Blogs

from my blog at http://marginalaccretion.com/

I crawl as stealthily as possible into the hallway, stop and wait. My parents have settled into their bed. Earlier, I dropped from mine to the floor soon after a ritual of saying goodnight to everyone and remaining there until I could no longer wait. I inch into my parents’ room, as quiet as a small child can be. Gradually, after an amount of time that seems stationary to me, I make myself known. I am welcomed, snug under the blankets, my two year old

"You know I consider myself lucky. I found myself a long time ago. And I'm grateful for that...It really just means being comfortable in your own skin. That's all enlightenment is, isn't it? The Buddhists can do their crazy calisthenics, their marathons of silence and ritual bullshit, but at the end of the day if someone's happy in their own skin, that's the Buddha. People think they need that perfect job or perfect inspiration or perfect spiritual practice but all anyone wants or needs is peace

Some of the reasons I am willing to suffer knowledge of my participation in climate change.

When I think of the best approach to the issues we have created in our environment, I think of the old Buddhist adage: Show up. Pay attention. Tell the truth. Detach from outcome. The problem lies in being so overwhelmed that we cannot show up to pay attention. Then we deny the truth, effectively participating in a horrible outcome! It is critical that we are not paralyzed into denial by our fear.

In the re

The image above is referenced from a post by Leonard De Lorenzo on the Notre Dame University blog, an indication of the extent of interest and depth of debate going on about this deeply engaging drama, even as far reaching as theological circles.

We received the box set of 'Breaking Bad' Series 1-4 as a Christmas gift and it has turned out to be the biggest time bandit of my life this decade. I am no stranger to excuses to procrastinate the evening away but our nightly sessions with 'Breaking Bad

Many years ago when we were first learning Biodynamics we worked with a consultant who I've called B.B. in my recollection of that time (Farming Soul: A Tale of Initiation. Soon to be republished by Leaping Goat Press, 2014.) He helped us on many levels, giving us tips and how-to’s about the practicalities of biodynamic farming but also direction in learning to perceive spiritual/subtle energies.

One morning as B.B. and I were walking in the vineyard, B.B. was pointing out things that I normally

The addict, and others in general, are influenced through a variety of factors. From the influential factors of an addiction, impressions are made in regard to who an addict may be. For this discussion I would like to acknowledge a psychological component that can allow for further discussions of compassion, empathy, and the paradoxical experience of addiction. The cognitive structures that are secured within addiction leave an individual grappling with the existence of, and estrangement from, a

PSYCHOLOGICAL LIFE begins in the imagination. That’s one reason I have a sign in my office, dangling from the mantel, that asks clients if they have a dream to share or if something unusual happened since their last session.

The latter — odd, sometimes surreal experiences — often communicate at great depth what is going on in a person’s life, conscious and unconscious. They essentially occur in an altered state when our repressed feelings — even the refusal to acknowledge our circumstances — dema

2 – Reframing

Myths can change when we begin to consider (“to be with the stars”) our unconscious attention to the stories we have been telling ourselves about ourselves. This can be a painful process; perhaps that’s why it is called paying attention. And this process may require that we counter the voracious god of Time, or Kronos, by slowing down our unconscious responses to the parade of both mental (internal) and environmental (external) imagery that constantly bombards us.

The musical example

The old slip of moon rose this morning, the Valley Oaks backlit by the beginnings of Dawn. It is the end of 2013, the darkest time of the year.

I admit: I love the dark, a time that it is easier to live inward. The plants are quiet, and there are fewer demands on my husband and me. We are in drought, it having rained only twice so far this rainy season. When I worry I so easily miss the beauty of the clear, cold dawn.

Watched a wonderful Nova program on PBS last night.  Scientists explained how the great Gothic cathedrals were designed and built. 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=24N94rZ7XtU

The program proved more than fascinating.  The scientists helped me understand the effect these massive, light-filled structures had on medieval townspeople.  Instead of the familiar dark, dank stone structure of the period, they entered a miraculous building designed to evoke awe (Jung’s “the numinous”).  From the celestiall

Play is the highest form of research.– Albert Einstein

If it is important even for our survival on the planet to relearn re-entering the Mystery of the Present, what serves this end?

This question is one I contemplate this season as the dark comes before 5 in the evening and stays well past 7 in the morning. Mystery crackles in the fire I build in the wood stove, glows in the candlelight on the altar, sparkles in the Christmas tree bulbs we put on the little blue spruce we brought in for its sec

Here's a ritual from one of my favourite teachers, Robert Wilkinson of AquariusPapers: 

'Whether you're in the Northern or Southern Hemisphere, there is a special [Winter Solstice] ceremony I do each year that yields some fairly spectacular results. This is not a very elaborate ritual, but it's very powerful in its simplicity.

The Solstices mark points of transition from an old "half year" of the Sun moving South or North (depending on where you are on the Earth) into the opposite direction. In th

Santa greeting children and adults alike in Petaluma, CA

I have been thinking about Santa Claus, that jolly old Christmas saint of giving. To me he is as sparkly as Christmas lights, one of the few mysteries we participate in collectively.

As a young child I remember being taken to the “real” Santa who arrived in a parade the day after Thanksgiving and took up residence in a yearly assembled Christmas house in the center of town. We stood in long lines to see him, always a little intimidated wh

The mystery of the feminine unifies life. Holiday stress takes away from sense of self and well being. Feminine mystery is a sacred order imbued into existence, a far cry from the outer, masculine, rush rush of holiday season buying and meeting up and dysfunctional family gatherings. Sacredness, respected and honored in daily life, turns us within, to soul. Contrary to holiday frenzies, winter, a time of retreat, takes us into soul mysteries. It's a call into an interior cave, illuminating as fi

Who hasn't seen - and loved - Joan Fontaine in Rebecca? The news of Fontaine's passing on Sunday immediately brought to mind that amazing role she played.

As the second unnamed wife of Laurence Olivier's Maxim De Winter, Fontaine's heroine tiptoed around Manderley startled by shadows, haunted by her predecessor's ghost and taunted by Rebecca's maid, Mrs Danvers.

Alliance members may be interested to read Germaine Greer's eyebrow-raising Jungian interpretation of the film, here. She argues that the

There are many worthy arguments for the existence of ideals. These include the role of ideals as an organizing principle around which people with similar values can gather. Like goals, ideals motivate us.

We would have to be blind, however, not to acknowledge their danger. By definition, when ideals are our gui