In our writers group last month we started out with a prompt for 5 minutes of warm-up writing: “What sparks your creativity?” I decided not to plan a response, but to plunge in and let it flow, and this is what I wrote: Moving in the open air, listening to the wind, watching my dog …
Universe, Part 3: A Bearable Vastness
Part 3 Lately I've heard a number of interviews with Natalie Batahla, planetary astronomer and poet. She works with NASA's Kepler Mission, a search for earthlike planets. Natalie has a beautiful optimism about the ability of science to reveal mysteries and nourish the human mind. "I have a great reverence for the mysteries of the cosmos... …
Opening to the Universe, part 1
I owe you all a post or three from my recent travels in the Golden State. So here's just one of the many highlights. Josephine, my dear friend and east-to-west migrant got tickets for a planetarium show, and I thought, "Cool! I haven't been to a Planetarium for decades!" I had no idea just how …
We Birth Our Future
Cloud Atlas, the remarkable book by David Michell and cinematic gift from Lana and Andy Wachowski (creators of The Matrix), didn't last long in the cinema, the ideas it raises will carry it on. This post from Ekostories highlights important themes, including Change Through Connection, Music and Storytelling, and the Unpredictable Power of Stories. Even …
Reblog: We Are All Creators Living in our Prime
Poet and scholar Uhuru Waga Phalafala wrote this wonderful post on our creative birthright, saving me the time and trouble. Her blog is amazing, brimming with cogent observations as an artist and participant in global culture. This post speaks to my soul about how we are made for creative work, gifted with our senses, our …
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The Only Home We’ve Ever Known
Illustrator and recent Sheridan College graduate Adam Winnik created this video for his final thesis. He takes Carl Sagan's inspiring words, that he refers to as "scientific poetry," and combined it with animation and music, to great effect. I hope you find it as moving as I do: http://vimeo.com/22582065
All the Way
"Go into the arts. I'm not kidding. 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 …
Art & Angels
Lat week I received this remarkable horoscope in Rob Brezhny's enews: Mystic poets find the divine presence everywhere. The wind carries God's love, bestowing tender caresses. The scent of a lily is an intimate message from the Holy Beloved, provoking bliss. This is my world as an earth-centered pagan: the body of my god is is in and …
The Speckless Sky
Have you ever been re-united with a piece of music, after such a long time that it makes you feeeel things? Wednesday night I went to hear two musical heros (both Canadian!) at Wolf Trap, the splendid outdoor performance venue in Virginia. We sprawled under a clear blue sky (while it poured down rain at …
Food Revolution Day May 19!
Food Revolution Day is a chance for people who love food to come together to share information, talents and resources; to pass on their knowledge and highlight the world’s food issues. Jamie Oliver's foundation has created this event to inspire us all to take action to improve our food situation. All around the globe, people will …
