....both

....both

Yogis,
Both in the same day. It doesn’t happen to me often, but when it does, I feel like I’ve hit the lottery!

I was at the beach this weekend for the annual Sea Witch festival. A gorgeous crisp fall weekend with miraculously no rain. It was the perfect weather on Saturday for watching the parade, walking through town in costume with to-go cocktails and joyful afternoon dancing in a packed outdoor bar. My sister’s homemade soup, salad, veggies and early to bed…..

I woke early on Sunday and noticed that sunrise wasn’t until 7:20. Very doable. I’m in!

It was magnificent with not a cloud in the sky. Being present for the dawn of a new day never disappoints. The swirling colors of the water, sea gulls warming up their voices and the sudden warmth of sun on my face as she lifts, all remind me to notice. To notice what is always already here.

There was no question that this day was going to be a stunner. Yet there was even more to come on the other end.

Sunday evening was the full moon. The hunter’s moon of October. It is easy to forget that the moon, like her sister the sun, rises every day over the ocean from the east. Watching a full moon rise over the horizon rivals sunrise.

Today I got to do both!

Phoebe was with me for sunrise so off we headed together in the evening to the same spot on the beach. Our shadows grew long as the sun lowered in the sky behind us. A different palette of colors surrounded us as the air cooled. And at 5:34, there she was in all her glory.

Both. Day and night. Hot and cold. Light and dark. The beginning and the end.

Grateful for the gift of experiencing both,
SARAH

....spreading seeds

Yogis,
It was August 2012 when I spent a life changing week in my tent on Susun Weed’s property in Woodstock NY. The Green Goddess intensive was designed to immerse us in nature to learn the magic of plants and how we and they are intertwined. It was that week this Sunday night blog was born.

On day one we were told of the goddess pageant. We were to choose a goddess to connect with and share. I chose Lilith, a holder of sacred wildness (she is a discussion for another post). Someone chose the mother goddess Durga….and so on. The woman I had become close with though, decided to create her own goddess who was the spreader of seeds.

Her hair, clothing and shoes were all carrying seeds that fell from her as she walked through fields, meadows and forests. Sowing new every time her feet touched the earth.

I carry the image with me to this day. I have embodied her these last few weeks.

We think of spring as the season of planting seeds and often forget about fall! Seeds are everywhere, waiting to be sown and I have been doing my part.

See all of the drying flowers? They are transforming themselves into seeds. Pull them off and scatter them. How do I know which ones will work? It doesn’t matter. If it is a plant that I would like more of, it can’t hurt to try!

Wild asters arrived on my property a few years ago, carried in by wind, animals or birds the year before. Of course, now that they are here, more are produced each year. Where do I want new ones? I carry the seeds and scatter them wide. A beautiful new type spotted on my river walk……I snap a sprig to go into my pocket to come home.

Balls of seed on Echinacea…..clip them off, make a small hole somewhere else and put one in face down. Great blue lobelia, cardinal flower, zinnia. In my hands, stuck to my sweater and lining my pockets. As I walk, I sow new life.

Will they all grow? Who knows, but they certainly won’t if I don’t spread them.

What do I want?

Planting the seeds,
SARAH

....community

Yogis,
Our gardening committee got together Thursday to discuss what went well, what didn’t, and changes we want next year in our gardens along the main street. We only see each other as a group on spring mulching day, and this end of season debrief. Otherwise, it is quick emails or texts.

It was nice sitting together to talk plants and get to know the newbies better. I left with a lightness in my chest. Community.

Friday night my husband and I walked down to one of the restaurants a few blocks away. We sat at the bar and had at least five different people we know come over to chat. We always see someone we know.

We joke because every time we try to even take a quick walk around the block we bump into people and end up in lengthy conversations. Community.

On Saturday there was a celebration of life for a neighbor held at our community center. We have known him for the 40 years we have lived here. A nice event with sandwiches and a slideshow with pictures of him in his youth looking like a movie star. People from our street were there and we retold stories of our shared histories. Community.

It feels good. Belonging. Safe.

There are many different types of community. The one I speak of here is based on a common geography. Our lives brought us to this 1.2 square mile piece of earth that we share. Yet we are different from each other. Different interests, personalities and ages.

I am realizing that community is not automatic. It is a choice and takes attention. Not everyone in our town knows the people around them or eats at our town restaurants or wants to. And in today’s world building community is even tougher.

I know I want to be part of the town. I make a point of getting to know my neighbors. Of getting involved. Of lending an ear or a hand. I receive so much in return.

Real community requires that people know each other, care about one another's welfare, and feel a sense of shared responsibility.

Glad to belong,
SARAH