tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-50751023953464475802024-03-08T08:44:24.085+00:00a river of stonesAnonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08599095035971045492noreply@blogger.comBlogger104125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5075102395346447580.post-55980638374058473662011-09-15T15:38:00.001+01:002011-11-21T15:26:01.529+00:00A new home for our small stone posts<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi9-bzvRyNYSQxdEjS9tEb700XpEv5ZFdGcBYNeO9i5CabBchO945BBMhrX3O0uSU3usrnhxrQMRmIdWqNa2m_1Jqhe2K8jUqO-XmziXs2jpDoq0vWbYWcjdiDZqMK-fPKlOAf93fBAIJcD/s1600/ilovesmallstones.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi9-bzvRyNYSQxdEjS9tEb700XpEv5ZFdGcBYNeO9i5CabBchO945BBMhrX3O0uSU3usrnhxrQMRmIdWqNa2m_1Jqhe2K8jUqO-XmziXs2jpDoq0vWbYWcjdiDZqMK-fPKlOAf93fBAIJcD/s320/ilovesmallstones.jpg" width="150" /></a></div>To keep things simple, we will be blogging about <i>small stones</i> at our main site, <a href="http://www.writingourwayhome.com/">Writing Our Way Home</a>, from this day forth.<br />
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Do hop over there to<a href="http://plantingwords.blogspot.com/p/small-stones.html"> find out more</a> about the January '12 river, <i>small stones</i>, and to read about our future projects. You can also snag this delicious badge for your blog. Go see!Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08599095035971045492noreply@blogger.com23tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5075102395346447580.post-25154592549055081602011-08-05T13:34:00.000+01:002011-09-15T11:59:21.695+01:00Gorgeous watercolours & family blogging<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjR-5s0tVb3CgzkGPJa7zncUeeOb4cqOKVWjwyjSTb9ZpXJqIyBBcLRuhBJg69j-Wed0QGWbErEhiq7JUd_VCWQME2_0TDS67wQt1ovjotNJ0ED-dUeJH6qx6TqdunIlk9GnsralLhT_6jG/s1600/sunflowerstone.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="209" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjR-5s0tVb3CgzkGPJa7zncUeeOb4cqOKVWjwyjSTb9ZpXJqIyBBcLRuhBJg69j-Wed0QGWbErEhiq7JUd_VCWQME2_0TDS67wQt1ovjotNJ0ED-dUeJH6qx6TqdunIlk9GnsralLhT_6jG/s320/sunflowerstone.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span class="Apple-style-span">I wanted to share these watercolours with you, which Claire Marriott painted on a recent trip to Aquitaine. Each deliberately naïve painting has a<i> small stone</i> woven in between the colours. You can see the rest of Claire's lovely watercolours <a href="http://www.clairemarriott.com/writing-2/a-river-of-stones/stones-as-art-journal/">here</a>. Has anyone else combined their <i>small stones</i> with images?</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">And I also wanted to share a special river-of-stones blog with you, from our youngest river participant (as far as I know!) Stuart at <a href="http://pebblefind.blogspot.com/">Pebble Finder</a>. Writing <i>small stones</i> is a family affair, as his mum Josephine (<a href="http://pebbleorium.blogspot.com/">Pebbleorium</a>) and his sister Willow (<a href="http://secretpassagesearch.blogspot.com/">Searching for Secret Passageways</a>) also have beautiful blogs. I'll leave you with a few of Stuart's <i>small stones </i>- enjoy! And keep writing...</div><br />
*<br />
<br />
Finishing a series<br />
I shut the book and wonder.<br />
"What now?"<br />
<br />
*<br />
<br />
Two days ago.<br />
On a road trip. <br />
We stop at a restroom.<br />
I wash my hands in the sink.<br />
A frog pokes his head out of the overflow drain.<br />
<br />
*<br />
<br />
Sunset gives the clouds a pink outline.<br />
Shapes appear wherever you look.<br />
This one has the head of a fish and the body of a bird.<br />
Wait... it doesn't have any legs. <br />
<br />
* <br />
<br />
A whole large bowl of watermelon<br />
Gone!<br />
I don't feel too good any more.Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08599095035971045492noreply@blogger.com9tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5075102395346447580.post-15270918845207089012011-08-02T10:07:00.000+01:002011-09-15T11:59:21.696+01:00We are all in this together<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjwQm5460ikyWEZqMU60SQXJ6isfTtMkoC6oOJRvxDVDYVxVhzts5gyakGxR0ndR5U0Y4igPTYzEUxY_YaEGkdgQWaZ1SFSlUSNpGwuV4BXZ5bhv__c8IZDdQqEq1V934fDXFtGTsGkDLwC/s1600/runnerbeans.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="225" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjwQm5460ikyWEZqMU60SQXJ6isfTtMkoC6oOJRvxDVDYVxVhzts5gyakGxR0ndR5U0Y4igPTYzEUxY_YaEGkdgQWaZ1SFSlUSNpGwuV4BXZ5bhv__c8IZDdQqEq1V934fDXFtGTsGkDLwC/s320/runnerbeans.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br />
<b>Fiona writes: </b>I'm avoiding writing my novel. I put 'fiona robyn' into Google just now (I'm an ego-googlaholic). <a href="http://refrigeratororacle.blogspot.com/2011/08/we-are-all-in-this-together.html">I found this!</a><br />
<br />
A wonderful piece by Lara about how we are all swimming in the River of Life, and how writing <i>small stones</i> is another way of remembering this.<br />
<br />
Thank you, Lara, for encouraging us to bless someone today.<br />
<br />
"It can be a huge favor or a tiny piece of chocolate. It can be a gift, a glance, a smile, a ride."<br />
<br />
Just like the home-grown runner beans my friend Anna gave us yesterday, and which I shall be eating for my dinner - cooked until tender, and dripping with butter.<br />
<br />
Be kind to each other out there.Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08599095035971045492noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5075102395346447580.post-17498758176884698862011-07-30T18:28:00.002+01:002011-09-15T11:59:21.696+01:00The end, or the beginning?<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEicCwciQpjgR4KMfXbgNP61oY4URl23dgqPgFgfpNmImZGjb9aLjmhsB8F5yC72VeH7T0hH3Ek2dl5bnh6ZgH6xYEXC_tvYJZicyd5V47G_uhDP46JW3v5hSCLHnFmZtfUUoqwL2IyDZh0t/s1600/pen.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="216" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEicCwciQpjgR4KMfXbgNP61oY4URl23dgqPgFgfpNmImZGjb9aLjmhsB8F5yC72VeH7T0hH3Ek2dl5bnh6ZgH6xYEXC_tvYJZicyd5V47G_uhDP46JW3v5hSCLHnFmZtfUUoqwL2IyDZh0t/s320/pen.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>The July river of stones finishes tomorrow.<br />
<br />
You might have taken part this time, and you might not have. You might have religiously written a <em>small stone</em> every day, or had a few false starts, or written three and then forgotten about it completely.<br />
<br />
It doesn't matter.<br />
<br />
If you let them, <em>small stones</em> will help you to connect with the world one teensy moment at a time. They will work on you at their own pace.<br />
<br />
Every time you pause to notice the exact texture of an egg, or the glittering thread of drool hanging from your happy cat's chin (yuk!), and wonder how you'd write it down, can be counted as a tiny triumph.<br />
<br />
Even if you've had ONE of these moments this month, one that you wouldn't have otherwise experienced, then we'll be very happy.<br />
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We're always pleasd to hear from people - do let us know by email (<a href="mailto:fiona@writingourwayhome.com">Fiona </a>or <a href="mailto:kaspa@writingourwayhome.com">Kaspa</a>) or in the comments section how you found the experience.<br />
<br />
If you'd like to take your writing practice to another level, you could join one of our month-long self-study ecourses starting on Monday - <a href="http://writingourwayhome.ning.com/events/august-ecourse-eastern">Eastern Therapeutic Writing</a> with Kaspa (koans, Japanese poetry and Morita therapy) or <a href="http://writingourwayhome.ning.com/events/new-august-ecourse-writing">Writing Ourselves Alive</a> with Fiona (curiosity, honesty, compassion & passion).<br />
<br />
If you don't get a jiggle on quickly enough they'll repeat later in the year - <a href="http://plantingwords.blogspot.com/p/e-courses.html">here's the rest.</a> <o:p></o:p><br />
