A long weekend in Ireland
The spirituality of work arises from the inside out. It does not depend on the job we have but on the way we do the job we have. Work is holy because we are holy – if we bring our holiness to it.
But so is rest holy.
The Sabbath is not simply a day off; it is a day up – a day to remember who we are beyond what we do.
Joan Chittister, The Gift of Years: Growing Older Gracefully
It is good to realize that falling apart is not such a bad thing.
Indeed, it is as essential to transformation as the cracking of outgrown shells.
Anxieties and doubts can be healthy and creative, not only for the person, but for the society, because they permit new and original approaches to reality.
Joanna Macy
A noble lord once visited the monk Ryōkan in search of rare wisdom. Ryōkan said nothing. Instead, he took up his brush and composed a haiku. The lord read it, bowed in understanding, and quietly returned to his castle.
The wind gives me
Enough fallen leaves
To make a fire.
Ryōkan Taigu, 1758–1831
I find hope in the darkest of days
and focus in the brightest.
I do not judge the universe.
The Dalai Lama
Michaelmas: Traditionally in Ireland the day to mark the end of harvest The traditional greeting – “May Michaelmas féinín on you.” – wished for an abundant harvest
The feast of Saints Michael, Gabriel and Raphael, Archangels. Those sent to help or guide us.
Where is the angel
to wrestle with me and wound
not my thigh but my throat,
so curses and blessings flow storming out
and the glass shatters, and the iron sunders?
Denise Levertov, Where is the Angel [extract]
The sailor who does not adjust to the wind conditions will have a difficult time.
One ship drives east and another drives west by the same winds that blow.
Its the set of the sails
and not the gales that determines the way they go.
Ella Wheeler Wilcox, 1850 – 1919, American author and poet.
Mindfulbalance 