Moon and April Fools Day

Carmella and Toffee

Tonight is the full moon; this one is called amanta kotantal or "Time for pounding camus" by the Kalapuya of my area, and the Hare Moon by others, because it's the month when rabbits leap and play and mate.

We are now at the peak of the strong-energy yang phase of the waxing moon, and will soon begin the shift to the quiet-energy yin time of the waning moon. 

Agenda today:
1. Review, refine, and shift

2. Celebrate joy

3. Truth walk ceremony

Coherence

Coherence is the ability to be clear, consistent, harmonious, and laser-focused. I long to be coherent in thought, act, and word.

Agenda

1. Read "The Earth Keeper's Handbook"

2. Love cycle

3. Gratitude meditation

4. Proaction and reciprocity plans

Mother's Day

Today is Mother's Day, and a low-key time for me, now that my daughter is a mother and I am a grandmother!

Agenda Today:

1. Journal query

2. Mother Meditation

3. Read "Everyday Simplicity"

4. Transform my world brainstorm

Say Yes

I hope to have the integrity to say yes, to act with truth, with love, with honor. Truth is a continual revelation, a constantly unfolding series of insights about how my mind works, how the world works, and how I might best act with more love, honesty, generosity, justice, and peace. Truth expands my understanding of life to give me clarity.

But there I am often stuck- I struggle sometimes against apathy, and sometimes against mind-numbing fear. Here is my growing edge; every day presents an opportunity to get on track. I hope to have the courage of my convictions- to follow the life path I know I need to follow. My anxiety and resistance is wasted energy: I KNOW my path, and I need only relax into the love of the Universe to act on my knowing, to take the next step.

“But however Truth comes, it bears with it just enough of its own sense of rightness to overcome the fear of risk taking. While genuine risk plays a crucial role in all of the Habits of Love, it is perhaps most keen in the Habit of Truth. At too many forks in the road, anxiety stops us from following Truth's suggested direction. What will happen if I say yes to Truth as I recognize it? That question can arrest us in our tracks.” ~Ed Bacon

 

Agenda Today:

1. Journal queries
2. Read "The Creativity Book"
3. Simple project list

Open the Door to Love

Our main purpose on earth is to grow in love; our world needs more love. With more love, we could do away with war- we would have no prejudice, oppression, or violence of any kind. Everyone would have enough food because we would feed each other. We would care for the environment because we love our planet, and the animals, and our children too much to harm it.

How, then, do we create more love in the world? We simply need to open our hearts wide as often as we can, wider and wider, calmly throw open the door to love. 

If you have a leading to act in love, and you have gone through all the stages of discernment, you might be clear on your next steps. That's where we are often stuck, though - we might hear the Truth, but still have doubts about its absoluteness; we might hear the Truth and see our path forward but struggle against apathy, or mind-numbing fear.

Ed Bacon says, “But however Truth comes, it bears with it just enough of its own sense of rightness to overcome the fear of risk taking. While genuine risk plays a crucial role in all of the Habits of Love, it is perhaps most keen in the Habit of Truth. At too many forks in the road, anxiety stops us from following Truth's suggested direction. What will happen if I say yes to Truth as I recognize it? That question can arrest us in our tracks."

Whatever your biggest mission is now - personal growth, healing, service, relationship revival, activism, or something else - you need to find the strength to open the door. This is your growing edge: To accept that you will be carried beyond yourself; to accept that you will find the strength and creativity to take the risk, walk your path, and speak your message out loud.

Agenda:
1. Read the Creativity Book
2. Have a chat with myself

3. Open doors one at a time

4. Do the smallest thing

Kakizome Day

Today is Kakizome Day; kakizome means "first writing". Today people all over Japan will take time to use a brush and sumi ink to write out a favorite quote or phrase - the first calligraphy of the new year. Kakizome is a way to express your positive wishes for the New Year. 

Agenda:

1. Christmas retreat

2. Discernment reading

3. Year of Being Rooted

4. Practice my calligraphy

5. Wassail my apple tree!

First Quarter Moon of Advent

Tonight is the First Quarter Moon; we are one-quarter of the way through the moon cycle. The moon is waxing - getting larger - until it's full again. Now is the time to remain flexible, use my obstacles as fuel for growth, and show full effort for priorities.

This dark season puts limits on our lives. Chinese philosophy says winter is a time of conservation and storage; the night, the feminine, water, and cold is dominant. We slow down, go inward, and spend more time on quiet, yin activities.