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We won't be posting here again for a while, until we've cooked up the next project for our river. We would like it very much if you'd follow us over to the <a href="http://plantingwords.blogspot.com/">Writing Our Way Home</a> blog, and you could also try Fiona's <a href="http://fionarobyn.com/lists/?p=subscribe&id=2">weekly inspirational newsletter</a>, or come and say hi at <a href="http://writingourwayhome.ning.com/">our community</a>. <span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Tahoma, sans-serif;"><o:p></o:p></span><br />
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Thank you for reading our blog, and for being a very important drop in the river.Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08599095035971045492noreply@blogger.com9tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5075102395346447580.post-81676887731110112472011-07-29T11:12:00.000+01:002011-09-15T11:59:21.696+01:00Can we ever really 'see clearly'? (a question, not an answer)<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjIl7IFuYmooN0acSwBkGwrGP3ax9-ZVX0m-HTlhYLqbWKoSKF2ffKnIkCa0bQIg3SDXxgyXzv_Wa5466T1xhXJvcH6AxPXRFWvrMWFe_OkyUFpTqfKMZFhqyYfWhiVAvr75WaepXYSVHRH/s1600/421611082_bd634de4bb.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjIl7IFuYmooN0acSwBkGwrGP3ax9-ZVX0m-HTlhYLqbWKoSKF2ffKnIkCa0bQIg3SDXxgyXzv_Wa5466T1xhXJvcH6AxPXRFWvrMWFe_OkyUFpTqfKMZFhqyYfWhiVAvr75WaepXYSVHRH/s320/421611082_bd634de4bb.jpg" style="cursor: move;" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;">(photo by <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/montypython">MontyPython</a>)</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><br />
</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><b>A post from the archive by Kaspa:</b></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">By way of the grape vine I heard someone asking "Does knowing we're going to write about it take away from really seeing what's there, in the moment?".</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">I think that's a really interesting question, but it points to a deeper question for me<b> "Can we ever really see what's there?"</b> </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Years ago I used to sit a lot of <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zazen">zazen</a>. Zazen is the meditation of Zen Buddhism, where one just sits. When a thought comes up, you let it go. When another thought come up, you let that go too. I imagined that if I let everything go I would reach a place of clarity. A place where I could simply be in the world and engage with the world without my own thoughts and prejudices getting in the way.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">I think that we probably can wipe the grosser stains of our wind-shields, and see through the glass into the world more clearly. But I'm no longer convinced we can get rid of the glass </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">In fact I literally have to look through glass, through a pair of glasses, to see the world clearly. I think this is where the edge is for me. Along with the habits of seeing that I talked about in my last post (<a href="http://ariverofstones.blogspot.com/2011/01/walk-in-someone-elses-shoes.html">Walk in Someone Else's Shoes</a>) we each have a physical body and how we receive the world is mediated by our senses and then interpreted by our brains to give our conscious mind an experience that makes sense.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">So we have a uniquely human experience of each moment, by virtue of our human bodies. And I believe we have a uniquely personal experience of each moment by virtue of our individual histories. Is it possible to let go of those stories, those traumas and celebrations, entirely? </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Today I'm leaning towards answering 'No'. But what we can do is recognise all those parts of ourselves and treat them with more care, and appreciate them as the compost from which our poetry can be fed.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">None of this answers the original question of course. This post is already quite long, so perhaps that first question deserves its own post - either that or you can argue it out in the comments below....</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">"Does knowing we're going to write about it take away from really seeing what's there, in the moment?"</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">(Have a look at what people thought last time <a href="http://ariverofstones.blogspot.com/2011/01/can-we-ever-really-see-clearly-question.html">here</a> and let us know what you think!)</div>Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08599095035971045492noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5075102395346447580.post-55750271586208247992011-07-27T14:48:00.011+01:002011-09-15T11:59:21.696+01:00Writing isn't always a piece of cake<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-O770JTApZSRj7MSw-1ejKBN3CPUzRcSFOGFtnRJ_99HlRtCDTlLB_vA5zuSd3Oy8dDd7rjbJkQwyiEijzDV2x6YLX5zL8t_UYE_knkWrvzL1zIaQDyx0xtuoQlb3aSe17D4wySRKQUei/s1600/cake.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="288" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-O770JTApZSRj7MSw-1ejKBN3CPUzRcSFOGFtnRJ_99HlRtCDTlLB_vA5zuSd3Oy8dDd7rjbJkQwyiEijzDV2x6YLX5zL8t_UYE_knkWrvzL1zIaQDyx0xtuoQlb3aSe17D4wySRKQUei/s320/cake.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Any excuse to post a picture of a piece of cake....</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">But it's true. Writing <i>small stones</i>, or anything, can be difficult. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">It certainly is for me. Some days, I'd rather do anything than sit down at my computer and begin the first sentence.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Why is this? I think a lot of the reason is that when we write, we are trying to say what's true for us. We are putting something out there that people can look at, and have opinions about. We are exposing our vulnerable underbellies, just like our cat Fatty who lies with his paws in the air and dares you to touch him...</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">This is also why writing is important. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Writing gives us an opportunity to share these vulnerable parts. It gives us an opportunity to find our truth, whatever that might be.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">So keep writing <i>small stones</i>. Keep working on your novel. Keep writing in your journal. <a href="http://writingourwayhome.ning.com/">Get support</a>. Carry on. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">We all find it difficult. You're in good company.</div>Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08599095035971045492noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5075102395346447580.post-25282312791794234582011-07-22T15:00:00.001+01:002011-09-15T11:59:21.697+01:00Can we look anew?<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjaq86B7FJla4WfnLTscU6gbetpQbtE3DvQPYUuCXYtE7zFWXDMCWo6hwhwxqYDLEtdAoThzfRHEAbXix4oQD7j-x_aN05mxDg57f5n1A0fzGXyHCviDc85NGWxbCyAQ-vTds223wutNtlv/s1600/greyday.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjaq86B7FJla4WfnLTscU6gbetpQbtE3DvQPYUuCXYtE7zFWXDMCWo6hwhwxqYDLEtdAoThzfRHEAbXix4oQD7j-x_aN05mxDg57f5n1A0fzGXyHCviDc85NGWxbCyAQ-vTds223wutNtlv/s320/greyday.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br />
<blockquote>There is a part of everything which is unexplored, because we are accustomed to using our eyes only in association with the memory of of what people before us have thought we were looking at.</blockquote><blockquote>Flaubert, quoted in preface to <i>Pierre and Jean</i>, in Maupassant's 'The Novel'</blockquote><b>A post from the archive by Kaspa:</b><br />
James Wood quotes Flaubert in <i>How Fiction Works.</i> Wood attributes the rise of the modern novel to Flaubert. But what interested me was the observation above, in a section where Wood is talking about the satisfaction of specific detail. I'll come back to that in another post.<br />
<br />
