Aligning with Grace

I make my way down to the river on this rainy morning, and offer my Advent Prayers, on its shores, under an overcast sky... I read this quote by Cardinal John Henry Newman , who began his life as an Anglican, and ended it as a Catholic saint, not that it matters to me. Even as a child, I felt we were all one, and I could not imagine or abide a kind of God that would exclude some of his children from the gift of eternal life, or from sharing at His table... "To live is to change, and to be perfect, is to have changed often." As I I work through some deep issues, it is obvious that they are once more an invitation to change and to grow. Newman also is quoted as saying that "growth, is the only evidence of life..." Yet change is messy, and painful at times. We can deny what it asks of us - but only to a great cost to our health and well-being. What we bury deep inside has a way of gushing forth out of us once again, demanding our attention - it will not be ignored! I p...

We have entered into the season of Advent - of waiting, of preparing, of readying, and listening...It is a sacred season, and I find myself wanting to enter into it more fully than I have in the last couple of years... While I was in London , I found the church that I had been baptized in - St. Mary's on Cadogan Gardens . I sat by myself at twilight and said a series of prayers for loved ones and special intentions. On my way out, I caught a glimpse of a little book of Advent and Christmas reflections titled "Walk With Me," and made the requisite donation for it, knowing it would be just what I needed to add to my morning meditations. As I opened the little booklet, I read these words by Pope Benedict : "This is the real commitment of Advent: To bring joy to others. Joy is the true gift of Christmas, not the expensive presents that demand time and money." I thought to myself - how true! Joy is not only the gift of this season, but it is also who we are at our e...

I arrive home safe and sound from a perfect and magical trip to London, the city of my birth, which I enjoy, 55 years later - in the company of my son, who is nearly half of my age - and who is visiting for the very first time... Everything not only goes right on this trip - but turns out even better than I could have imagined. I recall the many beautiful encounters I had everywhere and the incredible connections made with perfect strangers - souls intersecting in ways that defy any kind of separation and I truly realize, that at our essence, we are all One! Every meal had, was simply delicious and fully enjoyed. Revisiting every site - brought back memories, even as the seeds were being sown for richer ones to come... I visit the street my parents lived in - and find the church I was baptized in, and where in many ways, my own spiritual journey began. It was moving to sit inside, as the day waned, turning into dusk and merging with the coming nightfall, while I was lost in the recita...

Last night I treated myself to another concert with one of my favorite songwriters and performers of all time, Melissa Manchester , I saw her last year at the Barns at Wolf Trap , for the first time since the early seventies... As always, she did not disappoint, but this year she performed a retrospective of songs that were dear to her heart and influential in her life - songs by Cole Porter, Rodgers and Hammerstein, Gershwin, Dusty Springfield, Carole Bayer Sager - show tunes like "Somebody" written by Sondheim , from the play "Company." Melissa included a classic by Ella , a beautiful re-interpretation of "Be My Baby" by The Ronettes - and topped it off with an exquisite acapella rendition of "Something Wonderful" from the "The King and I"... It was a trip down memory lane for me - for we are both about the same age - we have been married about as long - and have children the same age, so we were formed in many ways by the same m...

I look out my bedroom window in the early morning and my eyes take in the crisp leaves falling and the brilliant vermilion of the maple trees, shrouded in a thin but delicate veil of fog. Feeling overwhelmed by the weekend, and the energy of 600 hundred bodies congregated at one venue - half of them in one yoga class at a time - I am overcome by the urgency rising within me to simply breathe and ground. So I make my way down to the river, as I did on so many mornings, for nearly two years... It is still and quiet - no one else around, and I walk down to the boat launch area. The river, like a vessel, is heavy, its belly pregnant with so many leaves, embracing transition and the change of the season, and the essence of death itself - which will only serve to open the door to greater transformation. I imagine the trees letting go of what no longer serves them as they prepare to settle in and weather the coming winter before emerging once again, and unfurling their resplendent and rich f...

On this evening, of my 55th birthday, after a day of practicing yoga with 300 Anusara practitioners and teachers, filled with many sacred openings, gifts, outpouring of love, and well wishes from others in the Anusara community, and from former students from my academic years, in the midst of many moments of synchronicity and deep soul connections, I enjoy a glass of wine while my heart overflows with gratitude! I was blessed to practice alongside one of my teachers - who like an angel - was on my right during the morning session, and on my left in the afternoon session. She was part cheerleader, and encouraged me when needed, reaching out to anchor me and give me one of her powerful assists when needed, and sweetly reminding me when it was time to let go. One of the greatest gifts I received, came in the form of a message. As we pressed up to many Urdhva Dhanurasanas, which is very challenging for me right now, John Friend , our Master Teacher - came and stood between my teacher and...

I arise and sit in meditation, and spontaneously, a prayer wells up from the center of my being, like an offering: "Everything in God and God in everything." I repeat it silently, over and over again to myself, and it begins to color every aspect of my day on this 11/11 - opening the door to one sacred synchronicity after another - to blessings, to unexpected connections and opportunities for ministering. Each time I step out of my house, a sacred encounter awaits - and I marvel at how everything happens in just the right moment... I think of this on a walk in the afternoon, and wonder if the energy of my deep reflections and prayers, averts a possible collision as I approach an intersection - that ends up simply being a near miss... I connect with a former student, a neighbor, and we minister to one another as Mary and Elizabeth did in the "Infancy Narratives" in the Gospels. I get the shopping done in preparation for Thanksgiving to provide for my family. And I ...