"Where Does the Temple Begin, Where Does it End?"

I was riding my bike with a group of women on the Katy Trail two weeks ago. It was a hot, humid Missouri day. Everything was moving slow, including us. We watched turtles slowly cross the trail and noticed the beautiful wild flowers on the banks. It was a wonderful few hours of taking time to notice the sacredness of the journey. I remembered one of Mary Oliver’s poems “Where Does the Temple Begin, Where Does it End?” I thought of my writing and how long it has been since I’ve posted something on my blog.

My purpose in writing is to help me be more conscious of finding the sacredness in common places and to learn more about dwelling there. For me that means slowing down in order to see and listen deeper – a process of reconnecting my soul with all that surrounds me. Although I’ve not been able to precisely define sacred , I think it’s experiencing the joy of life itself.

I hope I’ve captured a little of the joy of the Katy Trail "temple" in the photos below.

At the end of our ride, my daughter and I were astonished as we stood still and listened to the meadowlark sing its benediction for our ride.

I would love to hear what you’ve noticed in the common places and what you're learning about dwelling there. Ponder these words of Emerson....

"We see the world piece by piece,
as the sun, the moon,
the animal, the tree, but the
whole, of which these
are the shining parts, is the soul."