Our minds are the repositories of stories. We tell stories about people we know, we imagine we know their lives, outer and inner. We tell stories about the places we live in, and about the jobs we do. The most powerful of these stories has to do with how we feel about ourself, "...this is the sort of person <i>I</i> am". This most powerful of stories tends to be at the heart of all the stories we tell.<br />
<br />
Each time we encounter something in the world, a loved one, the view from a mountain top, a favourite book in a library, we receive it through the eyes of these stories. <i>I </i>am the person who loves you, we have this history together...<i> </i>and so on.<br />
<br />
Flaubert's point is that we not only encounter the world through these personal stories, but that we encounter the world through the eyes and memories of others. We inherit stories, from our peers, from our parents and increasingly from the media.<br />
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When we see the Union Jack flying, we have a sense of history, of an Empire perhaps and whatever feelings that might bring up, pride or shame. We are full of stories. Who amongst us would only see a few red and blue triangles, printed onto a white rectangle of fabric?<br />
<br />
There is a part of each thing which is hidden from us. We obscure with stories, as much as we enlighten with them.<br />
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The act of really paying attention is not to ignore these stories, but to see the transparency of them, to see them but to look beyond to the mystery too.<br />
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What mysteries will you uncover today?Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08599095035971045492noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5075102395346447580.post-8687752675960404212011-07-21T15:00:00.003+01:002011-09-15T11:59:21.697+01:00Writing to help us slow down and see<div style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/angelic0devil6/542780943/" title="White moon, bright moon, pearling the air by Lucia.., on Flickr"><img alt="White moon, bright moon, pearling the air" src="http://farm2.static.flickr.com/1168/542780943_f2784d8639.jpg" width="400" /></a><br />
<br />
</div><div style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/angelic0devil6/542780943/">White moon, bright moon, pearling the air, on Flickr</a></span><br />
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</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 36pt;"><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">light of the moon</div></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">moves west - flowers' shadows</div></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">creep eastward</div></div></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 36pt;"><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><br />
</div><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">Buson</div></div></div><br />
<b>Kaspa writes: </b>When I look at the world, I look through a forest of thoughts. Perhaps there is a patch of clear light in the distance, but more often than not what I see is coloured by unconscious judgments. Either that or my mind is so frenetic, bouncing from worries about the future to thoughts of the past, that I don't see anything at all.<br />
<br />
Putting pen to paper can help me cut through the forest of thoughts so that I can really see the world.<br />
<br />
The Japanese word <i>seijaku</i> is usually translated simply as calmness, but perhaps a more accurate translation is 'calmness in the midst of busyness'.<br />
<br />
It's easy to be calm when you're on a beach watching the sunset, and listening to the waves gently lapping the shore. It's less easy to find that space in the midst of our ordinary working lives. Creating a space for writing poetry in the middle of my busy life helps me to find some calm. Some <i>seijaku.</i><br />
<i><br />
</i> Sit down. Take a few deep breaths and really look at the world. Experiment with writing slowly, with taking time over each letter. Ask yourself, in what direction <i>are </i>the shadows of the flowers falling? Slow down and fall in love with the world.<br />
<br />
When I do this, sometimes I'm really able to connect deeply with what's in front of me.<br />
<br />
Sometimes my thoughts are unremitting though. My experience is that if my mind doesn't settle my thoughts are usually telling me something important. In these cases I can use writing to help me unravel what's going on.<br />
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 36.0pt;">The moon, alone,<br />
Taunts me from the heavens<br />
With memories of you;<br />
Should you feel the same, then<br />
Our hearts would be as one.<br />
<br />
Saigyo</div><br />
In August I'll be running my online course in <i>Eastern Therapeutic Writing</i> again. One of the most popular parts last time was the <i>waka</i> module, where we looked at how using Japanese forms of poetry can help us connect with ourselves and world. We also experiment with <a href="http://ariverofstones.blogspot.com/2011/07/small-stones-as-gratitude-practice.html">Naikan</a> to help with our relationships with others, and <a href="http://plantingwords.blogspot.com/2011/07/how-to-get-things-that-we-dont-want-to.html">Morita</a> to help us act in the world, as well as working with personal koans.<br />
<br />
I got some great feedback from students last time. <a href="http://writingourwayhome.ning.com/events/august-ecourse-eastern">Find out more here.</a>Kaspa Thompsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02018022928777657419noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5075102395346447580.post-509582720068108522011-07-20T14:20:00.016+01:002011-09-15T11:59:21.697+01:00Delicious words<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg_M78yfuS3vo-g-XMdeXLVuZybJmSQ7TSGYaXJ02u6a1wJ-I-SVlodLdSq66mqnQhEyjNKgou4c_8TVGwuDuuGdFpzVttrR0EEh_U_0Z8PHcEY3WEed4Qq-bPgi-fW1togVqhTu5pLtqQs/s1600/peregrine-falcon.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="211" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg_M78yfuS3vo-g-XMdeXLVuZybJmSQ7TSGYaXJ02u6a1wJ-I-SVlodLdSq66mqnQhEyjNKgou4c_8TVGwuDuuGdFpzVttrR0EEh_U_0Z8PHcEY3WEed4Qq-bPgi-fW1togVqhTu5pLtqQs/s320/peregrine-falcon.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br />
<b>To Christ our Lord</b><br />
<br />
I caught this morning morning's minion, king-<br />
dom of daylight's dauphin, dapple-dawn-drawn Falcon, in his riding<br />
Of the rolling level underneath him steady air, and striding<br />
High there, how he rung upon the rein of a wimpling wing<br />
In his ecstasy! then off, off forth on swing,<br />
As a skate's heel sweeps smooth on a bow-bend: the hurl and gliding<br />
Rebuffed the big wind. My heart in hiding<br />
Stirred for a bird, – the achieve of, the mastery of the thing!<br />
<br />
Brute beauty and valour and act, oh, air, pride, plume, here<br />
Buckle! AND the fire that breaks from thee then, a billion<br />
Times told lovelier, more dangerous, O my chevalier!<br />
<br />
No wonder of it: shéer plód makes plough down sillion<br />
Shine, and blue-bleak embers, ah my dear,<br />
Fall, gall themselves, and gash gold-vermilion.<br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;">Gerard Manley Hopkins </span><br />
<br />
*<br />
<br />
This poem is calling out to be read out loud. Do it. And then hear it being read<a href="http://www.poetryfoundation.org/poem/173667"> here</a>.<br />
<br />
Words are gorgeous. Dapple-dawn-drawn falcon. Chevalier. Gash gold-vermilion. Taste them properly. Delicious, delicious.<br />
<br />
Today, when you notice your <i>small stone,</i> I'd like you to try and enjoy the lusciousness of words as much as you can. Which words sound better together? What order? Read them out loud. Do they work? Do they need to be tweaked?<br />
<br />
Mmmm, words.<br />
<br />
