If you live in a part of the world where,
looking out your window right now,
you see leaves in radiant shades
of crimson and saffron,
then, by any means necessary,
get yourself outside.

Look how sunlight or the muted tones of grey
make each leaf glow as they hold fast
or twist in the wind,
drifting and sailing on updrafts
as they make their […]

We all have our ways.
Things we do, think, say, or feel
that help us get present again
when we’ve drifted far into the murky waters
of worrying about what’s to come or what has been.

For me, it’s often tactile—
breathing in soft fur
working in the garden
splitting wood
paddling, hiking, biking
rich conversation
the call of an owl
the smell of a pine forest.

But […]

There are times of pure joy.
Those moments that fill us up
where nothing else is present
but that sense of light
flowing through and around us.

It’s glorious.
It bolsters and renews our spirits.
Grounding us firmly in the moment.
Reminding us to revel and to savor.

And…it’s rare.
Because most of the time
we hold a complex slurry
of emotions, experiences,
struggles, stories, hopes–
all wrapped in […]

Clouds circled, sluggish with snow, in the April sky.
Left in its wake was a white blanket 15 inches deep.
It was a marvel, with winds sending flakes sideways
–even upward–
no telling where they’d land.

It snowed for days.
And while many grumbled,
no one could argue the exhilaration
of getting to behold such Wildness.

We dug ourselves out, neighbors helping neighbors,
quietly proud […]

On the Equinox
the sun rises exactly in the east
travels through the sky for 12 hours
and sets exactly in the west.

On the Equinox
this is the motion of the Sun
through the sky
for everyone on earth.

Every place on earth
at the same latitude
regardless of hemisphere
experiences the same balance
of day and night
on just 2 days out of the year.

This is […]

Far from my Minnesota home
sits a research station at the edge of a peninsula.
Restored to its jungle origins,
the little station holds clear just enough space
for a few sleeping areas, a place to gather and eat,
and a base from which to study.

This Costa Rican paradise is far from comfortable
with heat and humidity levels
that will bring you […]

Take a breath.
Close your eyes.
Exhale.
Listen.

In the north country this year
we’ve had long-lasting cold temperatures.
We’re tough, we manage.
We suit up and go on with our days.

It’s fine, if a little wearying –
the weight of all that we wear.

Perhaps you’ve noticed the change in light
the angle of the sun
how daylight is slowly lengthening.
But many bemoan the seemingly […]

Most of us have met dogs
that we think look like a wild one:
a coyote, a fox, or a wolf.

Sometimes they get named
in accordance with their wild cousins.
And perhaps, we wonder,
if we saw them in the woods on their own,
might we mistake them for their namesake?

Truth is, when you see a wild canine,
there is no doubt.
It’s […]

There is a pause now
this quiet Solstice time
before light slowly lengthens.

The temptation?
To count the days.
To hold our breath
until daylight stretches into evening
and early morning forces back the darkness.

What a relief it will be
these light-starved eyes
to see again
no longer fumbling in darkness.

Still,
somewhere deep inside
past resistance and reason
you know this darkness, too, is your home.

A place […]

In a day, we went from 60 to 0.
Degrees that is, at least the wind chill.
It had been unnaturally balmy for early December.

Then big winds brought a front
that arrived at our doorsteps,
quickly cycling from
rain to ice to a little snow.
And the thin jackets from the day before
looked laughable hanging on the coat rack.

To step outside […]