I just listened to the "Learning How to See" episode that you did with Brian McLaren at the CAC. It was beautiful. You said something especially profound that I absolutely love:
"I use spiritual language in my work, but I’m very careful about it because spiritual language can open the heart, it can slam doors so fast, it’s blinding. So I use spiritual language very deliberately."
My goodness, that is one of the truest statements I've ever heard and your wisdom in that area is really important. Thank you.
I remember when my sister died at 50, I was lost. But driving west the early evening of her funeral, the western sky was lit up with color of gold and orange. Since we buried her with her paint brush, J knew my sister had a hand in the canvas of colors splashed across the sky. My pastor tried to tell me different but I just knew my sister was telling me she was still there.
Carrie, first off Happy Belated Birthday! I hope your day was as amazing and awe inspiring as you are and you had a wonderful day celebrating you!!
Your reflection is so heartfelt and inspiring. One that I sat with and let it stir within me. Your kind and encouraging words written, spoken and sung always seem to be the bread I needed just at the right time. You got me through some pretty difficult times with “You can do this Hard Thing”. When I hear those words in my head it’s as if you are there speaking them to me and I’m not alone.
Your interview with Brian and Carmen was absolutely wonderful and touched me deeply! All those big loves and little loves……Amazing!! Simply wonderful!!
Carrie, your music and your words (with and without music) are treasures! This post zeroes in on both our feelings of inadequacy and our purpose to do what we can, the best we know how. Thanks for framing your message so beautifully!
Yes, that came to me when I responded to a post about the significance of the military, special days of remembrance and the now occupant of the Oval Office and his speech to the graduates. I come from a military family and I wrote about my feelings. Every Memorial Day I’m thinking about my dad and time he spent in the Navy. He was gone for most of my childhood with being on ships out in the Pacific mostly during WWII. When he came for a few weeks of leave after being gone for many months he was quiet and did not talk about his time away from the family. I learn about his life in the Navy and missions he was part of a few years before he died in 2006. I was amazed at what he experienced in his 24 years in the service. Some of it was hair raising but most showed me how dedicated he was to his job as an officer. That memory was some of my response on what these special days are about. The response received back was all positive and understanding of my feelings. I was shocked that I am not alone in those feelings. It was a gift to my heart.
I hear your concern for honoring the memory and service of veterans by the current administration. The deep cuts to Veterans benefits and services is a serious hardship for so many who rely on those services. it’s not right. Unfortunately this is a pattern and general policy for this administration. And so we work toward a day we can restore the vital support and dignity to those being powerfully effected by current policy.
I am intrigued by the idea of stopping to name something in order to see it better. I mean it makes perfect sense… but how often do I keep going when I haven’t a clear idea of a thing - and then wonder why I feel so lost. Sometimes the name seems obvious- and can be what it seems. And other times it isn’t what it seems and stopping to figure that out - in hind sight- has made all the difference. I look forward to listening to the podcast- for more about the song you reference. And this whole idea has brought me up short- what is the name of where we are? As a nation. Just read “On Tyranny” by Timothy Synder - got through it in one sitting. Now that being a slow reader is no excuse- I pushed through. My name for where we are as a nation is forming as a result of this read. Wow! And personally? Sitting with that one… naming this will take humility and courage. Challenge accepted.
Timothy Synder’s book “On Tyranny” definitely gave me language and a way to frame what is happening in this country and put it in a framework of history. I also appreciated with the book, he gave examples of how people pushed back on authoritarianism and what to watch for going forward. Yes…when I have a way to talk about what is happening and what Im feeling, then it helps find a way forward and how to address it. Sometimes it helps to name the dragon.
Excited to listen to your interview with Brian and Carmen!! I've been a fan of the CAC for nearly a decade, and a fan of yours ever since DBB shared some of your music in one of her substacks, so the combination is very cool for me! 😎
Thank you for today's reflection. Somehow (a God thing maybe?) you put into words exactly what I've been struggling with lately. And your one -inch photos remind me what's truly important...
Thank you Kathleen! It was a delight to be on the program. Brian and Carmen are lovely people and wonderful interviewers. And of course DBB’s The Cottage is a fabulous Substack page..I highly recommend.
I "met" you with James Crews on The Monthly Pause. These lines you posted this morning: "I remember in the aftermath of losing someone I loved deeply, feeling perplexed, angry and a bit dazed that the world was going on as if nothing had happened, as if everything hadn’t been utterly changed." --so true! I felt exactly that way when my father dropped dead of a heart attack at a young age. I wanted the world to STOP. Acknowledge, honor in some way.
