do you know how to draw the moon?

she was an amazon

an ebony goddess
a statue carved from luminous flesh dark as night

she leaned over
and in slow whispering song asked

Do you know how to draw the moon ?

excerpt from “The Goddess Speaks” a manuscript in progress
originally published in April 2007

it has been polished and extended since then...and I have learned to draw more and more moonlight into my life...

dream stories

ancestors whisper stories into my dreams..

Every WOman is a quotation from all HER ancestors.
- Ralph Waldo Emerson

I took the liberty of changing man to WOMAN and him to HER...

el ombligo de la diosa

todo comienza

en el ombligo de la diosa

hoyuelo sagrado de vida

en donde sueño existir

excerpt from a series of writings soon to be published in print

birthday girl philosophy

 "be grateful to have been given one more day, let alone one more year. remember to dance in your nightgown, sing in the shower, ride a bike, fly a kite, and take an occasional "wind bath" in your bare skin. give those you love big kisses, huge hugs, and the words "i love you" often and always. nurture your body rather than starve your soul with fad dieting. spend time with the old and the weary to better appreciate your life. on your birthday, call your mother and father wherever they are to thank them for all that they have done for you. watch the movie "life is beautiful" at least once a year. remember that you are not guaranteed tomorrow and that today is as good as it gets. thank god for every thing, every day, every moment." - from a cosmetic bag that a dear friend gave me years ago

contemplating external mysteries while sipping true passion

"True passion is intoxicating and invigorating, soothing and sensuous, mysterious and magical...a magical blend of hibiscus, lemongrass, rose hips, mango and passion fruit flavors....steep for 5 minutes while contemplating your favorite external mysteries..." from the box of my favorite TAZO herbal infusion, PASSION

compassion from my window

the rain falls steadily with purpose and security...the sweet breeze kisses my skin as I contemplate compassion...

"The whole idea of compassion is based on a keen awareness of the interdependence of all these living beings, which are all part of one another, and all involved in one another.” - Thomas Merton (1915-1968)

33 men emerge into the light

from the depths of Mother Earth...33 brothers held deep in her womb...today is their birthday

“Arriba ese ánimo compañeros, tenemos que organizarnos. Primero júntense todos, tenemos que rezar, pidiendo a Dios que el sondaje llegue a tiempo de reventar. Pasan tres semanas y no deja de sonar; uno pasa de largo, otro hasta la mitad. Escúchame Dios mío, no puedo más. Lo único que pensé en ese momento es decirles a mi esposa e hijos que lo lamento. Ellos con ansias esperándome en esa puerta llegar. Aquí adentro me puse a llorar. Pasaron unos días sin saber de nada, sale un sondaje en la madrugada. Ya lo otro ustedes lo saben: amigos míos, la voz de chilenos habíamos oído." -
Víctor Zamora

hoy te pinto de celeste

remembering my Papa-Coco on his birthday



nació un 12 de octubre

entre cielos azules

y mares morados



los pájaros cantaban

las mariposas bailaban


amado abuelo


con luna llena

y sol fuerte

hoy te pinto de celeste

women of light, mujeres de luz

we sat in circle sharing our stories, our joys, our worries...
women of light...mujeres de luz

10.10.10

we gathered in sacred circle in gratitude and celebration

all we are saying is give peace a chance

"All we are saying is give peace a chance..."
- John Lennon (1940 – 1980)

Happy 70th Birthday John

blue skies & fairy-tales

today's blue skies and singing birds remind me of an ongoing collection of fairy-tales, a group of short stories and poems I dedicate to the nature spirits...

El Reino de los Duendes

Se encuentra dentro del Bosque Verde Esmeralda

Al tope de la Avenida Imaginación

Una cuadra hacia el Amor


direcciones cortesía: Duende Verde Duque Mayor

 
originally posted in March 2007
from my CASI-MIRA collection of Fairy-Tales

new moon in libra

tonight I ask Mother Moon for clarity as I begin another blessed, grateful year of life on this planet

inner rhythm

 
Growing up, I often moved to the rhythms of others.  Today, I sing my own song and dance to the beat of my own drum.  I follow my inner rhythm...I must...

wander & hunt

"You wander from room to room
hunting for the diamond necklace
that is already around your neck!"  - RUMI

silver liquid singing kisses

Let the rain kiss you. Let the rain beat upon your head with silver liquid drops. Let the rain sing you a lullaby. - Langston Hughes (1902-1967)

new beginnings

she is everywhere

volcano mother

birthing new beginnings
 
photograph is from a series I began back in 2002

y luz infinita

I dreamed with blue oceans and lions

I heard his voice calling to me

I wrote to him in blue spanish



lineas azules

besos celestes

abrazos morados risas rosadas

y luz infinita


excerpt from a letter

our songs

we may not have the answers, but we have our songs

A bird doesn't sing because it has an answer, it sings because it has a song. - Maya Angelou

may the RAIN wash away worries

may the SUN

bring you new energy by day,



may the MOON

softly restore you by night,



may the RAIN

wash away your worries,



may the BREEZE

blow new strength into your being.



may you walk gently through the world

and know its beauty all the days of your life.



