Deep Winter

Sensation of the Mystical

The most beautiful and profound emotion we can experience is the sensation of the mystical.

Albert Einstein

Bitter cold morning.

Awake to worries and fears.

Throw on my walking clothes and head for the highest point in my creek village.

Met by the sunrise.

My body rejoices.

I know it can't always be this simple - this instant lifting of suffering.

I know that fears abound - near and far - yet still.

My heart knows joy.

In that moment.

Refuge

About time for a new post. Way past time. Autumn is upon us and as is my habit - I turn to a poet (Wendell Berry) and a visual artist (my son Iam Williams) to convey what I cannot...

The Peace of Wild Things

When despair for the world grows in me
and I wake in the night at the least sound
in fear of what my life and my children's lives may be,
I go and lie down where the wood drake
rests in his beauty on the water and the great heron feeds.
I come into the peace of wild things
who do not tax their lives with forethought
of grief. I come into the presence of still water.
And I feel above me the day-blind stars
waiting with their light. For a time
I rest in the grace of the world, and am free.
Wendell Berry

All About The Boy

Yeah, it is all about this boy.

Not much more to say - just - eat ice cream and do whatever you can to enjoy your time and reduce the suffering of yourself and others. Yeah, listening to Pema morning, noon, and night - so, I'm a bit annoying with my bodhisattva mind blah, blah blah.

That's the mood I'm in today. Kinda nice one.

Super Zen Lizzie

The above image is my most recent INNER PORTRAIT - care of my amazing, wondrous mother, Antoinette Martignoni. She will be 90 this year. Still going strong. Still an active artist. Still offering her gift to the world.

I went to her during a time of stress and confusion - needing a glimpse of the part of me that was cool, calm, and collected amidst the storms. I took one look at this portrait and wept. There I was - super zen woman to the rescue. Now when I am tempted to spiral into stupid thoughts and cloudy emotions - I sneak a glance at this woman and feel a smile forming along with a kind of calm curosity about whatever is happening - and whatever will come down the pike.

My inner portrait hangs on the wall of my office. Daily, I am given the opportunity to be overtaken by my core, calm, graceful self.

Very cool indeed. The magic of art and images to heal.

Check out Antoinette - and a description of inner portraits - under links to the left: Inner Portraits: My Mother's Intuitive Art
She also has a blog that you can visit - where she writes a daily that will knock your socks off with humor, wisdom, poetry, and very non-corny inspiration. Click onto My Mother's Groovy Blog (also in my link column) and have fun!

Chef Logan

The legacy of delicious food cooked by the men of our clan rages onward with Chef Logan as the newest inductee.  

Ode to Mud Puddles

Pure Bliss!

A walk on the marsh trail with Logan never quite gets us to the trail. Any and all wonders along the way must be visited. Time and linear progression toward a goal is surprisingly different for a 2-year old. He is my Buddha.

Fumbling Forward

Soul in Wonder - Van Morrison - Inarticulate Speech of the Heart - Mantra-like, raving, ecstatic repetition.

This is where I begin - each morning. I walk to the edge of my world and am reminded how fortunate I am to live where I live.

Fumbling Forward - an image of grace - breathtaking, one winter sunset among so many, courtesy of my son Iam - who has the knack of capturing moments of beauty - often missed in the daily rush.