If you feel moved to do so, it'd be lovely if you shared them in the comments section below.Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08599095035971045492noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5075102395346447580.post-71777034206390910242011-07-15T15:00:00.000+01:002011-09-15T11:59:21.698+01:00Are you failing?<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgdFIfXXEJNTbAlaKsNsqqwf19HwBY9wforzXtFdeXrsjEU3a5wW1yPQoB5DUXzMUA39axe-j1aPLfIEpZnfq71iobwTWv2ph98N3kjwxMYuv9JdyJOi6HYb3T89QCB86xybvQjkCndmf9o/s1600/tea.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgdFIfXXEJNTbAlaKsNsqqwf19HwBY9wforzXtFdeXrsjEU3a5wW1yPQoB5DUXzMUA39axe-j1aPLfIEpZnfq71iobwTWv2ph98N3kjwxMYuv9JdyJOi6HYb3T89QCB86xybvQjkCndmf9o/s320/tea.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">(if you're new it's not too late to start writing small stones - <a href="http://ariverofstones.blogspot.com/p/about.html">go here</a>)</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><b>A post from the archive from Fiona:</b></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Are you failing?</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">"I know that of what I've written so far, most are not actually small stones. Like I said at the beginning, maybe it's enough to write something every day, but I'm not even managing that. Have I failed already then? I don't think so. I am looking more closely and I am thinking more clearly, whether I write it down or not. So, I'm not going to beat myself up but be grateful for the space to reflect on such things. I've been in a pretty negative place lately and that has already changed. I'm feeling grateful for all sorts of things and a joy that has long been absent has reappeared. There are glimpses of hope and so I press on, trying to be more disciplined in my daily writing and reflecting on it's value. Perhaps other things have changed that might account for this change of heart, I don't know, but it seems to me that small stones are building new foundations."</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">This is from Ghost Writer at<a href="http://limetreelegends.blogspot.com/"> Lime Tree Legends</a>. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">I wonder who else out there might have started with good intentions and tailed off. Or missed a day and given up. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">As Ghost Writer says, it doesn't matter. As writers (as people) the important thing is to begin again. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">And again.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">And again.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">One small stone, or even ten seconds of looking for one, is better than none. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Do share your own experiences of perseverance (how to or how not to!) in the comments.</div>Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08599095035971045492noreply@blogger.com9tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5075102395346447580.post-58183194075972983022011-07-13T14:05:00.001+01:002011-09-15T11:59:21.698+01:00Writing and spirituality<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhIZ0nTZogph7GjykdO8yfaZ75wGsnTEyZoEmDfTMInbBzAt-OaD5hS3VlLAH1_pvZE9flI22NXmY5jQD3J2EpMysPAsxrVTQ2Nqe8jI0uTsvL-orfsbUKja-Kl62OwOrULDjgysxLnKP75/s1600/zen.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="310" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhIZ0nTZogph7GjykdO8yfaZ75wGsnTEyZoEmDfTMInbBzAt-OaD5hS3VlLAH1_pvZE9flI22NXmY5jQD3J2EpMysPAsxrVTQ2Nqe8jI0uTsvL-orfsbUKja-Kl62OwOrULDjgysxLnKP75/s320/zen.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">“When you are present, the world is truly alive.” ~ Natalie Goldberg</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">When I was younger, I read Natalie Goldberg's classic, Writing Down the Bones. In it she says many sensible things about being a writer. She also talks about her practice as a Buddhist. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">I was a proud atheist at the time. But the things she talked about (mindfulness, faith) seeped into me somewhere. Seeds were planted.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Fast-forward to the present day, and I'm married to a Buddhist priest - and I'm following a similar path myself. My practice as a Buddhist is important to me on many levels. But are there links between spirituality (however you define it) and writing <i>small stones</i>?</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">I think that spirituality is good at putting us in touch with something that is larger than our 'small selves'. Something that knows better than we do. You could see this as mother nature, with her seasons and her endless recycling, or you could see it as something more mystical. Either way, connecting with what's around us can help us to find a new kind of wisdom.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">I also think that spirituality and a writing practice can both help to steady us. Life is a roller-coaster. Sometimes knowing that we have a daily meditation practice or writing practice gives us a place to return to, a structure, a reassuring constancy in the middle of impermanence. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Finally, spirituality and writing are both good at opening us up - softening us - so we can connect more mindfully with those around us (including the planet). It helps us learn about ourselves, and others. It helps us see more clearly (including the bits we'd rather not see). Ultimately, it helps us to love.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">I'd love to hear what you think about the links between spirituality and writing - do share in the comments below.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">I'll leave you with another quote from Natalie - </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div>“Stress is basically a disconnection from the earth, a forgetting of the breath. Stress is an ignorant state. It believes that everything is an emergency. Nothing is that important. Just lie down.”Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08599095035971045492noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5075102395346447580.post-1408245513819161652011-07-11T15:00:00.019+01:002011-09-15T11:59:21.698+01:00Paying attention to strangers<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEifHb3r1kCZF1RnL8ChjS8XIfQFFMpgVsbl79Yp3KSw5MdJOATXIsqdIZXK55g6l_CUUDKeAdjeWqP39vgfIPIrsN_MD_5BklI0i5w9SpUwhxFx_PdF-M9wyyJjAaxpSANPTM2w22SdBKjl/s1600/petunias.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEifHb3r1kCZF1RnL8ChjS8XIfQFFMpgVsbl79Yp3KSw5MdJOATXIsqdIZXK55g6l_CUUDKeAdjeWqP39vgfIPIrsN_MD_5BklI0i5w9SpUwhxFx_PdF-M9wyyJjAaxpSANPTM2w22SdBKjl/s320/petunias.jpg" width="213" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">(it's never too late to <a href="http://ariverofstones.blogspot.com/p/join-us.html">join the river.</a>...)</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Outside our conservatory windows are a mass of petunias. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">They are fuchsia pink, deep purple bleeding-at-the-edges, salmon pink, lily-white. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">They change every day. I watch them extra-carefully, because I planted them. I watered them as they grew from teensy little things into great blooming bushes. They are 'mine'. </div><br />
We are especially fond of things that we attach to our 'selves'. They are 'my' petunias, and so I have a good relationship with them. I take care of them. I appreciate them.<br />
<br />
But what about the lemon-balm that was here when we arrived? What about the weeds blooming on the path round the back of the house?<br />
<br />
Writing<i> small stones</i> encourages us to notice the things that aren't attached to our selves, and to pay them exactly the same kind of attention. To stop and wonder how strangers are, as well as our friends and family. To love them just as much.<br />
<br />