Luckily, advent is four weeks long, allowing us to grow slowly and steadily towards the light: Let yourself go inward now - be like the bear in her cave, saving your strength and relishing the darkness. Don't celebrate Christmas too soon; allow yourself to experience the darkness of winter, against which it shines.

Agenda Today:

1. Prayer for the Light

2. Journal queries

3. Make a full effort plan

4. Write a mission haiku

Sabbath for Truth

Truth is a continual revelation, a constantly unfolding series of insights about how my mind works, how the world works, how other people view the world, and my role in all of that. The Light of Truth is what guides me, one step at a time, down my path.

I'm using Truth with a capitol T to mean that which is foundational: My values and principles, my world view, and leadings I have for action. It's a little unsettling that my foundation is always unfolding before me, like a foggy pathway, but also liberating because it means I don't need to have all the answers right now. I have faith that New Light will be given to me, because that has been my experience.

But careful: That doesn't mean that I can change my Truth - my foundational moral absolutes - whenever I fancy. I need to measure my New Light against that which I know to be true for me, to discern if this way forward is the right one.

If you have no moral absolutes then you will have no moral guidance, and will do whatever feels or seems right at the time and in that situation. This kind of “whatever feels good” mentality creates a society that regards all values, beliefs, lifestyles, and truth claims as equally valid.

At the same time, we need to acknowledge and accept that Truth is not the same for everyone, and learn how to listen to the Truth of others without getting angry or confused. And we need to accept that our own foundations change, as we grow and understand the world differently. 

We need to find a precarious and slippery balance between being open and welcoming, and resting in the strength of our convictions.

Sabbath Agenda:

1. Keeping the Sabbath

2. Read "Marking the Quaker Path"

3. Earth Quaker path

4. Journal queries

5. Zen housework and yard work

6. Moon Sharing

Full Wolf Moon and Martin Luther King Jr. Day

Photo by Alan Gillespie

The Full moon of January is called atalka - the "Stay Inside Moon" - by the Kalapuya of my area, and the Wolf Moon by others, because of the hungry packs of wolves that used to roam for prey at this time of deep winter. The full Wolf Moon is a good time to ponder what I am hungry for, and how to be resilient.

We are now at the peak of the strong-energy yang phase of the waxing moon, and will soon begin the quiet-energy yin time of the waning moon. The full moon shines her light on everything; use the full moon energy for creatively completing things, and for seeing your next moves, and also to CELEBRATE how far you've come and give thanks for the lessons learned and the blessings received.

And today is Martin Luther King Jr. Day - Today I am reminded again to honor the ongoing struggle for freedom, equality, and dignity for all people, and share in the efforts.

Agenda for today:

1. Equality and Service intentions

2. Vision walk

3. Full moon sharing

4. Celebrate stillness

5. Mountain pose meditation

6. Study

7. Freedom Ribbon project

8. Index to MLK Day projects

New Year's Day

Today is the first day of a new year in my part of the world. I celebrate many beginnings throughout my year, but January 1 has emotional importance because it’s the New Year of my childhood.

January gets its name from Janus, the two-faced Roman God of gates and doorways; it's a month to look back with reflection and forward with hope. I stand at the doorway of this coming year with my mind open and curious, without fear or judgment, and with hope for the gifts that the year will deliver.

As I stand here, I remember that not all gifts are rosy. I thank the Creator for the shadows and mysteries, and potent gifts of sadness. When I live in the reality of the moment more than in my hopes and expectations, I can receive the riches that are hidden within my most challenging experiences - the gifts of compassion, self-awareness, creativity, wisdom, patience, love, strength of character, and integrity.

Agenda for today:
1. Kwanzaa principles

2. Christmas retreat

3. Truth reading

4. Spiritual goals for 2022

5. Set the tone for the New Year
6. Eat Hoppin' John

Winter Solstice, Mother's night, and Christmas Novena - Day Six

The winter solstice occurs this morning at 7:58 a.m. Pacific Standard Time. In the Northern Hemisphere, the December solstice happens during the coldest season of the year, when the sun is at its lowest angle and is seen for its shortest period. This is the turning point, the moment of new beginnings - the darkest time, with the brightest hope.

I've recently been reminded that we need to believe in these little myths - that the sun is returning and hope is reborn - so that we can continue to believe in the Big Myths, like justice, mercy, democracy, freedom - "That sort of thing".

