This afternoon on our hike we paid homage to an AWESOME 1200 year old yellow cedar. Deep bows to you O Wise One of the forest.

Speak with great care and not too much. Listen closely. Summon empathy. Oftentimes I am impatient and hurried. Every day I begin again, including a visit here, to remind me what matters.

Thank you for the eloquent contributions everyone. I’m with you – It’s about perspective and where I place my attention and my energy. It’s about cultivating a calm mind and heart, noticing that truth that humans are good at our core. The question may have come from The Book of Joy by the Dalaï Lama and Desmond Tutu which coincidentally I’m currently reading and heartily recommend.

Slowing down.
Breathing.
Decolonizing attention.

Being active in environmental/climate justice stuff. For me the antidote to climate anxiety and paralysis is participation with others in learning and action. This orientation is making meaning and inspiring hope.

“in the very spaciousness of uncertainty that there’s room for us to act. This is hope embodied – not knowing how things will turn out nor the clear path forward, but acting nonetheless.”
This is an affirmation of what I’m doing right now in the arena of electoral politics. In my context (Vancouver, BC: Canada)! I’m choosing to share space with a disrupting candidate who dares to reframe priorities, to imagine equity and to confront the stats quo truthfully.

I am smiling with the teacher in #23. In that moment, she is the embodiment of joyful and vibrant hope, all dressed up, fully engaged and enjoying her charges even through the screen.

It means to let go of the need to control, the need to be right, the need for a particular outcome, the need to armour myself, the need to remain in my comfort zone. I’ve come a ways on that journey and it continues. Life is juicier and more joyful when I trust life that’s for sure.

Honour the beauty. Mmmm. I love the word honour and its connotations of love and respect, appreciation and noticing. Beauty is shiningly obvious in some; hard to see in others. The question invites me to pay attention to the latter. Okay.

I’m excited about supporting a paradigm-shifting, priority-reversing, joy-bringing political aspirant who is courageously taking on Goliath.

A few days ago when I reached out to an estranged relative. I took a leap of faith he might be receptive. Not so far alas.

The climate crisis calls me to be fully engaged in continuous learning, gradual waking up, and being in conversation with others. The alternative is succumbing to paralyzing fear and hopelessness which is no way to live.

Pie making. Always feel my Mom’s presence when I make pie. She was the queen of pie makers I dare say . I’m pretty good too. The food highlight of our current cabin time with friends: my blueberry pie! :

It would create SPACE. Space that is now available for prayer, for constructive and creative thoughts, for courageous conversations, for joyful productive actions.

It’s a mess out there AND there is beauty everywhere.
I try to keep this in mind & heart as I regularly bring food to folks in our city’s most troubled, wounded, beleaguered neighbourhood.

I’m receiving a generous unbidden act of hospitality right now. We’re staying in the beautiful home of friends of friends who simply wanted to be generous. This impulse to share, to extend the webs of connection is just what humans do!

I like to think I am doing so. I will keep on keeping on.

“Impeccable” is a beautiful word choice here. Day by day you are an exemplar of your agreement, Carol.

“Neutrality” shimmers for me, Avril. I’m a person with opinions and in many contexts would not qualify as neutral :). Can one be open hearted and opinionated at the same time? It depends what’s on the table. I will ponder.

Thanks for making me explain Rabbit! It’s a fancy way of saying that my thoughts can be taken over by the agendas of “outsiders” especially certain voices on social media. I can get distracted from my own interests and values by giving undue attention to the priorities of external voices. Am I making sense?