Can you do this today when you look for <i>small stones</i>? Can you look beyond your self?Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08599095035971045492noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5075102395346447580.post-16559033524012255822011-07-08T15:00:00.001+01:002011-09-15T11:59:21.698+01:00Really seeing the other leads to freedom<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgUoVkMFsp2X3IfX6WckGvJZ0JusGI2PEwO2ZZIyJ4lTXXU9SF5HQrtqBqSyjyQFEm__wVoNDCVTZXU5NvV7EucS0l4Ki5nGFDevvtSxzatffofY0f4X7sWZbXid490f2mcnHq8-tTQMVRb/s1600/truth-set-you-free.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgUoVkMFsp2X3IfX6WckGvJZ0JusGI2PEwO2ZZIyJ4lTXXU9SF5HQrtqBqSyjyQFEm__wVoNDCVTZXU5NvV7EucS0l4Ki5nGFDevvtSxzatffofY0f4X7sWZbXid490f2mcnHq8-tTQMVRb/s320/truth-set-you-free.jpg" width="222" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><b>A post from our archive by Kaspa:</b></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">This week my teacher Dharamvidya David Brazier has been in Israel leading some workshops on psychology. In one of them he talked about how really seeing the other can set you free.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">What he describes is also the philosophy that underpins this whole project, and I owe a great debt to him, and others, for teaching me.</div><blockquote>"...the focus is upon discerning the truth of the other and achieving spiritual maturity. One achieves liberation for oneself by releasing others from the attachment generated by one's own deluded and stereotypical perception of them. The self-construct is the mirror image of these false views of others. To see the truth of the other is to release them and thereby, incidentally, to release oneself from one's self-construct." <a href="http://amidatrust.typepad.com/dharmavidya/2011/01/the-truth-will-set-us-free.html">Love and Its Disappointment blog</a></blockquote>As we more clearly see the other, the other moves away from being what, on some level, we want it to be, and becomes more real. In this way we release the other and give it freedom to exist - and we release ourselves too. As we take away the prop to our 'small self' and grant it existence, we become liberated.<br />
<br />
<i>The truth shall set you free</i>.<br />
(John 8:32, The Bible)<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div>Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08599095035971045492noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5075102395346447580.post-50032189928531729292011-07-06T11:23:00.007+01:002011-09-15T11:59:21.699+01:00small stones as a gratitude practice<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgABN5-_wXulTJFYs1778lpGEz05E19TsoTk0Tu0BsnelRRwuw-IaOYRUO3w35Ddl9AJSyuwPL5F8IKDkzgkC3ymYb1f51ciX48_rSSGioM9OrVzDKv5oQlck1lEy1m2KktQHL5fq-RUPMO/s1600/bojalamp.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="257" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgABN5-_wXulTJFYs1778lpGEz05E19TsoTk0Tu0BsnelRRwuw-IaOYRUO3w35Ddl9AJSyuwPL5F8IKDkzgkC3ymYb1f51ciX48_rSSGioM9OrVzDKv5oQlck1lEy1m2KktQHL5fq-RUPMO/s320/bojalamp.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">As part of our morning practice, Kaspa & I do a few minutes of something called 'Nai Quan'. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">We sit quietly and ask ourselves three questions - over the past 24 hours, what have I received from others, what have I offered in return, and what trouble has my existence caused others?</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">This morning I decided to focus on the first question, and my immediate surroundings. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">After feeling thankful for my zafu (the cushion I sit on), I turned my attention to the lamp we bought from IKEA last year. The photo above really doesn't do it justice. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">It has a double layer of golden woven rattan, in an elegant tulip curve. It sits on top of a silver 'bud' and a simple stem, and the light makes warm patterns on the walls as it passes through the weaving. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">After thinking about receiving the beauty of this lamp, I went on to think about who had made it. Who wove the shape? Where was the rattan grown and picked? The sun shone on it, and someone watered it. Where did the metal come from? How was it made? Where is the smelting factory? Who made that? Who works there?</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">And then, the light-bulb. What an astonishing invention. The electricity that comes through the wall into our house. Who laid the lines underground? Where is the electricity made? </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">I could go on. All this, so I can press a button and let golden light into our shrine room. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Today, see your <i>small stone</i> practice as a gratitude practice. Look around you. What have you received in the past 24 hours? What can you notice? What are you thankful for?</div>Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08599095035971045492noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5075102395346447580.post-52773662031759365392011-07-05T14:00:00.000+01:002011-09-15T11:59:21.699+01:00For when you get scared<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh5LFBMfHM0F9gazSgr_EQiycni2EmtJbuORyCVJtEvuKFjeEfKoc9ecRBc_hyphenhyphenNp1PZg6vt2e5aqpQ7XUO-isEXHWsKuRMgsroT_VYaAIN-9yRzhzlJFxyNn4R32AtknPssDHhoW0EjT-oJ/s1600/thorns.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="212" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh5LFBMfHM0F9gazSgr_EQiycni2EmtJbuORyCVJtEvuKFjeEfKoc9ecRBc_hyphenhyphenNp1PZg6vt2e5aqpQ7XUO-isEXHWsKuRMgsroT_VYaAIN-9yRzhzlJFxyNn4R32AtknPssDHhoW0EjT-oJ/s320/thorns.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><b>A post from the archive by Fiona:</b></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Writing can be a thorny business.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">I've been doing it for many years now. I have four completed novels behind me, a book of poetry, a book of small stones, and a book of <a href="http://www.fionarobyn.com/ayearofquestions.htm">questions</a>. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">The blank page still scares the bejesus out of me. I sit down to write my work-in-progress and think 'what am I doing thinking I can write? of all the deluded (mumble mumble)....' I have avoided writing poems for almost a year now. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Maybe your <i>small stones</i> will leap eagerly and willingly into your laps, but if you're like the rest of the human race you might also have occasional thoughts like this. </div><br />
How can we continue when we're convinced the whole project is pointless and that everything we ever write is utter rubbish?<br />
<br />
By taking a pen and writing a single word. And then another.<br />
<br />
Thank your doubts kindly for their input, and continue anyway. Reassure your critic that you WILL allow them out, when you have written your <i>small stone </i>and you want to start polishing it, but not until then.<br />
<br />
Writing can be a thorny business. But then so is life.<br />
<br />
