I quite love this new configuration on my office window sill.
The stone is from a 2018 road trip to Yukon. I was meeting my buddy Roq. We hiked a bit. Told stories. Laughed. Created a bit of ceremony. From a remote hillside I brought this stone. Makes me think of mountain. And then Roq and me drove to Vancouver, BC over five days.
The person is a praying monk, also a stone. I’ve used it many times as a talking piece in Circle. It was given to me around the same time. From a colleague and fellow mischief-maker of the best kind, Kathleen Masters. Kathleen and I hosted several events over a few years, particularly to support community leaders in the United Methodist tradition.
One, I like the way these two things look on the window sill. They are grounding to me. They have a simple beauty. Beauty matters. I like to appreciate simple beauty connected to friends. I feel aliveness. Aliveness matters.
Two, stories matter. We and the things around us come from somewhere. From people. From people in stories. I good hunk of my life has been learning to reclaim and celebrate context of stories.
Three, from the angle of the photo on the left, the monk looks a bit sad. From the angle of the photo on the right, the monk is actually smiling. I like the contrast. No change in figures. Just a different angle.
We too, are all of this at once. We humans. Living sadness and sorrow. From another angle, living sweetness and smile. Discovering stories. Appreciating beauty.
Yup. Good for today. Appreciating my little Mountain Monk on the window sill.