Tag Archives: Parker J. Palmer

Getting Out of Our Own Way

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“Our spiritual task is to discern the ways in which our heart is at variance with God’s heart. We see how our own subjective perceptions and intentions are compromised or violate our ultimate destiny in love. By this graced recognition, we are released and liberated.”  -Richard Rohr A Repost from a previous Zero Point Agreement blog (Here, Take This Gift): For life to happen we have to receive the first breath. For life to continue we have to receive the abundance of light, nourishment, love and care offered us. If we don’t know how to receive, we will starve. When we … Continue reading →

Heeding The Call

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Rule of thumb: The more important a call or action is to our soul’s evolution, the more Resistance we will feel toward pursuing it.  -Steven Pressfield,  The War of Art If you begin a spiritual, creative, or inner journey and don’t go all the way with where it wants to take you, then you may end up worse than when you began. We, writers and spiritual seekers often encounter adversity and resistance along the way, and somewhere in the middle of our effort it can become quite a challenge to stay with the journey. We are enthused or motivated in the beginning, and then something happens. It gets … Continue reading →

Just Another Day (Not)

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Dear Writerly Readers,  Some rare days for me are entirely “off the page.”  Today is such a day. Much to do (about something), so no time to write a blog. Here is a repost of a recent blog. Until next week,  Julie A Call To Action (And the Democracy of Love) Buddhist teachings reveal how distraction from the moment, and the reality of the moment, leads to confusion, apathy and misinterpretation of reality. But too many pasttimes are just that – built in to distract us. One of the great distractions is television, now extended to the screens of our computers and phones. Advertisements … Continue reading →

Discover What Is Truly Possible

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My father was a traveling salesman throughout most of my childhood. He sold packaging products to small local cheese factories throughout Wisconsin and the Midwest. This was a face-to-face affair. There were no scams or virtual exchanges in the mix. And he loved the sale. The “wealth” for him was in making the contact and in a successful sale. He did well and at some point expanded into his own company where he had others working for him. Even then he kept traveling to sell his products face-to-face. This made him a weekend father at best, which was typical back then for many working parents. My … Continue reading →

A Call To Action (And the Democracy of Love)

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“Want some fries with that? Buddhist teachings reveal how distraction from the moment, and the reality of the moment, leads to confusion, apathy and misinterpretation of reality. But too many pasttimes are just that – built in to distract us. One of the great distractions is television, now extended to the screens of our computers and phones. Advertisements brag how we can watch our favorite shows any where, any time. Why wait in line in silence, or in conversation with those around you, when you can watch the little screen on your phone? I remember when going on a road trip meant we … Continue reading →

Here, Take This Gift

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For life to happen we have to receive the first breath. For life to continue we have to receive the abundance of light, nourishment, love and care offered us. If we don’t know how to receive, we will starve. When we are not receptive, we become like Hungry Ghosts. These are the creatures from a Bardo state, where ghosts have small mouths, so little nourishment gets in and the food just falls through their phantom bodies. As a result they are always hungry. Parker J. Palmer refers to this state of chronic hunger as the “Empty Self Syndrome.” We may even win the presidency … Continue reading →

Our Blind Spots

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“You Still Have A Few Blind Spots.” “Julie, you still have a few blind spots,” a spiritual teacher reminded me on our last time together. I was leaving Minneapolis to move down to Spring Green, Wisconsin. She didn’t, of course, tell me what these blind spots were; it was just a gentle reminder that I did still have them. I had done a lot of inner work up until that time. So it’s safe to assume that I may have gotten a bit arrogant around my efforts and growth. I could have become like Theseus after his successes with the Minotaur: he thought of himself … Continue reading →

The Awakening Writer

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“Nature is incapable of producing two identical creations, and she calls us to discover and bring forth our uniqueness. The great mystery is that life, too, colludes to find us.” —Parker J. Palmer, Leading from Within Over my lifetime (I can say that now at 60), I have identified Cornerstones of Awakening. Awakening to our true nature. Awakening to our creativity. Awakening to community and compassion. We all witness the power of words. Our stories, the ones we tell ourselves and others, are the narratives we live. Even the vibration of words are known to influence our psychophysical and spiritual systems. Inherent in … Continue reading →

Don’t Spare Yourself

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Okay, so… I’m still taking violin lessons. Along with my violin lessons I discovered another life lesson, as well as a good lesson for writers. If I want to learn how to play the violin, I have to be willing to play poorly. Like I remind my writing students all the time — be willing to write several shitty drafts before the story works, before you “sound” pleasing.  The enjoyment found in writing several shitty drafts, as well as playing crude on the violin, is indispensable to progress in both. I delight in holding an idea and seeing how it comes out on the page. I enjoy holding the violin and … Continue reading →

US: Exceptional but not The Exception

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“We may be exceptional, but we are not exceptions.” This above insight was shared with me recently by a friend. At the time I felt I was having an exceptional experience. And it was. Exceptional. But this in no way made me, or others involved exceptions. What does this mean? It means we are not special in a way that sets us apart from others or the natural world. We are all bound by natural (nature’s) laws, and ideally, we are internally directed by ethical boundaries and spiritual principles that remind us of this interconnectedness. Whatever this exceptional experience is—some … Continue reading →