Recently I watched the movie Invictus for the second time. It’s the story of how Nelson Mandela actively supported the South African Springboks rugby team in the early years of his presidency. He knew the power a winning team to bring people together. That winning the world cup could help to bind the wounds of a bleeding nation.

More importantly, Mandela knew that forgiveness was more powerful than any vindictive action or long carried resentment.

The last post I wrote was about the complexity of loss. It was about commitment and the anchors that ground us in life and what happens when we lose those. What you don’t know is that I deleted much of the original writing, stripping out words I decided were best suited for my eyes only. Read the rest of this entry »

After a week without Keesha, I find that I miss just talking with her. Sure, dogs don’t “talk” back in the same way a human does. But she was my confidant. And an anchor in my life. Having her to be responsible for grounded me and gave my days a structure, a purpose even, a commitment I made and kept.

Two days after Keesha died was the day after Thanksgiving. My parents and I walked around my old hometown during the annual Christmas walk. People strolled the streets, carolers sang on the sidewalk, the shoe repair shop I worked at during high school had a rowdy bunch singing heartily, stores gave out treats, the volunteer fire department’s doors were open with their shiny red trucks parked outside.

I watched people with their dogs and longed for Keesha to be walking with me on this night when dogs get to go in the stores. With Keesha at my side, I’d have so many more conversations. I’d have plastic bags in my coat pocket and a travel bowl so she could drink water. And I’d have to get home, to make sure she was fed. It’s one way my commitment to her anchored and shaped my days. Read the rest of this entry »

Yesterday morning, Keesha left her body and crossed the rainbow bridge. It's been one day and I keep expecting her to nudge me and sing a bit asking to go out.

Keesha is a once-in-a-lifetime dog for me. My soul companion of over 10 years in so many adventures. Climbing Mt. Elbert in Colorado and Medicine Bow in Wyoming. Meditating on the shores of Lake Superior and camping along the Temperance River. Thanksgivings and Christmases in Glen Ellyn and Winter Park. And of course, Travels with Keesha across Canada and up through the Yukon, crossing the Arctic Circle into the Northwest Territories. Then on to Alaska, taking the ferry back and driving back across the Western US. And many more - too many to list. Our mantra was "on the road again" and we were happy in the tent together. Read the rest of this entry »

Last weekend, I led a retreat for a group of women from my home town church, First Unitarian Universalist church. Our theme was Creativity as a Healing Path. As the women explored creativity, I found myself confronting stress accumulated from work that simply did not feed my soul and the weariness of business travel. A friend who gave me a short massage asked if I had whiplash my neck was so tight.

I couldn't begin to explore my creativity feeling like this. So I did what I know helps. A long walk in the forest. A good cry. A few conversations with trees and what ever animal swoops in. When I returned the retreat center, I wrote this poem, the first I've done in a long time. Read the rest of this entry »

Because I meditate, I learned to format photos for the web, create a podcast, upload files and add links and even start with search engine optimization - SEO for those of you who may be geeky enough.

Let me explain.

Last Saturday I walked in the door of my church, First Unitarian Universalist of Rochester (MN not NY). It was our Mid-Winter Retreat. I was going to talk for 10 minutes about belonging. And I'd signed up for other topics too. But I felt drained from a week of training people and travel. The meditation session seemed so much more soothing to me. Read the rest of this entry »