Stopping on the Prayer Path

As a poet, writer, and spiritual seeker, the description of my blog, Spirit-reflections, reads:  “Walking the ancient path and shining the Light with prose, poetry, and prayer.”  I believe that we, as spiritual beings, have much to learn from our ancestors who also trusted in something bigger than themselves.  If we fail to look back,ContinueContinue reading “Stopping on the Prayer Path”

Lakes, Chapels, God, and Prayer

We recently returned from western North Carolina where we had the opportunity to visit Lake Junaluska, situated in the heart of a Methodist Camp and Conference Center and surrounded by the Blue Ridge Mountains and numerous old shade trees.  If ever there were a place to commune with the Divine, by whatever name one callsContinueContinue reading “Lakes, Chapels, God, and Prayer”

The COVID-19 Pandemic as “a Time to Keep”

A time to keep, and a time to throw away. Eccl. 3: 6 A few days ago, we entertained a couple in our home for dinner—a couple we had not seen in well over a year due to the pandemic.  On the one hand, the experience felt surreal, and on the other, it felt likeContinueContinue reading “The COVID-19 Pandemic as “a Time to Keep””

Learning How to Listen

My dear brothers and sisters, take note of this: Everyone should be quick to listen, slow to speak . . . James 1:19 In this increasingly noisy world, consider the almost lost art of listening.  We tend to talk over each other, interrupt, or wait for the space between another person’s breath so that weContinueContinue reading “Learning How to Listen”

Reflection on the Pandemic

One year ago, on March 13, 2020, the first case of Coronavirus was reported.  Our governor announced that all schools would immediately close for three weeks.  On March 16, businesses began closing and sending their employees home to work.  On March 18, statewide orders prevented gatherings of more than 25 people, closed beaches, and postponedContinueContinue reading “Reflection on the Pandemic”

And it is good . . .

Awaken to the mystery of being hereand enter the immensity of your own presence.Have joy and peace in the temple of your senses. . . .Be consoled in the secret symmetry of your soul.May you experience each day as a sacred gift wovenaround a heart of wonder. For Presence, John O’Donohue I take part inContinueContinue reading “And it is good . . .”

A Poem About Lent

This blog, offered in the transitional time between winter and spring, as the earth reawakens, as we continue rising from ashes to hope (an ongoing journey), as many religious traditions invite us to a time of introspection, honesty, and repentance, is, I pray each time I post, a place of respite where words of gentlenessContinueContinue reading “A Poem About Lent”

Turning toward Love

For it was you who formed my inward parts; you knit me together in my mother’s womb. I praise you, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made.  Wonderful are your works. Psalm 139: 13-14 “If you never make a mistake, you’re probably not a very good engineer.”  That quotation is attributed to my husband’s formerContinueContinue reading “Turning toward Love”

Groundhog Day Prayers

February 2, 2021 If you watched Bill Murray in the movie Groundhog Day in 1993 (can it really be that long ago?), then you know the premise—Murray’s character, Phil, awakens to the same day again and again and again.  That is how my prayer life–not to mention my actual life–has felt during these long monthsContinueContinue reading “Groundhog Day Prayers”

A New Year’s Litany for Light

Journeying forward together, we rely on the wisdom of ancient practices and guides.  For those not familiar with the word, a litany is an ancient prayer form composed of a series of petitions/requests usually followed by a communal repeated refrain.  As we cross the threshold into the unknowns of 2021 and leave behind what, forContinueContinue reading “A New Year’s Litany for Light”