Blues Chords and Peace over Sacramento

How odd… the woman who’d written to me a couple weeks ago saying, it sure would be nice to see you, then posted: I’m playing in Sacramento. There I was sitting in San Diego at that time, knowing I would be less than a hundred miles away on that day.

So here I am sitting in my hotel room after the concert laughing at how things work out.

I love EG’s music and I adore her. And it was fun to watch a whole new bunch of folk fall in love with the Georgia Songbird under the rising Full Moon. Such a beautiful, beautiful evening.

There she was with a band she’d never heard of just killing her songs! It was great. A few simple blues chords and some fascinating lyrics and the music poured out of those players. That’s the thing about music. It starts with something simple and becomes something magical.

That’s the thing about Peace. It starts with something simple, and, in the hands of the deep-hearted, becomes something magical. Players, giving Peace a chance.

And tomorrow I get to have breakfast with my college buddy. It’s a small world. And I like it like that! And after that? Grandchildren! (and their fabulous parents!) Peace? of a noisy, laughing kind!

Viewshed Peace

Viewshed was a new word for me yesterday. I’d never seen it before. Here you go (Wikipedia)

“A viewshed is the geographical area that is visible from a location. It includes all surrounding points that are in line-of-sight with that location and excludes points that are beyond the horizon or obstructed by terrain and other features (e.g., buildings, trees).”

And there i was on a mountain, that claimed, the last time I was there, to have one of the best in the world, and now ‘fesses up to being simply a great one.

It was easy to see that this vast bowl beneath it had been an ancient sea. And in fact, it’s fairly common to find shell fossils toward the base. It was sacred to the the Native Americans in this area, who were sadly captured and forcibly Christianized. There is speculation that people ran away from the Christian settlement and they were never recovered. The friars agreed they’d absconded to the devil… hence the name Diablo… But there are other thoughts as well…

These days it’s filled with ritzy homes in some places and wind farms in another.

But the view also looks to the Sierra on one side and off to the coastal mountains on the other.

It’s a gorgeous view of a landscape I came to cherish and know a bit when I lived here. It was also a stark reminder of the drought conditions as you look around. Supposedly the ocean is warming which is a signal of an el nino year… which would mean a lot of rain and a little bit of hope for this drought-stricken state. May it be so. As it is, the mountain is filled with stark reminders of wildfires. One the one hand, the pines here only give up their seeds in a fire. On the other people have crowded around and there is not water to fight the fires that rage across the mountain. It’s dangerous.

May the Peace of rain fall on this austere beauty and bring it back to life. At the same time, may the people of this beautiful state understand how very fragile this landscape and their living on it is, and may they live more lightly on the Mother. May we all live more lightly on the Mother.

Turkey Peace

It was such a silly moment. A yard full of turkeys where I hadn’t expected to see them. In all the years I’d lived around here, I’d certainly never seen a live turkey, but then I lived in a city — and who sees turkeys in cities (other than at watering holes and meetings, padumpum)

And then to do the research and find out that they’re in 49 of the 50 states. (Five sub-species in the US.) The same question asked of Google didn’t give a similar stat on eagles, but there are a whole lot fewer eagles.

Sort of an interesting thought to reconsider the Franklin suggestion that the turkey be the national bird. There they were, waddling around in a congress, adults and juveniles. And eagles have huge solitary territories. — This just in: Oh, Man… a myth… Franklin never suggested it. Better google late than never. Here’s an excerpt from his letter to his daughter. (find the article here):

“For my own part I wish the Bald Eagle had not been chosen the Representative of our Country. He is a Bird of bad moral Character. He does not get his Living honestly. You may have seen him perched on some dead Tree near the River, where, too lazy to fish for himself, he watches the Labour of the Fishing Hawk; and when that diligent Bird has at length taken a Fish, and is bearing it to his Nest for the Support of his Mate and young Ones, the Bald Eagle pursues him and takes it from him.

With all this injustice, he is never in good case but like those among men who live by sharping & robbing he is generally poor and often very lousy. Besides he is a rank coward: The little King Bird not bigger than a Sparrow attacks him boldly and drives him out of the district. He is therefore by no means a proper emblem for the brave and honest Cincinnati of America who have driven all the King birds from our country…

“I am on this account not displeased that the Figure is not known as a Bald Eagle, but looks more like a Turkey. For the Truth the Turkey is in Comparison a much more respectable Bird, and withal a true original Native of America… He is besides, though a little vain & silly, a Bird of Courage, and would not hesitate to attack a Grenadier of the British Guards who should presume to invade his Farm Yard with a red Coat on.”

Caught! well, better sooner than later! Better I should figure it out than you and have to say… hey… Ann…

But turkeys may have stuff to teach us, if only about sticking together.

One way or another, there they were… filled with Peace on a very hot afternoon. And they made me laugh as they waddled slowly, proudly away.

Peace of Familiarity & Family

One of the joys of this year’s intensive reading time has been having the opportunity to do it in the company of dear ones, friends and families.

So often when you see people it’s about the things you do together that make a visit wonderful. But there are people in your lives, if you’re deliberate and lucky, with whom the visit is about an opportunity to be yourself together.

Me voila, a sort of boring, nerdish, bookish girl. and there’s my friend at the end of the couch.

It’s always a wonderful thing. This year, as I’m really coming to terms with my sister’s absence, it’s been incredibly reassuring. I’m reforming myself or maybe recognizing myself again. The number of sustained losses in these last years has been enormous.

And here they are, these old friends, touchstones from my past, reminders of my deep self… remembering and making new memories and here I am reading, reading, reading, reading. What a joy. What a privilege. What Peace.

I hope you have such Peace in your life. I wish that very much for each and every one of you.

