My online journal where I share my interests in photography, nature, journaling, fountain pens, bicycling, coffee life, spirituality and the mystery of it all.
The foundation of all spiritual practice is love.
the Dalai Lama
That you practice this well is my only request.
My hope is to practice love, as a spiritual practice, and that it’s not just something I preach. Have a great Memorial Weekend!
Love is what we are born with. Fear is what we learn. The spiritual journey is the unlearning of fear and prejudices and the acceptance of love back in our hearts. Love is the essential reality and our purpose on earth. To be consciously aware of it, to experience love in ourselves and others, is the meaning of life. Meaning does not lie in things. Meaning lies in us.
Marianne Williamson
It was just after 7:30 am and the morning light on Adriana’s auburn hair was radiating around her! She was in the spotlight. Love is shining on her and in her. She agreed to let me take a shot while she continued to work on her computer. The subject, the light and the moment, all make this image a meaningful moment. Thank you, Adriana.
If we look at the Path, we do not
Lakota Seer
see the Sky..
We are Earth People on a
Spiritual Journey through the Stars..
Our Quest, our Earth Walk..
is to look within,
to know who we are,
to see that we are connected
to all things, that there is no separation,
only in the mind!
As a young man I spent a lot of time in nature which included walking and riding a bicycle almost everywhere. I spent almost no time in front of a television. I am grateful for that childhood. At some point I attained the coveted drivers license and life took on a new direction. I did less walking and driving and less time in nature. I then began chasing a career that put me in front of a computer, within a cubicle and less time in nature. I began to spend less and less time in nature to the point where I lost a connection to nature. I viewed it as separate from me. More than 20 years ago there was a shift in seeing that we are connected to all things. Getting back into photography and practicing a spiritual life were key elements in that shift. There is a desire within me to have more of that connection and thus the reason this poem strikes a chord with me.
“Wilderness to the people of America is a spiritual necessity, an antidote to the high pressure of modern life, a means of regaining serenity and equilibrium.”
Sigurd Olson
I recently read from a book by Janet Ruffing that said “theology is nothing more than faith seeking understanding.” Much of my life has been spent looking for understanding of something I cannot define or even comprehend. It’s been many years since I prayed to the old man in the sky, a theology of a God defined by others and one I was expected to accept. Yet, that theology had to be discarded and I needed to enter in a journey of seeking a new understanding. For me that is the essence of the spiritual journey: the seeking. Seeking an understanding is like looking into a foggy wintery scene. The visible details are vague, yet there is more just beyond what we vaguely see.
Reflecting back over my life I see a pattern where I’ve lived much of my life seeking to fill some void. I’m now aware this void is more of a spiritual hunger. It’s not a religious hunger, although I looked there. Maybe this assumed void has really been some subconscious spiritual part of me calling from within. It’s a new way of thinking and living in my life and sharing a bit of that with you.