Month: December 2012

New Year’s Eve

New Year’s Eve is traditionally a time of setting New Year’s resolutions, promises of how we will be better in the coming year than we were in the last. New Year’s Day is traditionally a time of breaking those resolutions. Perhaps instead of resolutions it would be better to articulate dreams or fantasies of what our lives can be, and the seeds that we already see present in our lives which could make those dreams come true.

What seed of something good do you hope will grow in your life in the year to come?

A Splash of Color

Sometimes what we admire most in a garden is the elegance of a single rose or the voluptuous lines of one creamy calla lily. But often times what really strikes the eye is a mass of color, a patch where you can’t make out any single blossom, but only the brilliance of the whole. Sometimes when each one of us is not all that impressive or effective, all of us together can have a big impact.

How do you join with others to create something bigger than you can do alone?

Learning to Paint

Maybe it happens for great artists, but for most of us, what we create rarely ends up looking quite like what we had in mind. But whether the end product is something we judge a failure or whether it turns out to be a delightful surprise, the work we undertake out of love for the task always leaves a beautiful trace on our souls.

What form of creating has left its mark on who you are?

Up in the Air

Babies generally love being tossed in the air—often to the discomfort of those who are watching. We grownups can imagine failing to catch the infant, the dreadful fall, the injuries that could ensue, the terrible guilt based on one clumsy moment. But for the baby nothing is present but the magical pleasure of flying, knowing that you are always caught.

How do you find ways to let go of everything that stands in the way of experiencing the moment?