me, dancing on the dock at sunrise photo credit:  TORY WILLIAMS Two weeks ago I went on a retreat in the UK.  It’s not often that I get to go on retreats myself and it’s always an eye-opener as I remember what it feels like to be unsure, wondering why I was ever nuts enough to sign up for it in the first place and cursing myself in the days leading up to it that I could have possibly thought it was a good idea. … View Post

Always maintain a kind of summer even in the middle of winter. ~ Henry David Thoreau Spoiler alert:  I am all about the summer.  As pretty as September might be (and for the record, she can be rather spectacular in this part of the world), she is always tinged with sadness for me — her cooler temps and reddening leaves can only mean one thing:  it’s time for me to head to Australia! Kidding!!<—! Actually, I am headed to the UK next week and even … View Post

Henry and me, 31 July 2013 photo by:  Kaitlyn Bouchard Those who contemplate the beauty of the earth find reserves of strength that will endure as long as life lasts. There is symbolic as well as actual beauty in the migration of the birds, the ebb and flow of the tides, the folded bud ready for the spring. There is something infinitely healing in the repeated refrains of nature—the assurance that dawn comes after night, and spring after the winter.    ~ Rachel Carson  On Friday, I … View Post

Truro, 17 August 2013 Nothing like a couple of days out on the far end of Cape Cod to remind me of what I love most about summer: 1.  the light 2.  the beach, the lake, the pond (to recap:  WATER) Brush Hollow Beach, 17 August 2013 3.  outdoor showers (um, does this also need to be filed under love of light & water?) *sigh* It wasn’t easy to come back to the office after a long weekend of such loveliness, but damn if there … View Post

the living room, post-sequester The arts are not a way to make a living. They are a very human way of making life more bearable. Practicing an art, no matter how well or badly, is a way to make your soul grow, for heaven’s sake. Sing in the shower. Dance to the radio. Tell stories. Write a poem to a friend, even a lousy poem. Do it as well as you possibly can. You will get an enormous reward. You will have created something. — … View Post