• nature,  quotes

    The web of all life

    May 1, 2026

    My God is too vast to be contained by theology, too mysterious to be defined, too holy to be personified. My God neither punishes nor rewards, but invites me into a living relationship that unfolds in the heart of all that is. My God belongs to everyone, and this belonging connects me to the web of all life.

    Mirabai Starr

    It has been a beautiful day with clear blue skies, sunshine and a gentle cooling breeze. I used yesterday and today to recover from the traveling. I got some grocery shopping done and made tuna salad. This afternoon I spent time at Pineridge Natural Area for the silence, solitude, and journal time. I believe my time at the coffee shop and in these Natural Areas are places where I do connect with the web of life. They are essential in my life! And hope you had a Happy May Day! Enjoy your weekend!

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  • clouds,  lake,  landscape,  quotes,  sunsets

    Ordinary Mystics

    March 24, 2026

    To be an ordinary mystic is to lead with love, to prioritize compassion,
    to regard the world with a sincere desire to see the goodness in others.

    Mirabai Starr

    What I like about her quote is the word ordinary. We do live in a society that thinks we need to be special, different, even superior or that we already are, rather than seeing each other as ordinary equals. We are all human, made of the same stuff, but each with our own unique gifts and talents. Seems to me the world could use a few more ordinary mystics who have a sincere desire to see the goodness in others and embrace that goodness.

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  • landscape,  natural areas,  Pineridge Natural Area,  quotes,  sunrises

    seeing miracles…

    April 27, 2025

    “The more you turn inward, the more available the sacred becomes. When you sit in silence and turn your gaze toward the holy mystery you once called God, the mystery follows you back out into the world. When you walk with purposeful focus on breath and birdsong, your breathing and the twitter of the chickadee reveal themselves as miracles…”

    Mirabai Starr
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  • latte art,  quotes

    Our Code Word

    April 9, 2025
    Rosetta

    God is our code word for everything that is wondrous and mysterious and hidden at the heart of our deepest heartache, and most childlike delight.

    Mirabai Starr

    If I really want to stretch Mirabai’s definition I could replace “God” with “Old Town Mocha” or “coffee life” or “latte art.” I hope that assumption comes across as childlike and not childish! Either way Adriana did a great job on this rosetta.

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  • bicycling,  clouds,  landscape,  quotes,  sunrises

    Growing through life’s challenges…

    March 18, 2025
    Predawn light over campus on my bicycle ride to coffee

    You have countless opportunities to grow through life’s challenges—in other words, to become an ever more fully, deeply human human being. This is the meaning of the Yiddish word mensch. Someone whose humanity shines through the darkness of this world. Someone who believes in the fundamental goodness of life and embodies it. Not despite challenging experiences, but as the result of having practiced facing them with courage and kindness.

    Mirabai Starr, Ordinary Mysticism
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  • clouds,  landscape,  natural areas,  quotes,  sunsets

    A cause for celebration…

    February 25, 2025

    When your mind is blown and your heart expands, your humility deepens. You become aware that the world is magical, mysterious, and heartbreaking. You know that you know nothing, really, and this is not a problem. It’s a cause for celebration. Ambiguity, paradox, and darkness are the domain of wonder.

    Mirabai Starr

    Landscape photography has taught me patience. The evening I went out to take the above sunset photograph, I went with the intention to make an evening of it. They have a rather uncomfortable rock bench along the edge of the water that I sometimes sit on. And uncomfortable is an understatement. My goal was to experience the twilight colors and take a few images as the clouds looked promising. Twilight is when the sun has dropped below the horizon and the atmosphere is neither completely dark nor fully illuminated. When clouds are present, the colors can be magical and mysterious. I arrived early, took a few photographs prior to sunset, a few photos as the sun set, and journaled. After the sunset I felt restless, wanting to head home, yet aware of how often I do not stay for the twilight show. I stayed and glad I did. I returned home with at least one image I was pleased with and again, humbled by the beauty and gifts of nature. Yes, landscape photography and time within nature is teaching me patience. It’s a cause for celebration. May you have a wonderful day!

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  • clouds,  landscape,  quotes,  sunrises

    Seeing the World

    February 3, 2025

    Allow yourself to be like a child, seeing the world through fresh eyes. Instead of trying to control life by making sense of it, embrace ambiguity and paradox as being the domain of the truest things.

    Mirabai Starr

    I’ve come to realize we can only experience the world when we are a part of it. Seeing it with fresh eyes. Feeling the cold. Listening to the silence. Smelling the tangy fragrance of pine. Watching the clouds constantly change shape. Realizing how a small a part we are within the cosmos. So, even at my age I desire to be childlike but not childish, seeing the world with fresh eyes, embracing ambiguity and paradoxes and letting go of the need to know the answers!

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  • landscape,  natural areas,  quotes,  snow,  sunsets

    The Heart of Reality

    January 25, 2025
    January 2022

    I am continually challenged to stop arguing with reality and instead soften into what is. Over time, I learned to find beauty, meaning, and wholeness in the heart of reality. Unpredictable, ever-changing, humiliating, and humbling reality.

    Mirabai Starr

    It began snowing last night and is still snowing as I write this evening. We do not have much accumulation, 3-6 inches, but roads are messy and slick. Morning will probably be worse. I met friends earlier this morning for brunch and have been inside the rest of the day. I am wrapped in a blanket and curled up in a cozy chair with a cup of hot tea. A day of reading, journaling, and grazing. That is the reality of my life. Stay warm and I hope you had a good day!

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  • coffee life,  latte art,  quotes,  silence

    Ordinary Life Experiences

    January 21, 2025
    Latte art (rosetta) by Dean

    The most ordinary life experiences become transcendent when you offer them your reverent silence, your mischievous laughter, your sacred rage.

    Mirabai Starr

    Another frigid morning below zero, where my car groaned when I turned the ignition. Almost like it was saying, “Do you really want to do this?” Clear blue skies and sunshine now bring some warmth. My morning included quiet time, a breakfast scramble, then a trip to the coffee shop filled with wonderful conversations and a mocha. I did not journal until after I came home and began laundry. Some may consider my life dull, boring, ordinary but for me there is nothing ordinary about this life I live. My life is full as long as I stay present, my eyes open! I must admit I live the good life! I see that everyone is dealing with this cold weather so I hope you are staying warm.

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  • quotes,  shadows

    Everyday Miracles

    October 25, 2024
    My dad’s wood carving of Madonna and child

    The intimacy our souls long for can happen only when we take off whatever stands between ourselves and union with the One. Our hunger for new cars and clothes, our reliance on other people’s opinions of us, our preconceptions about what it means to be spiritual, our attachment to habitual states of misery. Take it off. Peel it off and fling it off. Find your own subversive spirit and reclaim even the most challenging parts of your life as holy ground. Then everyday miracles will spring from beneath your bare feet to astonish you.

    Mirabai Starr

    A rather cold morning here in Colorado with last night bringing a hard frost. The middle of next week will be cold with the possibility of our first snowfall of the season. That will curtail my bicycle rides to coffee. I am intrigued by Mirabai’s suggestion to find our own subversive spirit because I have been on that path for several years now, and enjoying it. I am learning to see those everyday miracles and sometimes capture an image of them. And, I like how Kathleen Dowling-Singh suggests it is a gift to pursue a spiritual path while still in the midst of life.

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