What a beautiful moment you had with the doe and fawns. A miracle and a blessing!
Thank. You Amrita, it was such a delight and pleasure to be on The Monthly Pause. I’m grateful for the introduction to the community that gathers there. I’m so sorry for the loss of your beloved father.
As I face the destruction of so many pieces of what makes our country a democracy, as I witness our leaders’ hatefulness, I , too, try to keep myself open to the beauty and small miracles that are around me. But sometimes it’s so hard to breathe through my days and feel the gratefulness for those little reminders.
I feel like I’m taking a big risk here although the truth is, I’m probably not, but it feels that way at the moment. So I have a couple of things I’d like to share. Years ago I was a hospice social worker and I had lost a young female patient from advanced metastatic breast cancer. She wasn’t someone that I loved. She wasn’t a friend or family member. She was just a dear human being that I met at the end of her life. Our time together wasn’t very long, but for some reason her death impacted me in a way different than other patients I had cared for. I was driving that afternoon, and I happened to drive by a playground, filled with children playing, which normally would make me smile and lift my day. That day I found myself angry that the world was continuing on without even a pause. I feel like my memory is poor and I don’t remember a lot of things, but the world rolling on that day impacted me. I think it was my first true, true understanding of how grief can feel and how little reason lies within it. Now, many years later, I try purposefully to enter myself into people’s worlds of grief, partly because of that day, partly because of the losses in my own life and partly because of those losses, I learned the healing value of music, and even more importantly, I learned about there being healing in the sound of your voice Carrie. I truly appreciate and believe in the genuineness of this group here at gathering of the spirits, and so, in spite of the fact that tears are forming in my eyes as I write this, here is my risk part. I am disappointed when I hear someone else’s voice reading your post, whether it’s someone you care about or an AI voice, I’m disappointed. I know how very busy you are and so I feel selfish and almost entitled saying this. The first time I heard a different voice, I wasn’t brave enough, but today through the tears in my eyes I know it’s important for me to share that disappointment. Wow, I didn’t think it would make me cry but I am. When I wake up in the morning and I see there’s a new post, I get up, make myself some coffee and sit down to listen. It’s been so lovely to hear your voice talking to us, sharing your feelings and thoughts, asking questions, challenging us to stretch our thinking and so for me, I would rather there were no voice than it isn’t your voice, because for me, there is SO MUCH healing in the sound of your voice. It is with the utmost respect that I am sharing this. At 66 years old, I still struggle with those words from my mom that she did not want to raise a spoiled only child. Apparently, I still have some personal work to do about being genuinely honest and fearing I am being selfish. Lynnette
Thank you for your message. I’ve been celebrating my birthday today so i haven’t checked in with Substack until now. Your story about the young woman that touched your heart is very powerful and I appreciate your sharing it with us all. It is never selfish to be honest about what you need. I commend you for being vulnerable. I’m grateful to hear that you enjoy hearing these posts in my voice. Thank you for letting me know. Unfortunately I cannot do voice overs for every post, but I do try to do them when my life and work allow. I hear your encouragement to do so when possible and grateful to know they are appreciated.
I have never listened to the audio of Carrie's posts, so I have no comment on that. I just want to affirm that what you feel is real and I am moved not only by your vulnerability, but also everything that you shared. It was beautiful and very touching.
It is OK to feel what you feel and that doesn't make you selfish.
“I remember in the aftermath of losing someone I loved deeply, feeling perplexed, angry and a bit dazed that the world was going on as if nothing had happened, as if everything hadn’t been utterly changed. Often I find myself navigating a similar kind of state as I’m watching the structures vital to our common good being gutted and deliberately broken.”
I’ve experienced this sense of disorientation my entire life and have found very few people who understand me when I try to explain this, so mostly I don’t. Thank you for acknowledging it. It’s a powerful emotive experience that affects some of us deeply.
Thank you for everything else you wrote. Another beautiful, meaningful post.
And thank you, Carrie for recommending Nature 365. I'd never heard of it, and I signed up to receive the daily one-minute videos. I got one already and it's stunning!
I just listened to the "Learning How to See" episode that you did with Brian McLaren at the CAC. It was beautiful. You said something especially profound that I absolutely love:
"I use spiritual language in my work, but I’m very careful about it because spiritual language can open the heart, it can slam doors so fast, it’s blinding. So I use spiritual language very deliberately."
