After a week spent absorbing
the natural beauty of the Wild Coast
I mentioned to a friend
that the whole holiday
felt like a prayer of gratitude
..... which got me thinking about a quotation by Meister Eckhart
"If the only prayer you said was thank you, that would be enough."
.... which lead to a favourite quote by Rumi
"Let the beauty we love be what we do.
There are hundreds of ways to kneel and kiss the ground."
There are indeed hundreds of ways to kneel and kiss the ground
Observing the miracles of nature is at the top of my list
Practicing mindful photography
" If I really wanted to pray I'll tell you what I'd do. I'd go out into a great big field all alone or in the deep deep woods and I'd look up into the sky -- up -- up-- up -- into the lovely blue sky that looks as if there was no end to its blueness. And then I'd feel a prayer." -- L M Montgomery, Anne of Green Gables
As an artist I am aware of something greater than myself
every time I create art.
When I look at the work of many, many artists
I can feel the sacred in their work.
I'm certain their art is their meditation.
I remember the way we were taught to pray at school
Prayers always seemed so elaborate
A far cry from Mary Oliver's ideas of prayer
PRAYING by Mary Oliver
It doesn't have to be
the blue iris, it could be
weeds in a vacant lot, or a few
small stones; just
pay attention, then patch
a few words together and don't try
to make them elaborate,
this isn't a contest but a doorway
into thanks, and a silence in which
another voice may speak.
Thank you for this beautiful post!
ReplyDeleteJudy, I really enjoyed doing this post.
DeleteI'm glad that I opened your post first this morning. It will be helpful all day long.
ReplyDeleteWhat a lovely thing to say. Thank you!
DeleteThank you so much for a great blog and awesome post! That is my favorite Rumi quote. I just spent four days on Cumberland Island, Georgia, and the whole immersion in nature is a constant thank you prayer. And I just got back from my walk this morning, with the most awesome clouds/blue sky/sunrise combination. with prayers for my neighbor who gets cancer results today, and my daughter who currently has 3 (hopefully benign) brain tumors, but with the scenery, all I could say is thank you for Margaret, and thank you for Katie. Again, thanks for your post!
ReplyDeleteThanks so much Connie. Walking at sunrise is such a good way to start one's day. I hope all is well for your daughter and your neighbor.
DeleteI am also glad for this post. As I was reading I thought of Mary Oliver and then you ended with her. Blessings all around.
ReplyDeleteThanks Christine. Mary Oliver's poetry is a joy isn't it?!
DeleteWonderful post. My ultimate goal is to live a life that is one long prayer of thanksgiving.
ReplyDeleteThanks Starr. I enjoyed browsing through your blog and seeing your beautiful surroundings.
Deletewhat an uplifting post. thank you.
ReplyDeletemy favorite is mary oliver's.
i will these with me all day.
Thanks Rebeca. Mary Oliver always makes my day too.
DeleteBeautiful, beautiful post, images and words, and just what I needed this morning. xoxo
ReplyDeleteSo glad you enjoyed it Annie. xoxo
DeleteYes. Thank you so much for this post...especially for including the Rumi and Mary Oliver portions. Last week was difficult for me and your post has helped to ease my soul. Thank you so very much.
ReplyDeleteHi Jennifer, I hope your week is improving by degrees. A good poem or quote often takes me by surprise and makes me feel better.
Deletegolden
ReplyDeletesunshine
kissing
the crystaline rain
into green
green prayers
Beautiful words, thanks Eb. I'm picturing the sun shining through rain. We call it a monkeys wedding.
DeleteI have just come back from a sojourn in nature myself. I am kissing the ground for this post. Thank you Dear One.....you ALWAYS seem to succeed in touching our Soul.
ReplyDeleteOh you are so sweet! Thank you!
Deletesimply beautiful, thank you.
ReplyDeleteMy pleasure :-)
Delete" ... a doorway into thanks ..."
ReplyDeleteWell, this is all MAGNIFICENT.
Entirely.
a doorway into thanks, and a silence in which
Deleteanother voice may speak..... I love that part.
Nature is wonderful.
ReplyDeleteIndeed it is :-)
DeleteSuch a beautiful post, Robyn, thanks.
ReplyDeleteThanks Valerianna.
DeleteI absolutely love your photos...Keep posting these!
ReplyDeleteIt's great to see through the eyes of the photographer.
DeleteWhat a beautiful commemorative blog post of your time living a prayer of gratitude at the Wild Coast. Beautiful Robyn. Thank you.
ReplyDeleteThanks Leslie. Wish you could have been there too.
DeleteWhat else can we do 'here'? We are so blessed to be artists :-)
ReplyDeleteWe are indeed blessed and blogging makes it so easy to share our impressions of the world around us.