We are all in it together. The river of stones, and the river of life. We can encourage each other (do visit each other's blogs next month and say what you like). We can take comfort in the knowledge that every single writer ever has had terrible doubts about what they're doing. We can learn how to encourage ourselves, and get better at this as we go along. We can eat chocolate. We'll be JUST fine.Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08599095035971045492noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5075102395346447580.post-28497007346987132202011-07-04T15:00:00.026+01:002011-09-15T11:59:21.699+01:00First day of our sesshin<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh4TxaksGC2jFfBEoZpiZQlOLnl5ZLOZW11a47KFu-BeOB0OL2sx3GNHtWUPg1b1o_j0q2tDfAdaFs4PgFLgi-0TZ5WdXVoLH-CyZam6pImRM9-tO78msLr0MSOfpKMQrPyXTRo5Up4YkGS/s1600/frenchbuddha.bmp" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh4TxaksGC2jFfBEoZpiZQlOLnl5ZLOZW11a47KFu-BeOB0OL2sx3GNHtWUPg1b1o_j0q2tDfAdaFs4PgFLgi-0TZ5WdXVoLH-CyZam6pImRM9-tO78msLr0MSOfpKMQrPyXTRo5Up4YkGS/s320/frenchbuddha.bmp" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">As you read this, we will be in the afternoon of our first day of sesshin in our <a href="http://amidatrust.typepad.com/france/">Buddhist retreat centre</a> in the middle of France. We might be sitting in front of this Buddha right now. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">We might be sitting quietly in the bamboo grove, or walking slowly and silently through the beautiful countryside, or chanting or bowing or singing. Maybe we'll be drinking a cup of lemongrass tea, slowly and mindfully.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">We won't be talking to each other. We won't be on our laptops or our mobile phones. (Wish us luck!)</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">This will give us the perfect opportunity to look out for <i>small stones</i>. We'll be catching them all in our notebooks and putting them online at the end of the week. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">But you don't have to go on retreat to find <i>small stones</i>. The whole point of the practice is that it fits into all kinds of lives, no matter how busy they are. Who doesn't have five minutes to spare in a day? If you don't have five minutes, then just NOTICE your <i>small stone</i> instead - thirty seconds should do it. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Try not to get too caught up in whether your <i>small stone</i> is <a href="http://ariverofstones.blogspot.com/2011/01/being-human-but-is-it-any-good.html">any good or not</a> (although I'm sure most of you will, because you're human). Just notice. Just write them down. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">*</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">While we're away we won't be sharing these articles anywhere - do help us out if you can by sharing the links with your friends and on Twitter and Facebook if you enjoy them. And do support each other in your <i>small stone</i> practice. Deep bow. </div>Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08599095035971045492noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5075102395346447580.post-67392837514332316652011-07-01T14:45:00.000+01:002011-09-15T11:59:21.699+01:00The river begins!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj8VAgALwoGXDA5FR8fCfCh2k7LtTO1cVt2Ror6a-Zhe0puvhyphenhyphenJJYaEgFRhukec7UnaGf53i0e9ucTh53D3Q1UUGDqganV1TF-Uf4tigCbuVU_qwbJa2DMdoChFvdDpcYqMme9cmf3pCu-K/s1600/black_stone.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="239" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj8VAgALwoGXDA5FR8fCfCh2k7LtTO1cVt2Ror6a-Zhe0puvhyphenhyphenJJYaEgFRhukec7UnaGf53i0e9ucTh53D3Q1UUGDqganV1TF-Uf4tigCbuVU_qwbJa2DMdoChFvdDpcYqMme9cmf3pCu-K/s320/black_stone.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">(to find out about joining our July writing challenge <a href="http://ariverofstones.blogspot.com/p/join-us.html">click here</a>)</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">One<i><a href="http://writingourwayhome.ning.com/profiles/blogs/how-to-write-small-stones"> small stone</a></i>. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">This is how we begin today.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">We notice one thing properly. We write it down.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">It doesn't matter how long it is, or how clever it is, or whether you've spelt it right.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">It matters that you pause for a moment. It matters that you really hear the whirr of your lap-top, or the squeaky wheel as the cyclists passes you. It matters that you smell those tomatoes-on-the-vine and notice their earthy sweetness. It matters that you take a minute to skim your fingertips over your smooth silk shirt. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">We notice one thing properly. We write it down.</div>Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08599095035971045492noreply@blogger.com15tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5075102395346447580.post-16156692393392176242011-06-30T15:00:00.007+01:002011-09-15T11:59:21.700+01:00One day to go - river's eve!<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><div style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/lwr/101662854/" title="1 Mosaic by Leo Reynolds, on Flickr"><img alt="1 Mosaic" height="240" src="http://farm1.static.flickr.com/40/101662854_0d152ab8f9_m.jpg" width="240" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div><blockquote>"I am astonished in my teaching to find how many poets are nearly blind to the physical world. They have ideas, memories, and feelings, but when they write their poems they often see them as similes. To break this habit, I have my students keep a journal in which they must write, very briefly, six things they have seen each day—not beautiful or remarkable things, just things. This seemingly simple task usually is hard for them...</blockquote><blockquote>...Their journals fill up with lovely things like, "the mirror with nothing reflected in it." This way of seeing is important, even vital to the poet, since it is crucial that a poet see when she or he is not looking—just as she must write when she is not writing. To write just because the poet wants to write is natural, but to learn to see is a blessing."</blockquote><blockquote>~From <i><a href="http://www.poets.org/viewmedia.php/prmMID/19260">The Art of Finding</a> </i>by<i> </i>Linda Gregg</blockquote><b>Join the river of stones</b> to practice this way of seeing. If you are a writer, it will help your writing. If you are not a writer, you soon will be, but, either way, this kind of seeing gets you closer to the world. I've used a longish quote from Gregg's article because she describes how the type of exercise we're proposing can help make us better writers and poets. We found Gregg's article during the January challenge I think, and it's confirming to see other writers encouraging people along the sames lines as us. We're not saying anything new though, really, just encouraging lots of people to join us.<br />
<br />
<blockquote><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">renegade reds dot</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">a leaf brown landscape—</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">a pack of newports shouts</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">viridian blue</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><br />
</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Robin Turner</span><o:p></o:p></blockquote><br />
I hope all of your journals fill up with lovely things like "the mirror with nothing reflected in it", and that you share your <i>small stones</i> with us on your blogs. Find out how to get involved <a href="http://ariverofstones.blogspot.com/p/join-us.html">here</a>.<br />
<br />
We begin tomorrow!<br />
<br />
P.S. Remember that Fiona and I will be on a silent retreat next week. We'll be keeping our <i>small stones</i> in our paper journals and writing them up online at the weekend, when we'll also enjoy diving in and reading all of your lovely contributions.<br />
<br />
P.P.S Thanks to <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/lwr/with/101662854/">Leo Renyolds</a> for the countdown photos this week.</div>Kaspa Thompsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02018022928777657419noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5075102395346447580.post-3303014177608219152011-06-29T15:00:00.001+01:002011-09-15T11:59:21.700+01:00Two days to go - almost there!<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><div style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/lwr/101661613/" title="2 Mosaic by Leo Reynolds, on Flickr"><img alt="2 Mosaic" height="240" src="http://farm1.static.flickr.com/28/101661613_f2d2dfc20f_m.jpg" width="240" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div><blockquote>"Since you are like no other being ever created since the beginning of time, you are incomparable", and "Everybody is talented, original and has something important to say.” Brenda Ueland</blockquote><b>You should join us in July </b>because you are incomparable, talented, and original. Each of you is unique - there are beautiful observations about the world that only you can make.<br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><br />