Reading Peace

All through the summer, when I was a girl, from about junior high on, I would walk to the library at least once a week and check out about 10 books. Two summers I undertook to just read through the fiction and so I was reading epic Russian sagas at the same time I was reading British spy mysteries. It was fun. Although I have to admit that at the speed I was gulping books I may have missed some of the finer points! But nothing gave me more joy. Swim. Read. Swim. Read. All Summer long.

During the work year, while I may get one or two substantive books read, I pretty much stick to fluffier reading. I read mostly to stop thinking rather than to think. ahhhhh. a chance to unwind.

But now during the summer, one of the requirements/privileges of my job is to prepare for the coming year.

This is made so much sweeter by the fact that this year, no one is sick, no one is dying and I’m not recovering from a death in the family. I am so grateful.

So this year, I get to stuff and stuff and stuff and stuff.

And it’s grand. I have no idea how things will all come together or even if they should, but I’m grateful for the opportunity.

Books have always offered me Peace, even as they’ve stirred and excited me.

Hurrah!

Laying out Peace

I’ve read tarot cards for about 40 years. I love doing it. I do it more for friends than for strangers, although there have been times.

I’m not a medium or clairvoyant. I just like the cards. I find it soothing to puzzle through them. I don’t do it often — or like most folk, i go through spurts of doing it.

I love that it’s about a Path through life. I see it as much as a meditation tool as anything else. I like it enough that I wrote a book about it. (you can find it here)

I keep studying about paths through life. I keep working on my own. I keep writing about it. I’m working on a new one now. Spiritual paths require daily work.

In the end, I think life is about the practice. I think the Path to Peace is the Practice of Peace. I think we need to be working on Peace…

Peace Challenges on a Quiet Sabbath Morning

Life has curve balls. Always. Sometimes, I guess we could have seen them coming, other times, we’re totally caught off guard.

But nonetheless, there are challenges. It’s not what we want to know. it’s not what we want to be facing. Sometimes we can share what’s going on and get support and other times we’re pretty much on our own.

In the midst of those things, we need to be tender with ourselves.

We might also want to consider that others are living confusing, challenging lives. Which means that the people getting on our last nerve may also be having problems, and that might cause us, if we’re to be generous and kind, to be a bit more tender with them. (And if not it confuses them!)

So, on this hot and sunny sabbath, I wish you wonder, contemplation and joy. And Peace. I wish us all Peace. Peace that is graced to us, Peace that we make. And, where I am, the Moon has been beautiful these last few nights and the pictures of garden bounty filling FaceBook are incredible. So as the Moon burgeons and swells, I hope you get great big gulping views of it! Summer Moons…. mmmmm. nothing more romantic.

Courage and Peace and Lunacy

To be courageous is always a bit lunatic, isn’t it? To dare to do something that is outside our comfort zone. Luckily it’s the Ripe Garden Moon and it’s full of comfort for when we do the crazy courageous things.

It’s funny what supports us in courage. In the case of my friend, she relied on simple good manners to carry her up and over.

In my case, I just didn’t want to have an unmatched set. And really, everyone else had forgotten I made a mistake and even if they were holding it against me, who cares? It’s my life I want to have organized, nothing to do with anyone else. (so who’s my harshest critic, right, me). So I could just do what I needed to do.

Things happen that need to be dealt with. Sometimes they’re fairly small things. Sometimes they’re big and horrible. But we do what we have to… or at least what we can of what we have to. We step up and do the hard work.

And that is just that…

A certain kind of Peace comes in doing what needs to be done. In doing the right thing. In daring. We like ourselves when we dare for things that matter. so, let’s shall we, let’s Peace.

Everyday Peace in the Ripe Garden Moon

I am extraordinarily lucky to work in a UU church which takes the preparation for the year seriously. I have a moth of study and a month of vacation. So few clergy have this, although we all need it.

We need it because we’re tired from a year of putting out. We need it because if you’re not going to hear the same old sermons next year, we need to put something in. But I get it.

And I’ve been a reading fool. I’ve been absolutely luxuriating in the reading. Stuffing my brain full so I can let it all percolate around for a while.

What’s made my reading time more wonderful is that I’ve been able to do it in the company of people I love. I’ve been in one house and then another. And there we’ve sat being together and quietly doing whatever we do.

I’ve gotten things accomplished. In the company of loved ones. And rather than running around doing things, we’ve hung around and done what needed to be done. talked some. laughed a lot. and been quiet together. The first week was with my Sweet Pea. I had long quiet stretches with him. ahhh. oh, the blessings to be counted.

This is a Peace I don’t often have at home. There are things to do. And some of these friends are very far away. But because of my job, I have this lovely, sacred pleasure.

I’m going to indulge this particular Peace as much as I can… and give thanks as I do it. And stare out the window at the lovely Ripe Garden Moon, whose picture his sister took, and remember the vegetables that just graced our supper table this evening… mmmmm.

Give Your Heart to Peace

And any of the rest of your organs. A friend of mine drove around for years with a bumper sticker that said, Leave your Heart on Earth, Heaven Doesn’t Need It. Be an Organ Donor. And i think she was. Bless that great big heart of hers. I hope if someone got it they learned to love like she did.

It’s a sad and awful and wonderful duty when a loved one dies to really release them. And you have to accept the awful reality to allow new reality to happen.

I watched my dear friend, who was in the process of dying from cancer, reel with the sudden accident that took her husband and then sit through the hours it took to release his body for donation. It was so hard and she was so brave. It was such an important lesson. Bless her loving heart and her stubborn right-doing mind.

So determine to make Peace and put your whole heart into it. However that happens. and consider Peace-giving organ donation.

Sacred Village

Building a World of Peace, Village by Sacred Village.

The Priestess Is In