- APACHE BLESSING

amantes que se traiciónan

el perdón y la memoria


amantes que se traiciónan



forgiveness and memory

lovers who betray each other



- excerpt from a series of writings from 2008 and 2009

y soy feliz

me regalo plumas y rosas

bailo al ritmo de mi alma

y soy feliz...

focus on the fun

"From there to here, from here to there, funny things are everywhere." - Dr. Seuss

let's focus on the fun in the rain today...let's play...let's sing...let's celebrate

excerpt from a dream

...I dreamed with her last night...again. There was a basket of enormous fruit and she was making frescos from it...The fruit was gloriously huge, colorful and ripe...


excerpt from Dream Journal , October 26th, 2006 which may be included in "Conversations with Fruit" a series in progress

play today

spontaneous prayerful play

celebrating life's colors

dance in color, live in joy

“The purest and most thoughtful minds are those which love color the most.” - John Ruskin (1819-1900)

oxygen of the soul

Prayer is the oxygen of the soul.
- Saint Padre Pio of Pietrelcina (1887-1968)

let us breathe...

autumn equinox

the drumming begins. we dance under the full moon. we dance in prayer, in gratitude, in celebration. a new year, a new cycle begins with longer nights to nurture the seeds of the soul planted in fertile imagination and held in perfect balance and harmony. let us harvest ALL the gifts the universe bestows upon us.

from my prayer journal

be strong & forgive

“The weak can never forgive. Forgiveness is the attribute of the strong.” - Gandhi

her secret

Adopt the pace of nature: her secret is patience.
- Ralph Waldo Emerson

I am learning to be more patient and more compassionate with myself and others.

amethyst foundation

And the foundations of the wall of the city were garnished with all manner of precious stones. The first foundation was jasper; the second, sapphire; the third, a chalcedony; the fourth, an emerald; / The fifth, sardonyx; the sixth, sardius; the seventh, chrysolyte; the eighth, beryl; the ninth, a topaz; the tenth, a chrysoprasus; the eleventh, a jacinth; the twelfth, an amethyst.

- Revelation 21, from the Bible

I usually don't quote from the Bible, but I simply adore this description.

treasures

I discovered a box of ancient letters today...what do you treasure?

remembering and forgiving

An eye for an eye makes the whole world blind.

- Mahatma Gandhi (1869-1948)

remembering and forgiving

strange & extravagant

"Break the Monotony. Do something strange and extravagant!"
- Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803 – 1882)

I opened the book and the message flew into my hands...strange and extravagant

Nicaragua

Con lagrimas te sueño

Con lagrimas te extraño

Con lagrimas te baño

Bautizada amada NICARAGUA


Con lagrimas te siento nacer de mi vientre

Con sangre y orgullo

Con grito de guerra y fuego del mar

NICARAGUA...Con dolor hoy te pinto


for my noble Father and his Motherland
Julia Casimira Sacasa de Checa

originally published in 2004

decide

decide to be healthy, decide to see beauty and feel joy, decide to love

Once you make a decision, the universe conspires to make it happen. - Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803 – 1882)

Tia Nena's moon

last night's brilliant crescent moon seemed to be smiling and lighting the way home

remembering beloved Tia Nena

journey

She placed earth's gifts around her neck and began the journey...

embajador del planeta

my beloved grandfather would have been 102 today
nació un 11 de septiembre
del vientre de venus
con alas de mariposas
y plumas de pavo-real

el sol
la luna
las estrellas
te celebran
hoy y siempre

amado abuelo
embajador del planeta
en mis sueños nos vemos

remembering my Popo on his birthday

gratitude & celebration

today, let us be grateful for every single miracle

There are two ways to live your life. One is as though nothing is a miracle. The other is as though everything is a miracle.
- Albert Einstein (1879 - 1955)

today, let us celebrate every single moment

PHOTOGRAPH: from a series taken at the nursing home in Rivas during dance lessons organized through Future of Nicaragua Foundation's cultural programs

another corner of my soul

where is your haven?

"My home is my retreat and resting place from the wars. I try to keep this corner as a haven against the tempest outside, as I do another corner of my soul." - Michel de Montaigne (1533 – 1592)

new moon

may tonight's NEW MOON gift you with NEW IDEAS and NEW BEGINNINGS

new eyes

I opened the book and received this message: "The real voyage of discovery consists not in seeking new landscapes but in having new eyes." - Marcel Proust (1871 – 1922)

with spirit

when we are in touch with our spirit, there is simply nothing to fear

"Go on with the spirit that fears nothing!"
- Homer (c. 8th century BC)

our temples

our bodies tell a story

where we have been, where we are headed

every curve is a blessing...our bodies are our temples

Look at me and tell me if I don't have Brazil in every curve of my body.

- Carmen Miranda (1909 – 1955)

rich by spending

Life begets life. Energy creates energy. It is by spending oneself that one becomes rich.

- Sarah Bernhardt (1844-1923)

How do we spend ourselves?

Are we rich in life and energy?

mother nature's child

Art is the child of Nature; yes, her darling child, in whom we trace the features of the mother's face, her aspect and her attitude.

- Henry Wadsworth Longfellow (1807-1882)

where is your focus?

watch your words today
observe your thoughts
where is your focus?

man-goes

It was a lazy Sunday morning. Tumbling out of bed, I made my way to the grocery store in search of tulips and mangos. The sun was gloriously hot – summer was near.

While contemplating what color of tulips to get, red, pink, white, maybe striped...I suddenly sensed something and looked up. Clad in vintage aviator Ray-Bans, a mane of luscious locks swept back – it was him – HIM...

Ducking behind the roses, my heart and mind began a marathon. Why could I not take 5 minutes to shower...2 minutes to comb my hair...had I even brushed my teeth...PANIC. Could HE see me? Why had I not followed my parents’ cardinal rule – be ready to see anyone and be seen at all times?

He looked freshly showered, impeccable as always, but still maintaining the signature rugged manly appeal for which he was famous. I was dressed in yoga gear – black cotton lycra – UGH. Lip gloss was the extent of my beauty morning routine.

Snatching a bunch of tulips, I took advantage of the fact that he was selecting organic tomatoes. I seized my mangos and sprinted to the check-out...

originally published in 2007 and yes I had brushed my teeth