</span><br />
<blockquote><span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 12pt;">An empty muffin case lies flat and folded in the road like a fan, abandoned mid-dance. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 12pt;"> Peggy Riley</span></blockquote><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><br />
</span><br />
Each of us is falling in love with the world in our own way, the things you notice will be different to the things your neighbour notices - and both will come from a wonderful place. Human beings are born to be creative, and this creativity comes out of the unique relationship each of us has with the world. Notice one thing each day, write it down and share your very special creativity with us.<br />
<br />
Let us know you're joining (<a href="http://ariverofstones.blogspot.com/">click here</a>). Get the <a href="http://ariverofstones.blogspot.com/2011/03/july-11-badges-for-your-blogs.html">badges</a>, and tell your friends to join us too!<br />
<br />
Happy writing!<br />
<br />
P.S If you haven't read Brenda Ueland's books about writing, I can highly recommend them!</div>Kaspa Thompsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02018022928777657419noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5075102395346447580.post-69358117835261576422011-06-28T15:00:00.009+01:002011-09-15T11:59:21.700+01:00Three days to go<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<div style="text-align: center;">
<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/lwr/101659839/" title="3 Mosaic by Leo Reynolds, on Flickr"><img alt="3 Mosaic" height="240" src="http://farm1.static.flickr.com/27/101659839_e3eda5cdb3_m.jpg" width="240" /></a></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<blockquote>
"...even on a material level, the other is a great mystery. When we struggle to relate to it, we fall back into personalised approximations. Keeping our sense of wonder and our willingness to encounter the other requires a special kind of reaching out." <a href="http://plantingwords.blogspot.com/2011/06/interview-with-caroline-brazier-writer.html">Caroline Brazier </a></blockquote>
<b>Why you should join the river: </b>Because having a notebook, or a blog, and a vow to write one <i>small stone</i> in it each day can help you keep a sense of wonder about the world. Deciding to take part in the July challenge, to notice something each day and write about it, sets in motion that willingness to reach out - that willingness to really look and listen to the world - and to stand in awe.<br />
<br />
Some days our sense of wonder will be clouded, and that's okay and normal. The commitment to write something everyday can keep us going (and writing) through those cloudy days until the sun comes out again.<br />
<br />
<blockquote>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">On the black river,</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">a pair of great-crested grebe nod</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">towards the ceremonies of spring.</span></blockquote>
<blockquote>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Kate Noakes</span></blockquote>
<br />
<a href="http://ariverofstones.blogspot.com/p/join-us.html">Let us know</a> if you want to join us. Put our <a href="http://ariverofstones.blogspot.com/2011/03/july-11-badges-for-your-blogs.html">beautiful badges</a> on your blog, and share the joy on twitter and facebook (use the buttons at the bottom of this post).<br />
<br />
Happy writing, see you in the river of stones!</div>Kaspa Thompsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02018022928777657419noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5075102395346447580.post-37219408753349279952011-06-27T15:00:00.008+01:002011-09-15T11:59:21.701+01:00The joy of July - four days to go!<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<div style="text-align: center;">
<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/lwr/101657674/" title="4 Mosaic by Leo Reynolds, on Flickr"><img alt="4 Mosaic" height="240" src="http://farm1.static.flickr.com/40/101657674_c7deea7e21_m.jpg" width="240" /></a></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<blockquote>
I really look forward to getting back into focusing on the things around me. Too often we just get so caught up in the stress and chaos of our daily lives that we put off being observant. I really need the discipline of learning how to slow down and take a good look around me. The River of Stones was a wonderful exercise for me in January and hopefully I won't stop after July. ~ Mary-Jane, <a href="http://grandrad.blogspot.com/">Cracked Sugar Bowl</a></blockquote>
<b>Why everyone is joining the river: </b>Like Mary-Jane, in January hundreds of people made a commitment to write a <i>small stone</i> every day. In July we'd like you to join us as we do the same again. To reach beyond yourself and notice one small thing each day, and to write it down.<br />
<br />
We believe that it's better to be connected to the world, than not to be. We believe that it's better to notice the unnoticed, the weeds in the cracks in the pavement and the aphid on the bud of the rose, than to let them slip by. And we believe that writing can help us pay attention to, and become intimate with, the world.<br />
<blockquote>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">•thirty-one•</span></blockquote>
<blockquote>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">It is like a bonus, the thirty-first day. Suddenly, no more fog. Blinding sun. Raging blue, and lacy wisps of cloud to prove the Earth hasn’t stopped in its tracks. Oh, wow. We are never still.</span></blockquote>
<blockquote>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Lis Harvey</span></blockquote>
You can keep <i>small stones</i> in your paper notebooks and journals, or like hundreds of people did in January you could make a blog for them. <a href="http://ariverofstones.blogspot.com/p/join-us.html">Click here</a> to find out how to let us know you're taking part, and <a href="http://theriverofstones.blogspot.com/">click here</a> to dive in the river and see the <i>small stones</i> people have already started writing.</div>Kaspa Thompsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02018022928777657419noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5075102395346447580.post-58949507576458426972011-06-26T15:39:00.003+01:002011-09-15T11:59:21.701+01:00River of Stones book on Amazon<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<div style="text-align: center;">
<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/leoffreitas/332360959/" title="Floresta Amazônica, até quando? / Amazonian Forest, until when? / Amazona Arbaro, ĝis kiam? by leoffreitas, on Flickr"><img alt="Floresta Amazônica, até quando? / Amazonian Forest, until when? / Amazona Arbaro, ĝis kiam?" height="160" src="http://farm1.static.flickr.com/134/332360959_0a5da18cd8_m.jpg" width="240" /></a></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
That's a photo of the Amazon river to celebrate that the book <i>pay attention: a river of stones</i>, that we created after the January challenge, is finally available on <a href="http://www.amazon.co.uk/pay-attention-stones-Fiona-Robyn/dp/1446796221/ref=sr_1_10?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1309094403&sr=1-10">amazon.co.uk </a>and <a href="http://www.amazon.com/pay-attention-stones-Fiona-Robyn/dp/1446796221/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1309094538&sr=8-1">amazon.com</a>.<br />
<br />
I can only imagine that the reason it took so long is because a real, living, human being needed to read and approve the book before it appeared on their sites, rather than the completely automated process of Lulu. But it's here! We've had some lovely feedback from people who bought the book earlier in the year, so if you've been waiting now's your chance!</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<i>pay attention: a river of stones</i> is a collection of lots of your lovely <i>small stones</i>, and some longer prose pieces about the process of writing them. It was winter in the northern hemisphere during the first challenge and there are lots of beautiful stones about that season (and some sunny ones, from our friends in the south) as well as some more esoteric <i>small stones.</i><br />
