Books

Bread and Wine, a Lenten and Easter companion

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For those of us who observe the Christian liturgical year, we have come to the end of Lent, and are now in the Easter season. Lent always feels long and this year even more so with what is happening here in the US and around the world.

When I am feeling the cold and bleakness of Lent, or when I am feeling anxious and fearful, I am always thankful for the words of wise people who have gone before me. And this is why Bread and Wine: Readings for Lent and Easter, is a book I’ve kept close by throughout the Lenten and Easter seasons for many years. When my own faith wavers or my spiritual fire gets low, I can be inspired and uplifted by the insights and experiences of others, which fan the flame of my own spiritual hunger, and help me to keep walking.

Within these pages, I read (and re-read each year) passages from Barbara Brown Taylor, Wendell Berry, Amy Carmichael, Karl Barth, Thomas Merton, Henri Nouwen, Dorothy Day, and Dorothy Sayers, plus many more.

So I was delighted when Plough Publishing House sent me a copy of their new revised and expanded hardcover edition of Bread and Wine to review.

And I’ve been encouraged by these readings, such as by these words from Kahlil Gibran in the chapter entitled “The Crucified”:

“Jesus was not sent here to teach the people to build magnificent churches and temples amidst the cold wretched huts and dismal hovels. He came to make the human heart a temple, the soul an altar, and the mind a priest.”

Or from the chapter entitled “Not All Right” from Tish Harrison Warren:

“The ones Jesus calls are the weary ones, the ones who snap at those they love after a long day, the ones who battle addiction, the ones who aren’t who they wish they were, the ones who know they are not strong, the ones who wrestle and repent, who fail and fail again. This is the church, these ones through whom Jesus is strong.”

Or “Waiting With Mary” by Kathleen Mulhern which both honors Mary’s experience as mother and disciple of Christ and helps us imagine what it must have been like for her as he was crucified, buried, and resurrected.

If Lent is a season you observe, Bread and Wine may also become for you a companion to take you through the reflective season of repentance, fasting, and prayer to the celebration of Easter and beyond, all the way to Pentecost. Find Bread and Wine: Readings for Lent and Easter at your local bookstore, online at Bookshop.org and Amazon.

Three British TV Shows, Two Books on Spiritual Matters, and a Poem on Peace

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Photo by Vlada Karpovich on Pexels.com

I am still getting over Covid, which I had earlier in the month. As someone with asthma, allergies, and some other chronic conditions, it’s taking me longer than I’d like. So, I’ve been reading several books and watching a lot of shows during my downtime.

Let’s start with the poem: I came across it while searching for a John O’Donohue poem for this Substack post I wrote about peace. John O’Donohue wrote in a way that drew his readers toward wisdom, nature’s beauty and the deep things of the soul. His poetry soothes me like the arms of a loving mother: comforting, clear, and kind.

Blessing For Peace by John O’Donohue (from his book Benedictus)

As the fever of day calms towards twilight
May all that is strained in us come to ease.

We pray for all who suffered violence today,
May an unexpected serenity surprise them.

For those who risk their lives each day for peace,

That those who make riches from violence and war
Might hear in their dreams the cries of the lost.

That we might see through our fear of each other
A new vision to heal our fatal attraction to aggression.

That those who enjoy the privilege of peace
Might not forget their tormented brothers and sisters.

That the wolf might lie down with the lamb,
That our swords be beaten into ploughshares

And no hurt or harm be done
Anywhere along the holy mountain.

Next, the two books I finished this past weekend both left me inspired and encouraged.
The first is Elaine Paigels’ Miracles and Wonder: The Historical Mystery of Jesus. I wasn’t sure if this would be the sort of book so high-minded and intellectual that the gospels would be torn into tatters or presented as simply myths.

Instead, Paigels presents any historical evidence there might be to support the stories while also clearly sharing what isn’t there. She looks at topics such as Jesus’ virgin birth, his resurrection, his claim to be God and doesn’t mock or tear down anyone’s faith. She just shares facts that are known and leaves it up to the reader to choose what to believe from there. Paigels, is, after all, a historian of religion, so I would say she did her work thoroughly. If you want to read more about the life of Christ from a historical perspective, I recommend this book.