My goodness, that is one of the truest statements I've ever heard and your wisdom in that area is really important. Thank you.
I remember when my sister died at 50, I was lost. But driving west the early evening of her funeral, the western sky was lit up with color of gold and orange. Since we buried her with her paint brush, J knew my sister had a hand in the canvas of colors splashed across the sky. My pastor tried to tell me different but I just knew my sister was telling me she was still there.
Carrie, first off Happy Belated Birthday! I hope your day was as amazing and awe inspiring as you are and you had a wonderful day celebrating you!!
Your reflection is so heartfelt and inspiring. One that I sat with and let it stir within me. Your kind and encouraging words written, spoken and sung always seem to be the bread I needed just at the right time. You got me through some pretty difficult times with “You can do this Hard Thing”. When I hear those words in my head it’s as if you are there speaking them to me and I’m not alone.
Your interview with Brian and Carmen was absolutely wonderful and touched me deeply! All those big loves and little loves……Amazing!! Simply wonderful!!
Miracles galore!
Some take sour work, salty sweat.
Some show by pure grace.
...
Facing growing pains,
may we name, frame, claim, not blame.
Does love call our name?
...
Does, librarians...
What’s up to small me, BIG WE?
Bask in awe, and act.
Carrie, your music and your words (with and without music) are treasures! This post zeroes in on both our feelings of inadequacy and our purpose to do what we can, the best we know how. Thanks for framing your message so beautifully!
Yes, that came to me when I responded to a post about the significance of the military, special days of remembrance and the now occupant of the Oval Office and his speech to the graduates. I come from a military family and I wrote about my feelings. Every Memorial Day I’m thinking about my dad and time he spent in the Navy. He was gone for most of my childhood with being on ships out in the Pacific mostly during WWII. When he came for a few weeks of leave after being gone for many months he was quiet and did not talk about his time away from the family. I learn about his life in the Navy and missions he was part of a few years before he died in 2006. I was amazed at what he experienced in his 24 years in the service. Some of it was hair raising but most showed me how dedicated he was to his job as an officer. That memory was some of my response on what these special days are about. The response received back was all positive and understanding of my feelings. I was shocked that I am not alone in those feelings. It was a gift to my heart.
I hear your concern for honoring the memory and service of veterans by the current administration. The deep cuts to Veterans benefits and services is a serious hardship for so many who rely on those services. it’s not right. Unfortunately this is a pattern and general policy for this administration. And so we work toward a day we can restore the vital support and dignity to those being powerfully effected by current policy.
I am intrigued by the idea of stopping to name something in order to see it better. I mean it makes perfect sense… but how often do I keep going when I haven’t a clear idea of a thing - and then wonder why I feel so lost. Sometimes the name seems obvious- and can be what it seems. And other times it isn’t what it seems and stopping to figure that out - in hind sight- has made all the difference. I look forward to listening to the podcast- for more about the song you reference. And this whole idea has brought me up short- what is the name of where we are? As a nation. Just read “On Tyranny” by Timothy Synder - got through it in one sitting. Now that being a slow reader is no excuse- I pushed through. My name for where we are as a nation is forming as a result of this read. Wow! And personally? Sitting with that one… naming this will take humility and courage. Challenge accepted.
Timothy Synder’s book “On Tyranny” definitely gave me language and a way to frame what is happening in this country and put it in a framework of history. I also appreciated with the book, he gave examples of how people pushed back on authoritarianism and what to watch for going forward. Yes…when I have a way to talk about what is happening and what Im feeling, then it helps find a way forward and how to address it. Sometimes it helps to name the dragon.
Excited to listen to your interview with Brian and Carmen!! I've been a fan of the CAC for nearly a decade, and a fan of yours ever since DBB shared some of your music in one of her substacks, so the combination is very cool for me! 😎
Thank you for today's reflection. Somehow (a God thing maybe?) you put into words exactly what I've been struggling with lately. And your one -inch photos remind me what's truly important...
Thank you Kathleen! It was a delight to be on the program. Brian and Carmen are lovely people and wonderful interviewers. And of course DBB’s The Cottage is a fabulous Substack page..I highly recommend.
I "met" you with James Crews on The Monthly Pause. These lines you posted this morning: "I remember in the aftermath of losing someone I loved deeply, feeling perplexed, angry and a bit dazed that the world was going on as if nothing had happened, as if everything hadn’t been utterly changed." --so true! I felt exactly that way when my father dropped dead of a heart attack at a young age. I wanted the world to STOP. Acknowledge, honor in some way.
