FEBRUARY 2015 NEWSLETTER
The winter in the Catskills of upstate New York is just getting underway with a deepening blanket of snow. We have had to shovel the driveway and it is almost time to put the snowshoes on to walk our dog, Dolly. Dolly delights in bounding through the snow hunting such little field mice as she can find. For their welfare, they are mostly hiding deeply and difficult to find, even though the Akita sticks her face into the white stuff as far as it will go. Sometimes Dolly looks like she has planted herself in the snow banks, her culry tail a strange branch unfurling to the sun.
Watching the dog's delight in playing in the snow takes me back to my childhood. Where I grew up in Erie County we could always count on lake effect storms to deliver vast quantities of snow, more than perfect for digging into and constructing snow forts. Where did that sense of childhood fun go? Somehow despite the responsibilities of life, I find myself recapturing that mood as I watch the dog cavort and play.
Walking through the woods gives me plenty of time to take in the quiet and serenity of the trees. The pines and hemlocks shake their burdens of snow with the help of sturdy winds. The snow fallen from their branches creates odd tracks, and I look to discern what type of animal has passed that way, before I realize this was not an animal. Often the chickadees will find us and accompany us on our walk with their bold cries of "Chick-a-dee-dee-dee!" Blue Jays scramble at the neighbor's bird feeder, and the crows visit our compost pile. Somehow the wildlife hangs on through the sleepy times of winter, and I know that when this season passes with its joys and difficulties, spring will emerge in a flurry of vigorous greening plants and insect life.
Each season holds its joy if I am determined to see it. I have learned that if I allow it, that joy can surplant much of the frustration I feel whenever beset by some difficulty. I am mindful that the seasons, like the flow of life, are integrated in the life of the planet, as are human beings. Each of us was born and someday we will die, but in between those two times we have a rich opportunity to know, to love and be loved, to experience. It is the sum of our experiences that make us wise when we grow old. I think that we can grow acceptance as we can grow compassion, and thus we need not be mind locked into negative viewpoints that make us old before our time.
The Norns are frost giants in the Norse tradition. Recently, they asked me to sit in meditation outside on the night of a full moon. I was to accept the suffering of being cold for a couple of hours in honor of those who are too impoverished to enjoy all the benefits of modern life that I enjoy. The experience did serve to awaken in me compassion and to set aside concern at some difficulties I am currently experiencing. The Norns remind me to live in the present moment, to plan for the future, but not to be anxious about uncertainty or plans that go awry. "You will know what you need to do when the need is upon you," they say. "Trust."
I invite you now to take a step back from the worries and concerns of the moment. Take a deep breath, hold it, then release it slowly. Take another deep breath, hold it, and release it more slowly. Become aware of yourself from your crown down to the souls of your feet, breathing all the while. Take the sensation of yourself and find one positive thought about yourself to have, and smile. Step back into the moment. Trust. I bid you a good day.
For a Rune interpretation or other service, please call me at (518) 989-6006 or email me at [email protected].
Watching the dog's delight in playing in the snow takes me back to my childhood. Where I grew up in Erie County we could always count on lake effect storms to deliver vast quantities of snow, more than perfect for digging into and constructing snow forts. Where did that sense of childhood fun go? Somehow despite the responsibilities of life, I find myself recapturing that mood as I watch the dog cavort and play.
Walking through the woods gives me plenty of time to take in the quiet and serenity of the trees. The pines and hemlocks shake their burdens of snow with the help of sturdy winds. The snow fallen from their branches creates odd tracks, and I look to discern what type of animal has passed that way, before I realize this was not an animal. Often the chickadees will find us and accompany us on our walk with their bold cries of "Chick-a-dee-dee-dee!" Blue Jays scramble at the neighbor's bird feeder, and the crows visit our compost pile. Somehow the wildlife hangs on through the sleepy times of winter, and I know that when this season passes with its joys and difficulties, spring will emerge in a flurry of vigorous greening plants and insect life.
Each season holds its joy if I am determined to see it. I have learned that if I allow it, that joy can surplant much of the frustration I feel whenever beset by some difficulty. I am mindful that the seasons, like the flow of life, are integrated in the life of the planet, as are human beings. Each of us was born and someday we will die, but in between those two times we have a rich opportunity to know, to love and be loved, to experience. It is the sum of our experiences that make us wise when we grow old. I think that we can grow acceptance as we can grow compassion, and thus we need not be mind locked into negative viewpoints that make us old before our time.
The Norns are frost giants in the Norse tradition. Recently, they asked me to sit in meditation outside on the night of a full moon. I was to accept the suffering of being cold for a couple of hours in honor of those who are too impoverished to enjoy all the benefits of modern life that I enjoy. The experience did serve to awaken in me compassion and to set aside concern at some difficulties I am currently experiencing. The Norns remind me to live in the present moment, to plan for the future, but not to be anxious about uncertainty or plans that go awry. "You will know what you need to do when the need is upon you," they say. "Trust."
I invite you now to take a step back from the worries and concerns of the moment. Take a deep breath, hold it, then release it slowly. Take another deep breath, hold it, and release it more slowly. Become aware of yourself from your crown down to the souls of your feet, breathing all the while. Take the sensation of yourself and find one positive thought about yourself to have, and smile. Step back into the moment. Trust. I bid you a good day.
For a Rune interpretation or other service, please call me at (518) 989-6006 or email me at [email protected].