<blockquote>
the red cherry<br />
at the bottom of the glass<br />
bounces<br />
to the beat<br />
from the dance floor<br />
<br />
Mary-Jane Grandinetti
</blockquote>
The July challenge, to notice one thing and write it down, every day, begins on Friday. Are you ready? <a href="http://ariverofstones.blogspot.com/p/join-us.html">Click here</a> to find out how to take part. I'm looking forward to reading all of your July <i>small stones!</i></div>
</div>Kaspa Thompsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02018022928777657419noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5075102395346447580.post-72206860743985191242011-06-25T14:50:00.001+01:002011-09-15T11:59:21.701+01:00Wedding pics<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgG0u5imSmn_oDqZuEtlYZdohLJyleTgxXu5si_d0KO0BDjIh0OUpS2x5KBE516tZBkje9AFZE2ZjJRZzPyYFPVxlFTdqiCXTyxURM_P2ODKPiuCPPkweGWhTc0S2kx7AwMFGHDEqerVCkp/s1600/kaspaandbuddha.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="295" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgG0u5imSmn_oDqZuEtlYZdohLJyleTgxXu5si_d0KO0BDjIh0OUpS2x5KBE516tZBkje9AFZE2ZjJRZzPyYFPVxlFTdqiCXTyxURM_P2ODKPiuCPPkweGWhTc0S2kx7AwMFGHDEqerVCkp/s320/kaspaandbuddha.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><b>Fiona writes: </b><br />
So, the knot is well and truly tied!<br />
<br />
We had a wonderful time on honeymoon and we're very much enjoying being mister and missus.<br />
<br />
<div>If you'd like to have a sneaky peek at a few of our Buddhist wedding photos, <a href="http://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.211316088903554.45194.187273521307811">here they are</a>.</div><div><br />
Many of you <a href="http://www.weddingsmallstones.com/">wrote us<i> small stones</i></a> on the day, and we're looking forward to making these into a website later in the summer.<br />
<br />
We were overwhelmed by everyone's support and good wishes on the day - our friends and family, and our friends across the world. A heart-felt thank you and deep bow to all of you.<br />
<br />
So, what's next? There will be no more talk of weddings, because.....<br />
<br />
<a href="http://ariverofstones.blogspot.com/">The river</a> is nearly upon us, of course! We begin this Friday, the 1st of July. Have you got your badge yet? Have you invited your friends to join you? I can't wait....<br />
<br />
Happy weekend, all!</div>Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08599095035971045492noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5075102395346447580.post-85102360522118484102011-06-18T10:34:00.001+01:002011-09-15T11:59:21.701+01:00Today is our wedding day...<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjKgmhEic55g0XUpFUOQKQr3mTCMHv-xkz4p4hgyxiJd3LhC7AbdipV5z36IJuBhQT6-9OQtbOnKkQAqA38YQu1f7I-ydazD8ZuXk-D7qMJ4SPT1ZtUc094Xt0KhbMJHRSh9TTB9vNCjqi6/s1600/kaspaicecream.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="239" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjKgmhEic55g0XUpFUOQKQr3mTCMHv-xkz4p4hgyxiJd3LhC7AbdipV5z36IJuBhQT6-9OQtbOnKkQAqA38YQu1f7I-ydazD8ZuXk-D7qMJ4SPT1ZtUc094Xt0KhbMJHRSh9TTB9vNCjqi6/s320/kaspaicecream.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Today is the day.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">As you read this blog, we'll be putting our posh clothes on, or greeting all our friends and family with a hug. We might be in the middle of our Buddhist ceremony (with candles and water and chanting and a specially-designed wedding scroll to sign), or eating a wide selection of puddings (you can tell it's Fiona writing this post) or dancing to the Irish fiddle, or having post-wedding-drinks at our hotel with our lovely friends.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">The photo is of Kaspa in India - before we got together, when he was still a Buddhist monk (that's another story), when we were courting by email. We didn't admit that it was courting at the time, but courting it was. I am very very lucky to have found him. I'm grateful for every moment we have together.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">We'll put up some pictures up when we get back from our honeymoon, but in the meantime we're hoping you might be <a href="http://www.fionarobyn.com/wedding/">noticing something</a> and writing a<i><a href="http://writingourwayhome.ning.com/profiles/blogs/how-to-write-small-stones"> small stone </a></i>and sending it to us <a href="http://www.fionarobyn.com/lists/?p=subscribe&id=4">here</a>. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">I hope you have a wonderful day. Let some of our happiness shine out from the Malvern Hills and warm you, wherever you are. And we'll send you some virtual pudding, too. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Thank you for reading, lovely readers.</div>Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08599095035971045492noreply@blogger.com12tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5075102395346447580.post-65262624093525591672011-06-15T13:54:00.002+01:002011-09-15T11:59:21.702+01:00What this strawberry whispered in my ear<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgq_B8k3YmgQfMXLbX3o4UQoDXrXUCuce8ScU_nWTQnmsRiN6YcPdQZClR1Xz_8LSDVai9Ii77x8F_YCZ0T-zizw81nJrKOdfd2kS3hX1ZjK-D4-Ck_Zh6trNpnwEM09xDVRHXFCV_qnbu8/s1600/strawberry.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="197" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgq_B8k3YmgQfMXLbX3o4UQoDXrXUCuce8ScU_nWTQnmsRiN6YcPdQZClR1Xz_8LSDVai9Ii77x8F_YCZ0T-zizw81nJrKOdfd2kS3hX1ZjK-D4-Ck_Zh6trNpnwEM09xDVRHXFCV_qnbu8/s320/strawberry.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><b>Fiona writes:</b><br />
<br />
Since I got home a couple of hours ago, I've been faffing about.<br />
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You may have heard on the grapevine (!) that I'm getting married on Saturday. Today's task is to write some blogs for <a href="http://ariverofstones.blogspot.com/">the river</a> while we're away on honeymoon and in France. Instead I've been faffing.<br />
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And then I ate a bowl of strawberries. And this one whispered in my ear...<br />
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Look at me... it whispered. Look how shiny and red I am. Look at how the red deepens at the top, near the place I was attached to my plant. Look at my tiny seeds.<br />
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Smell my sweet strawberry scent. Imagine the field I was plucked from. Imagine the journey I've been on, to end up in your white bowl. And now.... eat me! Taste me! Pay attention!<br />
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The strawberry reminded me that it doesn't matter if I'm getting married on Saturday or in two years time. What I've got is today - now - with the rain coming down and jobs to get on with and this exquisite bowl of strawberries.<br />
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Writing <i><a href="http://writingourwayhome.ning.com/profiles/blogs/how-to-write-small-stones">small stones </a></i>helps us to hear what the strawberry has to say. Trust me, it has a very quiet voice. But once you start listening to the objects around you, they will remind you of what's important. They will bring you back into the world. They will calm your jitters, pre-wedding or otherwise. They will show you how you can love them.<br />
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If you want to experiment with a daily <i>small stone</i> practice, <a href="http://bit.ly/lzwMEt">join our river</a> in July. Or just choose an object from around you right now, and hear what it has to say. Let us know in the comments!Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08599095035971045492noreply@blogger.com2