The second book I read was Ordinary Mysticism: Your Life as Sacred Ground by Mirabai Starr. This book encourages us to find the sacred and the divine in everything we do, everywhere we go. To hear the voice of God in birdsong or our partner’s voice, to connect to Divine Presence anywhere we happen to be: a meditation room, a church, at work, in the garden, making dinner. She pulls in the voices of famous mystics like Teresa of Avila and St. John of the Cross, Ram Dass and Thich Nhat Hanh, and everyday people she knows such as a writer friend and the woman who does her nails at the local salon.

Mirabai is so welcoming of others’ experiences, opening up the way for any of us to be mystics, to support and enrich our spiritual lives wherever we are and whatever we are experiencing. I also really appreciated her chapter on grief and how grief connects us to the Divine and to one another. I recommend this book if you’re looking to enhance your spiritual life.

Now for the three British TV shows:

Lynley is the latest TV rendition of Elizabeth George’s ongoing DI Lynley mystery series. If you’re familiar with the books or the earlier Inspector Lynley series from the late 1990s/early aughts, this is a fresh take. The mysteries were interesting enough to keep me guessing and the new versions of both the aristocratic Thomas Lynley and his detective sergeant side-kick, Barbara Havers were likable enough. Their chemistry is a bit different, as Lynley’s and Helen’s, his love interest. It has gravitas but doesn’t get depressing and adds just enough lightness to keep it balanced.

Playing Nice is a four-episode suspense/drama about a couple who find out that their son is not their biological child. The boy who they’ve raised as their own was switched with their biological son in the NICU. Their lives unravel quickly as a sociopath attempts to not only take the son they’ve raised, but prevent them from ever seeing their biological son. Starring James Norton of Grantchester and Happy Valley and Jessica Brown Findley of Downton Abbey.

Line of Duty is a police show and I watched all six seasons this month. AC-12 is a police department whose purpose is to root out corruption in the police force and catch bent cops. It’s intense and, if you like this sort of show, it’ll be difficult to stop at the end of each episode! Each season, there is a particular police officer connected to a suspicious incident that AC-12 is investigating, often undercover. The good news is a seventh season is in the works.

What have you been reading and watching lately? Please share in comments!

January, with its Allure of Newness and Spaciousness

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Once again, the time has flown by and it is almost three months since I posted here. Partly it’s because I’m writing so frequently on Substack, and partly it’s that the holidays took more time than I anticipated, no matter how much I tried to have a slower season. But I’ve been planning posts for you here as well and now that we’re into a new year, it was time to write and catch up with you.

I enjoyed a slow start to January, and needed about ten days after Christmas to catch up on sleep and calm myself down after weeks of activity and lots of stimulation. Do any of you feel this way after winter holidays?

Yet I also have this excitement about a new year beginning, even though I know we really can start something new or start over any time of year. I love to write down goals and plan out how to make them happen. And I like the discipline of a routine after a few weeks in limbo during late November and December. Below is a list of what I’ve been doing or thinking about, and what I’m planning in the next few months.

Re-committing to a Routine: This year, I plan to meditate and practice yoga every morning. And to work out and/or walk every day as well. I feel the need to be as strong, grounded, and healthy as I can be for whatever this year brings. And journaling every day is also one of my commitments.

Journals and Planners: Starting new journals and planners is such a joy each January. I’ve got several going for different reasons or needs. I recently shared a post about journaling on Substack, which you can read here (and do subscribe!).

