Pondering Blog: exploring lessons from life’s teachers

Painting of the ironwood tree by Tracey Harris - a tree I first saw in a dream, 20 years before I met it - and where I was held safe for my vision quest in Kapaau, HI, Big Island - an amazing gift by Karen Smith Good

Writing is how I process and make sense of the life experience. I take time to carefully review, digest and find the poetry in my world. Writing helps me get the lesson - earn the wisdom - find the perfect piece of sea glass in the painful shards of glass. Without writing, the teacher may go by unnoticed and return in another form.

Do you have a writing habit? My pondering workbook offers writing prompts so you can scratch the surface of your life - dig deeper into relationships, past experiences, dreams, habits, animals and hobbies and find beautiful words and imagery to elevate your wisdom, understanding and peace.

Sat nam, for truth, Janet

Janet Howard 12/23/24 Janet Howard 12/23/24

What Holds You Steady?

My foundation for self care is a three legged stool - my daily kundalini yoga practice, healthy food and adequate sleep. And each leg relies on the other. When one starts to wobble, the whole structure is at risk.

My stool fell this year - its legs slowly weakened and fell to the ground. I thought it was sturdy so I started paying a little less attention to it. When it wobbled, I thought it was fine.

But it’s okay. I think I needed to embody the understanding - my sat nam - that I can’t take the sturdiness of my stool for granted. Just because it was strong and steady yesterday doesn’t mean it will always be that way. It doesn’t mean I can invest in it less.

And just because it feels like a pile of broken pieces today - doesn’t mean it won’t be sturdy again.

Welcome to Rosehip26

I used to feel burdened by my imperfections – my mistakes -- my pain -- my shoulders sore, my brow worried. I was weighted by stones in my pockets. But over time, I’ve dropped those stones one by one. They sit by streams, under a fern and on a window sill. I still have one or two in my pocket and in my palm - for comfort. To hold onto.