What a year. I hope these last twelve months have been gentle on your health and kind to your peace of mind. I have much to say about all that’s going on, but I write my sputtering outrage and grief for the world in other places. In the spirit of sharing good things, here are some joys and wonders I’ve encountered in these last 12 months.
~Magical walks each week with people I love. (The picture, above, is from one such walk. No filters, I’m too lazy for photo fussing.)
~I savor our family Sundays with games and food and conversation and silliness and extra dogs and the people who willingly take leftovers home. I keep those who are missing from our gatherings in my heart.
~I’m incredibly lucky people continue to put up with my ongoing covid restrictions. They agree to get together for a walk rather than out for coffee, hold meetings in the park or on a patio, take covid tests before coming to my house, and endure zoom rather than in-person classes.
~One of my life’s deepest joys come from teaching writing classes, particularly memoir classes. It’s a privilege to witness the incredible connecting power of shared stories. At the close of each 6 or 8 week session of memoir classes I encourage writers to continue on as a group. I am thrilled so many have done so. One group of writers has been meeting 11 years, another for seven years, others are in their first few years of supporting one another’s writing.
~My favorite job ever continues to be serving as editor of Braided Way: Faces & Voices of Spiritual Practice. It’s here on the web and here on Facebook. Here are this year’s nominees for writing awards:
~I also continue to work with wonderful writers as a book editor. I’m in the background, a sort of labor coach, as their new creations are readied to enter the world. Each birth is a thrill.
~It may seem odd to include this as a wonder, but our elder dog lived well into his 17th year. He continued to enjoy his food, his outings, and his snuggles right up to the end. Thank you for all our years together Cocoa Bean.
~I’m grateful to have poems and essays published this year. Several are in wonderful anthologies including The Wonder of Small Things: Poems of Peace & Renewal edited by James Crews and Poetry of Presence II: More Mindfulness Poems edited by Phyllis Cole-Dai and Ruby Wilson. Here are a few of the online offerings:
~So. Many. Good. Books. My goodness, I feel richer than any billionaire thanks to the wealth of library books available from Medina County District Library. Here are titles of a few of my very favorite reads this year. (I try to keep an up-to-date list on Goodreads, mostly to spare myself from forgetting titles I’ve already read.)
~We still aren’t back to the joys of hosting potlucks, house concerts, or art parties here. Damn covid again. But art with these co-collaborators is an immeasurable delight.
I hope 2024 brings you wonder, meaning, playfulness, and love. May this beautiful world of ours begin to heal.