04.28.2025. Holy Mud Called Life
Hello dear Friends,
“Thank you is a phrase that is fundamental to life…
it’s a key that opens the way to a well-lived life, to a life of peace.”
— Pope Francis
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“Thank you” has been reverberating through my bones. It is a path that unzips the heart, a bow of reverence and awe, a form of prayer and praise – the very ground on which we meet. I wonder, what if we lived in a constant internal bow of gratitude, seeing each other with forgiving eyes, a giving and receiving of appreciation that pierces the hard shell around our petal-soft hearts?
A tender share: After a difficult medical patch, my dear friend Karen, who recently moved to hospice care, offered these words that brought me to a still bow, to tears, to the acute smell of being alive:
“This morning as I fell back asleep, I prayed this breath prayer: ‘I thank Thee. I thank Thee. I thank Thee.’ I am sad to be in this end stage of my life, and still I am full of love and gratitude.”
I couldn't help but think of Pope Francis's final utterance, simply "Thank you!" and Meister Eckhart's wisdom, “If the only prayer you say in your entire life is ‘Thank you,’ that would suffice…” This provocative act of gratitude, this humble acknowledgment of this one precious life we each are given, with its sacred joys and sorrows, its heartaches and fragility – this dark, holy mud called life that threads through each of us and binds us together.
I couldn’t help but simply think, “thank you, I am grateful for this next breath.” (hands to my heart, amen holy prayer-praise).
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Today is Metta (loving-kindness) & Calm-Abiding Meditation Practice
All Welcome. No meditation experience needed.
Come as you are, open heart and all.
2 - 3pm: Drop-in Meditation Practice
3 - 4pm: Conversations on the Practice of Meditation–what it means, how it feels, and how it supports your life.
Where: 1765 Glenview Road, Glenview in the Patio Shops
Cost: No Fee. Donations and poems appreciated.
So grateful we are here together.
Love,
Wini
🌸 This newsletter is full of inspiration and resources to linger in. Made with ♥️.
💌 Know someone who could use a little goodness for their heart? Send them a copy! If a friend forwarded this to you and you'd like your very own newsletter subscribe here
🌸 Two Poems to Share
April 5 | Lynn Unger
I don’t know how this all turns out,
and neither do you,
but I have to confess it doesn’t look good.
I wish we were headed
for a picnic, for a waltz in the park.
I wish we were not ruled by broken men
who want to damage everything
that they cannot possess. I wish
I could tell you what we do now.
The street is littered with the petals
of cherries that bloomed before
the big wind came. Tonight
there will be frost, and tender buds
will burn. But still, the woods
are unfolding into green,
and just outside my door some frog
is bellowing for all he’s worth.
Who knows what happens next?
All I can tell you is that fields
Are ablaze with dandelions
Who have never known
The meaning of defeat.
Keeping Watch | Hafiz
In the morning
When I began to wake,
It happened again –
That feeling
That You, Beloved,
Had stood over me all night
Keeping watch,
That feeling
That as soon as I began to stir
You put Your lips on my forehead
And lit a Holy Lamp
Inside my heart.
🌿 holy, holy, amen….May we each remember that kiss, the tender touch of the Beloved upon our forehead.
🌸 Three Quotes | Eckhart Tolle. Mary Oliver. Anne Lamott.
“We were born with silence, and as we grew up we lost the silence and we were filled with words. We lived in our hearts, and as time passed we moved into our heads. Now the reverse of this journey is enlightenment. It is the journey from the head back to the heart, from words back to silence; getting back to our innocence in spite of our intelligence.” —Eckhart Tolle
“It doesn’t have to be the blue iris, it could be weeds in a vacant lot, or a few small stones; just pay attention, then patch a few words together and don’t try to make them elaborate, this isn’t a contest but the doorway into thanks, and a silence in which another voice may speak.” — Mary Oliver
🌿 May we all remember this is prayer. It does not have to be fancy, or formal, or rote memorization, it just has to be true. I know I am close when my tenderest of tears are near.
“My mind is like a bad neighborhood, I try not to go there alone." — Anne Lamott
🌿 Give a listen recent Fireside Chat with Anne and Stanford Center on Longevity, Jan 27, 2025, click here (38:08 min)
🌸 Something to Inspire | Profound Silence
“The ability for profound silence is being called on here…”
– David Whyte
How do you know you are on the right path? The poet David Whyte reminds us of a powerful truth: what we are seeking is nestled quietly in the deep well of silence within. When we truly pay attention, when all the crazy-making noise of fear fades in the quiet moments of our being, we can see clearly and hear the path that calls us. What path is quietly calling to you?
“The Elder says, you cannot sleepwalk into your destiny.
You must wake up and pay attention, stand still….
You must pay attention to the shadows of your existence, too.
Pay attention to everything you've given away to feel safe."
—David Whyte
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🌸 Something to Be Part Of | Is Your Name On the List?
Rosemerry Wahtola Trommer’s mantra:
“One-word mantra: Adjust. Three-word mantra: I’m still learning.”
Save the Date: Saturday, September 27, 2025
with the luminous poet Rosemerry Wahtola Trommer
Join us at Valley Lo Club (9 am - 3 pm, lunch included) for "The Conversation is Truth and Soul." Explore grief, love, and the beauty of being alive in this complicated holy world.
Registration opening soon!
Be the first to know – add your name to our list.
Rosemerry is a treasure, and spaces will fill quickly.
Put your name on the list here.
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🌸 Closing Song | As I Wake in the Morning ❤️
One of my favorite artists, Alexia Chellun, her song "Trust" is go-to to listen to on repeat when I am needing ‘remembering’, a refuge in song. Designed to induce deep relaxation and sleep.
Here is a gorgeous blessing song by Alexia Chellun
As I Wake in the Morning Lyrics:
“As I wake in the morning
I count my blessings now
I say thank you, oh, thank you, dear one
This love, it shows me how
As I open my eyes to the day
I am so gifted in so many ways
So grateful just to be
This miracle of life, it sets me free
I am blessed
I am grateful and I live in abundance”
Listen on YouTube (3:44 min) or Spotify (3:43 min)
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“May you trust in your Light.
May you stand still, listen to the beat of your heart
and know your life is a blessing.
May you follow your sweet tender tears–
that is where your light is.”
Have a blessed day,
Love, Wini 💖
🌸 I’m grateful you’re a part of this community.
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✨ may we bloom more Light together.
💞 may we grow more Goodness for the healing of all
🌎 may we stitch more heart-tenderness into the fabric of our planet.
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….Until next week. 💖 ✨