What a beautiful moment you had with the doe and fawns. A miracle and a blessing!
Thank. You Amrita, it was such a delight and pleasure to be on The Monthly Pause. I’m grateful for the introduction to the community that gathers there. I’m so sorry for the loss of your beloved father.
As I face the destruction of so many pieces of what makes our country a democracy, as I witness our leaders’ hatefulness, I , too, try to keep myself open to the beauty and small miracles that are around me. But sometimes it’s so hard to breathe through my days and feel the gratefulness for those little reminders.
Thank you, Carrie for
being an inspiration.
Thanks, Carrie. Please come back to the Boston area soon!
Thank you for your heartfelt words.
I feel like I’m taking a big risk here although the truth is, I’m probably not, but it feels that way at the moment. So I have a couple of things I’d like to share. Years ago I was a hospice social worker and I had lost a young female patient from advanced metastatic breast cancer. She wasn’t someone that I loved. She wasn’t a friend or family member. She was just a dear human being that I met at the end of her life. Our time together wasn’t very long, but for some reason her death impacted me in a way different than other patients I had cared for. I was driving that afternoon, and I happened to drive by a playground, filled with children playing, which normally would make me smile and lift my day. That day I found myself angry that the world was continuing on without even a pause. I feel like my memory is poor and I don’t remember a lot of things, but the world rolling on that day impacted me. I think it was my first true, true understanding of how grief can feel and how little reason lies within it. Now, many years later, I try purposefully to enter myself into people’s worlds of grief, partly because of that day, partly because of the losses in my own life and partly because of those losses, I learned the healing value of music, and even more importantly, I learned about there being healing in the sound of your voice Carrie. I truly appreciate and believe in the genuineness of this group here at gathering of the spirits, and so, in spite of the fact that tears are forming in my eyes as I write this, here is my risk part. I am disappointed when I hear someone else’s voice reading your post, whether it’s someone you care about or an AI voice, I’m disappointed. I know how very busy you are and so I feel selfish and almost entitled saying this. The first time I heard a different voice, I wasn’t brave enough, but today through the tears in my eyes I know it’s important for me to share that disappointment. Wow, I didn’t think it would make me cry but I am. When I wake up in the morning and I see there’s a new post, I get up, make myself some coffee and sit down to listen. It’s been so lovely to hear your voice talking to us, sharing your feelings and thoughts, asking questions, challenging us to stretch our thinking and so for me, I would rather there were no voice than it isn’t your voice, because for me, there is SO MUCH healing in the sound of your voice. It is with the utmost respect that I am sharing this. At 66 years old, I still struggle with those words from my mom that she did not want to raise a spoiled only child. Apparently, I still have some personal work to do about being genuinely honest and fearing I am being selfish. Lynnette
Thank you for your message. I’ve been celebrating my birthday today so i haven’t checked in with Substack until now. Your story about the young woman that touched your heart is very powerful and I appreciate your sharing it with us all. It is never selfish to be honest about what you need. I commend you for being vulnerable. I’m grateful to hear that you enjoy hearing these posts in my voice. Thank you for letting me know. Unfortunately I cannot do voice overs for every post, but I do try to do them when my life and work allow. I hear your encouragement to do so when possible and grateful to know they are appreciated.
Lynette,
I have never listened to the audio of Carrie's posts, so I have no comment on that. I just want to affirm that what you feel is real and I am moved not only by your vulnerability, but also everything that you shared. It was beautiful and very touching.
It is OK to feel what you feel and that doesn't make you selfish.
Thank you Susan❤️
💗
“I remember in the aftermath of losing someone I loved deeply, feeling perplexed, angry and a bit dazed that the world was going on as if nothing had happened, as if everything hadn’t been utterly changed. Often I find myself navigating a similar kind of state as I’m watching the structures vital to our common good being gutted and deliberately broken.”
I’ve experienced this sense of disorientation my entire life and have found very few people who understand me when I try to explain this, so mostly I don’t. Thank you for acknowledging it. It’s a powerful emotive experience that affects some of us deeply.
Thank you for everything else you wrote. Another beautiful, meaningful post.
And thank you, Carrie for recommending Nature 365. I'd never heard of it, and I signed up to receive the daily one-minute videos. I got one already and it's stunning!
Isn’t it lovely! I’ve very much appreciated those short little windows into the natural world.
I have to notice and name what doesn't fit with my soul in order to work with it, feel it and move through it.