DeleteThanks for another beautiful collection of quotes and images. Lots of links for us to browse later. It's like a big dose of wildness to drink in with my breakfast tea!
ReplyDeleteHi Annie, I hope it is sunny over there!
DeleteAs always ... beautiful pictures and gorgeous quotes! Thank you Robyn!
ReplyDeleteGaby xo
So glad you enjoyed the post, Gaby.
DeleteR-a hundred ways to kiss the earth - what beautiful simplicity; and I can feel the sacred in their work - that is so true. Thank you for these words - treasures. B
ReplyDeleteBarry I'm looking at my little bowl of words (I chose gift today)and feeling the sacred in your work.
Deletemany people when coming to Israel used to kneel and kiss the ground. Thus i thought you might be showing pilgrims ,,,,,, i am gladly surprised to see another kind of kissing earth.
ReplyDeletemirjam
Mirjam, blogging opens the door to so many impressions and ways of thinking and connecting. Glad you left a comment to stir up my thoughts.
DeleteSuch a lovely post; a treasure, really.
ReplyDeleteThank you :-)
DeleteInspiring!!
ReplyDeleteThanks Robyn.
Deleteso peaceful
ReplyDelete:-)
Deletewonderful !
ReplyDeleteOh Robyn, the Mary Oliver poem is so perfect and the photos support those words beautifully!
ReplyDeleteIsn't it a beautiful poem?!
DeleteThank you for the nature walk. I am refreshed.
ReplyDeleteThanks Lisa :-)
DeleteI loved this so much Robyn. Ease, gentleness, peace and stillness - I breathed them in from afar, and felt them wash over me.
ReplyDeleteThe beauty of words... they can be so powerful. So glad you enjoyed the post Fiona.
DeleteI hope when I get my new knee Iwill eventualy be able to kneel and kiss the ground. A lovely post.
ReplyDeletePenny, I'm visualizing happy knees for you.
DeleteTotally inspiring Robyn - and what a beautiful shot that first one is.
ReplyDeleteMary Jo Hoffman's photographs are so exquisite. The simplest things look amazing.
Delete"If the only prayer you said was thank you, that would be enough."
ReplyDeletei was reading these very words this morning before the sun came up, and as I sit here my students are all in the quiet reflective creative space of art journaling, and I am so grateful for the creative spirit and the gift that art gives to pause and carefully consider the world around us. Your post resonates with my thoughts today. Thank you for so eloquently and visually encapsulating gratitude and grace.
Jenny, thank you for sharing the peacefulness of your morning. I can imagine a room full of students lost in the process of art journaling.
Delete100's of ways. Beyond counting or holding.
ReplyDeleteThank you.
Indeed... xoxo
DeleteOh, Robyn, this is indeed the way to pray. thanks for this inspiring reminder- each photo a prayer.
ReplyDeleteSo glad you enjoyed the post Sharmon. I have been reading Anne Lamott's trilogy about faith. Have you read them?
Deleteabsolutely... prayer in action... appreciation.. grazie, grazie!
ReplyDeletegrazie :-)
DeleteI was just observing and commenting on the beauty of nature. Your choice of images here captures that so well.
ReplyDeleteThanks Seth
DeleteI just finished my "walk in the woods" only to find your great nature post. What a great start to the day!
ReplyDeleteHey Don! Reading Mary Oliver is almost as good as a walk in the woods.
DeleteThank you.
ReplyDelete:-)My pleasure.
DeleteDid you write this post just for me??? Wow,your subjects and perfectly paired words spoke right to me.
ReplyDeleteIf the only prayer you said was thank you...love that qutoe!
Lisa, I often get that feeling too. The rights quotes seem to pop up when I need them.
Deletea lovely meditation.
ReplyDeleteglad you enjoyed the post.
Deletesuch a beautiful beautiful post...a blog post as meditation!
ReplyDeleteThank you so much!
Marie, thank you.
DeleteI have been offline for soooooo long and am glad to be back because, as ever, visiting your space is a walk into beauty and soulfulness, Robyn... thank you!
ReplyDeleteI was with one of my lovely cousin's last week (he's also an artist with a deep love of nature and African aesthetics) and I suggested he'd like it here too. I hope he drops by.
Hi Kendalee, I've been thinking about you. It sounds like you are busy, which is so wonderful!
DeleteMy knees and my lips are tired and my back hurts ;-) )))
ReplyDeleteI'm not surprised. You live in the most breathtaking place.
DeleteI love it when your attention is turned to nature. You bring me such welcoming sights. I always feel revived when I come here. Namaste.
ReplyDelete