 

“Humans need fantasy to be human. To be the place where the falling angel meets the rising ape.” ~Terry Pratchett, Hogfather

 

Agenda today:

1. Prayer journal queries

2. Read a novena

3. Spirit Guide trance

4. Hal Sidu - Healthy Traditions

5. Mothers Night prayer

Navratri, Part 3

Navratri continues for three more nights, with the arrival of Saraswati, the Goddess of wisdom and knowledge. Saraswati means "the essence of self".

Agenda Today:
1- Add to my altar
2- Morning meditation on wisdom
3- Make moong dal (yellow lentils)
4- Evening visualization and prayer
5- Saraswati mantra

Full Wolf Moon

Photo by Alan Gillespie

Tonight is the full moon. The full moon of January is called the Wolf Moon because of the hungry packs of wolves that used to roam for prey at this time of deep winter. 

I've been paying close attention to the cycle of the moon this month, starting with the new moon two weeks ago. We are now at the peak of the high-energy yang phase of the waxing moon, and will soon begin the low-energy yin time of the waning moon.

But today it's time to CELEBRATE! The full moon is a time of fruitfulness, creative energy, and completion, and also strong (sometimes overwhelming) emotion - this month I feel joy, relief, and hope, along with grief, anger, and trepidation. I want to acknowledge and embrace the whole spectrum of my emotions. 

Today I will celebrate how far I've come and give thanks for the lessons learned and the blessings received.

Agenda for today:
1. Journal queries
2. Celebrate stillness

3. Life-long learning intentions

4. Mountain pose meditation

5. Full moon ceremony

Wesak and Full Flower Moon

Tonight is the full moon. The May full moon is called the Flower Moon, because this is a month of blossoming and the promise of abundance. The flowers in my garden are a delicate reminder to me to project a gentle, honest spirit into the world. I open my heart, give my gifts with love, and receive, with gratitude, the bounty of gifts others offer to me.

Today is also Wesak (pronounced way-sak). The full moon in May is the day that Buddhists honor the birth of Gautama Buddha in Lumbini, Nepal, in 623 BCE, and also honor his enlightenment and death.

Buddhists all over the world celebrate this day by pausing to remember the Buddha's virtues, expressing their gratitude and appreciation for his teachings, and by finding ways to be more Buddha-like.

Agenda for today:
1. Update my altar
2. Journal queries
3. Practice at my theme of integrity
4. Find ways to be more Buddha-like
5. Make a lantern for Wesak
6. Cook Hath Maaluwa (Seven Vegetables Curry)

Navratri Continues

Navratri continues for three more nights, with the arrival of Saraswati, the Goddess of wisdom and knowledge. Saraswati means "the essence of self".

Agenda Today:
1- Add to my altar
2- Morning meditation on wisdom
3- Make moong dal (yellow lentils)
4- Evening visualization and prayer
5- Saraswati mantra

Full Flower Moon and Wesak

Tonight is the full moon. The May full moon is called the Flower Moon, because this is a month of blossoming and the promise of abundance. The flowers in my garden are a delicate reminder to me to project a gentle, honest spirit into the world. I open my heart, give my gifts with love, and receive, with gratitude, the bounty of gifts others offer to me.

Today is also Wesak (pronounced way-sak). The full moon in May is the day that Buddhists honor the birth of Gautama Buddha in Lumbini, Nepal, in 623 BCE, and also honor his enlightenment and death.

Buddhists all over the world celebrate this day by pausing to remember the Buddha's virtues, expressing their gratitude and appreciation for his teachings, and by finding ways to be more Buddha-like.

Agenda for today:
1. Update my altar
2. Journal queries
3. Practise at my theme of abundance
4. Find ways to be more Buddha-like
5. Make a lantern for Wesak
6. Cook Hath Maaluwa (Seven Vegetables Curry)

Navratri Part Three

Navratri continues for three more nights, with the arrival of Saraswati.

Navratri is a Hindu holiday during which we honor and thank Shakti, the Divine Mother, in all her forms. Shakti is the universal principle of energy and creativity, Mother Earth, and the feminine power in each of us. The word nava means nine and ratri means nights; the festival lasts for nine nights, which are broken up into sets of three, and during each a different aspect of Shakti is meditated upon. 

We honor Saraswati during these final three nights; Saraswati means "the essence of self".

Agenda Today:
1- Add to my altar
2- Morning meditation on wisdom
3- Make moong dal (yellow lentils)
4- Evening visualization and prayer
5- Saraswati mantra