Nature speaks silently

My prunus tree is in blossom. On the bare branches that seemed so lifeless a few short weeks ago, the woody arms of the tree are now hidden by an explosion of delicate, pale pink flowers. Their fragile beauty moves me deeply. The fact that they are so short-lived intensifies their beauty. In the morning they may be gone as we expect much rain over the next few days.
I was able to savor their beauty and watched the bees darting from one deep-throated blossom to the next. It struck me how insignificant human beings are, how unconcerned with with us and our lives are the bees, as they go about their activities, in silence. It reminded me of Yellowstone a couple of winters ago when I had the privilege of being there with my husband — a winter wonderland indeed. A blizzard the previous day left the earth covered with feet of pristine and sparkling snow. We walk over to Old Faithful to watch the eruption, and miraculously found ourselves totally alone with the geyser in all its magnificence— except for a herd of bison, white- faced from foraging beneath the snow. We were overwhelmed with nature’s majesty, and the over-riding silence of the experience, that was interrupted only by the occasional snort of a bison and the bubbling of the heated water beneath us. As a coyote silently padded through the snow, seemingly oblivious of both the bison and of us, I was reminded of the words of Rabbi Abraham Joshua Heschel:

“There are three aspects of nature which command our attention: power,loveliness and grandeur. Nature’s power we exploit, its loveliness we enjoy, and its grandeur fills us with awe. Those who are not affected by the vision of earth and sky, who have no eyes to see its grandeur and sense the sublime, however vaguely, are not human.”

Sacred Humanity

As women walking the path to the conscious evolution of a sacred humanity, we are aware of the qualities of the Sacred Feminine in ourselves and in the world—a respect for wisdom of the natural world, of which we are a part; for the deep connection we enjoy with one another; with the ability we have to love unconditionally, as a mother loves her new born baby without having seen or knowing anything about that child; the ability to learn from one another through the use of story – stories told, heard and felt. The Sacred Feminine pays heed to the invisible realms that give birth to the inexplicable coincidences, synchronicities and serendipities that give meaning to our lives— all of which can be summed up in the term connective intimacy

And what of the Sacred Masculine? We are all too aware of the secular masculine qualities on which our society is based— hierarchy, competition, domination and destruction, judgment, power and control over others, violence, linear thinking that is wedded to science, and a greedy consumerism as the only was to function. The ManKind Project, acknowledging the abilities and talents of the Sacred Masculine, teaches authenticity, responsibility, accountability, commitment and service as the path to follow. Such characteristics are desirable in us all and will lay the foundations of a harmonious society.

The Sacred Masculine, diverting the energies previously focused on our physical survival, can now hone in on honor, duty and respectful service— to the natural world, the global family and to the Divine, without the conviction of predetermined concepts. A penchant for scientific enquiry used in conjunction with an intuitive curiosity may lead the way to an enlightened vision of a peaceful future for all.

Building a community in cyberspace

Everyday I learn more about the potential and possibility of what we can do in cyberspace. I am so gratified by the growing community that is connecting on my fb page, Dancing In The Footsteps of Eve. I have linked to Mystic Revelations, a wonderful source of beautiful words and images. I would like to link to other web pages and sites that are concerned with conscious evolution and women's spirituality. Let me know if you would like to link to my page.

Sacred Stories

Were we created because God loves stories? We create our personal stories that tell us who we are— to ourselves. We also create our personal stories to tell the world who we are and what we want others to know about us. The sacred stories that we believe— about who we are, why we are here, and where we are going— set the stage for our personal tales. How does your personal story (that you share with the world) begin? Mine starts with "what if?" Perhaps these words, that seem to sum up my inner journey, should be on my tombstone. "She lived with 'what if' as a motivational impetus in her life."

I think back to what seems like another lifetime ago in the early 90s, when I was trying to promote my calligraphic designs and my brother suggested the 'world wide web'. "Sure," was my answer, "I'll do that— what is the world wide web?" I learned. Around that same time, a friend who was a published author attended a spirituality workshop I was leading. "You should write this all down - write a book," she said. "Sure, I'll do that - how do you write a book?" and she showed me.

I wonder if we knew what will be involved in the decisions we make, would we be willing to start the many ventures that make us who we are? I am so glad that I jump in, naive and and optimistic, on the many paths and adventures to further spiritual growth.

Playing Our Part

Life, according to my friend Paddy, is like the softball game she used to play as a child. She remembers that while she played in the position to which she was assigned, she would become extremely anxious if another team member was not able to do what was required, and Paddy would suffer extreme frustration in not being able to change the outcome of the game. She realized at some point in her life, that worrying about what other team members could or could not do, was not her business. She had to learn that she was assigned to hold a certain position on the team and hold it to the best of her ability. That was why she was there.

As in softball, when we become overwhelmed by the tragedies and trauma of our world and feel immobilized by our inability to take care of all that needs to be done (much as we feel as we think of the catastrophic devastation in Haiti) perhaps it serves us well to remember that we are not able to do it all. We are each here to play a part, and to play it in full consciousness, to the best of our ability. We can help others where and when it is possible but just being the best Paddy/Susan/Margaret/Heather that we can be, is why we are here.

Feeding our souls

A New Year's resolution is to make my time more valuable this year by using it wisely. Interesting how we consider time as a commodity - we use it, spend it, waste it, and heaven forbid, kill it. I want to make the moments count and consider carefully what I do with my days. I make a point of having music on while I work and will now not just wait for vacation time to read, but will spend part of each day reading. As I walk on the treadmill or relax in a recliner at the end of the day, I am treasuring the time I can spend reading uplifting prose and poetry to fill my mind with meaningful images to replace the cacophany that television brings into our homes. "Traveling With Pomegranates" by Sue Monk Kidd and her daughter Ann is nourishing my soul at present, as the books 'The Woman Who Named God' by Charlotte Gordon and 'The Joining' by Vishara Veda have done over the past few weeks. I would love to hear what you are doing with your time and what you are doing to feed your soul.

New beginnings

As of this morning, my blog will appear here and on my website at www.dancinginthefootstepsofeve.com. I plan to update regularly and hope to have some discussion sparked.

From a facebook friend, Marie Tucker comes the following— a favorite quote that she has had for some time

Promise Yourself
To be so strong that nothing can disturb your peace of mind.
To talk health, happiness, and prosperity to every person you meet.
To make all your friends feel that there is something worthwhile in them.
To look at the sunny side of everything and make your optimism come true.
To think only of the best, to work only for the best and to expect only the best.
To be just as enthusiastic about the success of others as you are about your own.
To forget the mistakes of the past and press on to the greater achievements of the future.
To wear a cheerful expression at all times and give a smile to every living creature you meet.
To give so much time to improving yourself that you have no time to criticize others.
To be too large for worry, too noble for anger, too strong for fear, and too happy to permit the presence of trouble.
To think well of yourself and to proclaim this fact to the world, not in loud word, but in great deeds.
To live in the faith that the whole world is on your side, so long as you are true to the best that is in you.


My website blog is linked to others that are empowering for women through the work of artist, writers and activitists. let me know if you would like a reciprocal link