It's a little late, but I just found this poem by Rebecca Parker in my in-box (which shows how behind in my correspondence I am), and it was so lovely I wanted to share it.
WINTER SOLSTICE by Rebecca Parker
Perhaps for a moment the typewriters will stop clicking, the wheels stop rolling the computers desist from computing, and a hush will fall over the city.
For an instant, in the stillness, the chiming of the celestial spheres will be heard as earth hangs poised in the crystalline darkness, and then gracefully tilts.
Let there be a season when holiness is heard, and the splendor of living is revealed.
Stunned to stillness by beauty we remember who we are and why we are here.
There are inexplicable mysteries.
We are not alone.
In the universe there moves a Wild One whose gestures alter earth's axis toward love.
In the immense darkness everything spins with joy.
The cosmos enfolds us.
We are caught in a web of stars, cradled in a swaying embrace, rocked by the holy night, babes of the universe.
Let this be the time we wake to life, like spring wakes, in the moment of winter solstice.
I've been working with amazing musician and intuitive Shaina Noll on a number of projects, including her blog which will be launched in the new year. Among her many talents, Shaina offers Tarot readings over the phone and after an incredible reading she did for me earlier this year, I wanted more.
When we first started working together Shaina had sent me one of her Life Path Profiles to introduce me to this part of her work, and my profile said that this year is a very important one for me, a once in a lifetime opportunity. Since it is about to be over (on my birthday – January 31st – make a note! :-), I wanted to see whether there was anything I should be doing to take full advantage of this unique moment in time.
Our session only lasted half an hour, but it seemed timeless and I felt I had received everything I needed. The two cards I drew – one for what I had already gained in this powerful year, and the other for what opportunities might still lie before me, were absolutely perfect and Shaina's interpretation answered my questions completely.
The first card I drew was the Ace of Cups. Aces represent a pinnacle of development in the specific area of their suit, in this case cups, which represents love and relationship. If you've ever seen this card, you'll know that its archetypal image of a fountain of water overflowing the bounds of an elegant chalice is a joyful sight to behold. And it spoke so beautifully to this last year, in which I have been granted so many of my heart's desires.
Here are my notes from this part of the reading with Shaina: The Ace of Cups has to do with deep love and appreciation of yourself. It fills your heart with the sense of self-esteem, self-honoring. Aces are the tools of the Magician card, and as such what one expresses in the world can become a blessing to others (this is my deepest wish fulfilled). In terms of the question, cups being the suit of love, drawing the ace would say that the core blessing has to do with my capacity to be a channel for a clear and loving energy. This is something that I have now and will be enriched over time.
The next card, answering my question "What's the core opportunity from now through the end of this cycle?" was the Ace of Swords. The Ace of Swords is a powerful-looking card with a mighty sword held directly upwards, cutting through a layer of clouds into a crown of brilliant light. The suit of swords corresponds to mind, and in my case its potential for achievement would most likely be in the sphere of writing and communication.
Here are my notes from this part of the reading: Inspired Communication penetrating the clouds into the realm of spirit. The capacity is to be an inspired channel for the clearest possible energy. This ace is a card of the mind, and offers the opportunity to open my capacity for language even wider. To open my mind to a realm of communication that is more significant than any I have achieved before. It suggests an element of ease, where things just come naturally. It augurs a time when I can ask for support & guidance from Spirit, and receive it directly.
There was more, about the family of cards that support these two and how they work, but the gist was that these two aces offer an increased capacity for a clear heart and open mind to come together and communicate in a unique and powerful way.
This made me very excited, because I am going to be working on a series of videos for the World Café throughout this next month. Video is a medium I have little experience in but a strong intuition about, so I can't wait to see what comes out of me!
But mostly I wanted to share this because I think Shaina is amazing and I wanted you to know about her, in case you too would like to explore one of these incredible readings with her. (If that sounds like something you or someone you love would like, use this address to contact her: )
Today I want to talk about my dear friend Bridget Brewer, an amazing architect and landscape designer who creates homes, purposeful buildings, gardens, parks and other landscapes in harmony with their surroundings and the laws of nature.
One of the things she's doing right now that I'm really excited about is designing plans for state-of-the art green collaborative housing. This kind of thing is SO what we'll all be looking at in the future, and Bridget's thinking about it now.
I'm proud to announce the launch of her new website, Brewer Studio Architects. I can't wait to start building her blog – the one she's going to be writing to share her unique point of view and give us a glimpse into the Brewer creative process!
I just read a post by blogger /consultant Chris Brogan on Cafe-Shaped Conversations, where he explores how social media allows small intimate conversations and how that might or might not be what corporations are interested in, and when they are, how that might not be such a great idea for the rest of us.
As Community Tech Steward of the World Café, I know that conversation about things that matter is not just a marketing strategy, but one of the keys to human survival. It is in large part conversation (on a number of levels) that will carry us through the formidable global challenges that stand before us now. And online communication tools will no doubt make a key contribution to how we have those conversations.
How exciting it will be to have a President who really understands the power of the individual voice … I can't wait to see how Obama's presidency will effect participatory citizenship and this whole area. Online interaction needs to become a cultural meme that goes beyond digital natives and "geeky types" like me if it is to fulfill its potential.
But back to business, what Brogan and the World Café are calling Café Conversations (small intimate interactions that can connect with and feed into larger collective awareness) are important to large and small companies for many reasons beyond product sales and marketing.
Conversation is now becoming recognized as a core business competency and World Cafés are hosted in corporations just as often as they are with health and educational institutions, government, neighborhood groups, and anywhere else that conversation can increase communication, address challenges or help build a sense of community. It's only a matter of time until many of these conversations are happening online.
You've probably noticed that more and more conferences are moving to an interactive model, based on small group conversation. Increasingly, conference organizers are realizing that attendees are tired of "talking heads". There is so much more to be gained by an approach that calls on the collective intelligence gathered in the room, and engages everyone in a conversation where the "experts" and those in the audience (who are often equally as knowledgeable) are on a par.
So what I'm saying is that there's an analogy here that expands the power of conversation and online communications way out beyond marketing and product sales for businesses, and it's still just beginning.
In ending a year that was so challenging for so many, I want to start this new one by expressing my appreciation for the many gifts I have received from the Art of Hosting community. (Art of Hosting is an international network of participatory practitioners ... Read More
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