Matters of Grace

Autumn has always been a favorite season of mine, and it's only natural for me to get out onto a trail and savor the season's offerings. Also, I hike whenever I feel confused as hiking clears the mind. All through the Summer I've been confused about the Yoga class I was teaching at a local Dojo. Deeper than that, I was confused about how I felt about teaching Yoga at all; suffice it to say that, above most other industries, the machine of American Yoga is knee deep in empty promises and worthless ego-feeding spiel. For other areas of business, empty promises do not bother me; however, Yoga is something I care about and believe in. Linda-Sama, from the blog Linda's Yoga Journey, said it best: "Fancy arm balances and pretzel poses no longer impress me. Show me how you live your life and what you can give up for 10 days at a retreat without complaint -- that will show me what you've learned from yoga. Show me your service and gratitude." Though I do not b...

The bud stands for all things, even for those things that don't flower, for everything flowers from within, of self-blessing; though sometimes it is necessary to re-teach a thing its loveliness, to put a hand on the brow of the flower, and re-tell it in words and in touch, it is lovely until it flowers again from within, of self-blessing. -Galway Kinnell

Years ago my mother gave me a very lovely ceramic nativity set. She did the glazing herself -- all white with a hint of blue to accent -- it was just beautiful. But over the years, things happened. First baby Jesus went missing (so I put the nativity set out without the Jesus) Then Mary's right hand broke off (so I placed the hand in the empty manger) Then Joseph broke one of his hands off (must have been in honor of Mary) Finally it got to the point where the kids and I decided it was time for a new nativity set. It would have been easy to order some pre-fab Costco set, but the kids and I wanted something unique; something that spoke to us. So I googled and looked and eventually happened across a set on eTsy that was very appealing to me; not only was it handmade and unique, it was also downright cute. Plus the potter will customize your set by sending the characters you want (I strongly considered getting an extra baby Jesus, just in case) Here is my new Nativity set: love...