A Kwan Story

i went into our local spiritual/religious accessories store today looking for a Kwan Yin statue. i didn't see the one i was after so i walked up to the sales fella and asked did they have a Kwan statue.
he looked at me very seriously and said: "you mean Kwan Yin?" (not without a bit of attitude) so, i said: "yea, Kwan." and then made the gesture of my index and middle finger wrapped around each other and said; "we're tight" while smiling. He did not find that even remotely amusing. it is attitudes like that which make me want to be irreverent to all things sacred. i can't help myself!!!
that's probably why i need sistah K so bad cuz i lack compassion when it comes to people like that!

Call and Response

It's not like this is anything new...
but somehow this general now of a portal feels particularly focused...asking us to continuously let go...to surrender deeply...and while the particulars of our lives may reflect that surrender it is the larger universal dynamic that is actually "forcing" us into as of yet uninhabitated realities and paradigms.. There is no set of instructions for how to navigate these times nor any words that fit it, really....
The one thing I really do get very clearly is that i, we, us are responding to the call, whether we consciously understand that or not. for me, the cognitive "understanding" helps me to get that I am actively in conversation and in relationship with the dynamics...with the Universe. 

my wish for us all is that we build and refine our listening muscles, without ears...
and that we find the courage and willingness to be led...

Camo Kwan!

I've Looked At Clouds From Both Sides Now!

Recently a friend and I were laying in a field working on our winter tans while appreciating the warm, cloudless winter day...when seemingly out of nowhere all kinda pretty clouds started showing up. This one here we decided looked like the Virgin de Guadeloupe!

So, I sent this photo to my friend who loves the Virgin like crazy. What's funny is that she was up the coast maybe 10 miles or so that day and took a photo of the exact same cloud. However, she thought it was more angelic than virginal...same diff, I guess!

Oh, The Parents

Not being a parent...I can't say for sure...but many parents seem challenged to TRULY see  who and what their children are as opposed to what they hope or want them to be. So many parents deal with this issue in one way or the other. And us kids....well, I do believe that no matter what we say or try and get ourselves to believe about what we really want...i think we need our parents to get us. We need their Blessing as i heard a preacher say recently. It can end up being quite a dance. I've certainly participated in that with my own folks.

Over the years my dad and I have really worked at our relationship. It's taken him a real long time to loosen his expectations or ideas of what my life should look like. He still doesn't all the way "get it" but he is more spacious than ever. So, during our New Year's Day phone call, I was surprised and deeply touched when he wished me an art-full new year. He gave me his Blessing. I honestly didn't know I needed it...but I did. What a true and beauty-full gift.

New Years Resolution

Today I asked my 93-year-old friend if she had made a New Year's resolution.

A little bit shyly, she told me that her New Year's wish was to die in her sleep soon.

New Year's Wish

May we all be nourished by the exquisite beauty of simplicity.