Initiating a blog brings up many questions related to the challenging times we are all living through and trying to courageously face together. Human suffering, global warming, economic injustice, aggressive political speech, and access to educational resources are very much alive, ever-present subjects that deserve vigilant attention.
In order to flap a wing that might stir others to find their own butterfly-effect triggers and answers, I choose to share ideas related to contemplative life and practice. Most of the content in this blog is based on the book I recently completed with SUNY Press: Art as Contemplative Practice: Expressive Pathways to the Self.
The text opens with a single acknowledgement:
One never knows when and where the teacher will emerge: For my students who continuously reveal this lesson to me…
Where are the teachers in our lives? Who are they? And, are we receptively listening to the people, objects, and nature-based forces all around that constantly instruct us?
Teachers are not only people – they can be animals, shifting weather patterns, and visual images created in paint or clay. How well am I listening? ~MAF