  1. The Cycles Journal is to track my cycle, physical and emotional symptoms, moods, wellness routines, etc. This is my fourth year using this journal and I wish I’d had it in my twenties and thirties. I gifted one to my daughter and another to my niece in hopes that they’ll connect more deeply with themselves and their cycles this year.
  2. Molly Remer’s Prayerbooks on Lulu are what I use to write down spiritual things specifically such as prayers and poems, thoughts and questions.
  3. Woodspell Apothecary’s Planner is beautiful, spiral-bound, and connects me to the land, the moon and herbal medicine. It’s my third year using this planner and I love it more than ever.
  4. The Bullet Journal is where I write daily lists, goals for the month and year, and record other things such as favorites lists.
  5. We’Moon Planner is feminist datebook with artwork and there are poems and short pieces throughout that are read from during Molly Remer’s monthly circles.
  6. Leonie Dawson’s 2025 My Brilliant Year Workbook: Biz Edition is a good way to reflect on what worked and what didn’t in my business last year and how I want to do things differently this year.
  7. The Life Organizer by Jennifer Louden isn’t a journal, rather she offers weekly questions that are very helpful for women, especially busy mid-life women, to discover what they really need and how to make themselves a priority in the middle of it all.

Journaling & Gentle Movement Course: I’m offering an online course called Nourishing Your Roots: discover what is healing and restorative for you this winter. It starts January 14 and goes through February 3rd. I hear so many people say they’re stressed, tired, sick, unmotivated, and don’t seem to have clarity about their lives and goals. Journaling is one way to get focused and clear on what you really need and want in order to heal and have a more nourishing life. And movement helps us connect with our bodies, supports our immune systems, and lifts our mood. If you’re a paid member of either my Patreon or Substack, this course is free to you. Or you can sign up on my website, here.

A few of the books I’m reading this month (because there are always more):

  1. This is Happiness by Niall Williams. I read Time of the Child just as Christmas was arriving and had to go back and read This is Happiness. So Irish, so full of characters that have a lot of life in them, such good stories.
  2. The Art of Possibility by Benjamin Zander and Rosamund Stone Zander. I’m reading this one for my Substack’s Book Club. You can subscribe here.
  3. Anne’s House of Dreams by L.M. Montgomery–I started reading through the series again in the late Autumn for comfort and to escape the harshness of the world scene.
  4. Wild Mercy: Living the Fierce and Tender Wisdom of the Women Mystics by Mirabai Starr. I am in love with her Prayer to the Shekinah in the beginning of the book.
  5. When God Was a Woman by Merlin Stone–all about the history of the suppression and destruction of the goddess religions worldwide. For someone who grew up in Christianity, there is a lot I never knew about the damage connected to even the roots of our faith. It is a lot to take in, but I’m glad to know what history tells us.
  6. Four Thousand Weeks: Time Management for Mortals by Oliver Burkeman. Yes, I still am finishing this one.
  7. American Detox: The Myth of Wellness and How We Can Truly Heal by Kerri Kelly. This one caught my eye and I purchased it on Kindle when it was on sale. So far, it’s worth reading.
  8. And I hope to start The Scent of Water by Elizabeth Goudge. This is one of the books I received as a gift for Christmas and one of my friend Laurie’s favorite novels. I’ve been meaning to read it for years! Let’s see how I do with all of these this month.

What I’m learning:

  1. How to watercolor with Liz Steel’s Foundations Course.
  2. How to use the Digital Pressure Canner my son gave me for Christmas.
  3. How to format a book for self-publishing to Kindle or Lulu.

Projects I’m working on:

  1. I want to make a few new scrunchies. One of my favorites broke the other day and I looked at it and thought, “How hard can this be?”
  2. I’m putting together a few new sets for my shop: a Winter Skin Care Box, an Imbolc/Brigid’s Day Box, and a Valentine’s Day Box.
  3. I’m brainstorming new courses to teach for Late Winter & Spring which may include yoga, Ayurveda, herbs, aromatherapy, journaling, and/or meditation.

What about you? What journals, planners or workbooks are you using this year? What are you learning or what projects are you working on? What are you reading this month? Please do share!

Two Books For Midlife Women

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I have many book recommendations for women approaching or in mid-life, however, I will share two with you today.

The first book I recommend is The Queen of Myself: Stepping into Sovereignty in Midlife by Donna Henes (who just passed away last month). I purchased a used copy online, as it’s an out-of-print book, although you can purchase the Kindle version here.

You may or may not have heard of the Triple Goddess or the supposed three phases of womanhood: the Maiden, the Mother, and the Crone. As Henes writes in this book, this concept was invented by a man in the 1970s, so it’s a relatively modern idea. And she brings up the point that many women don’t reach midlife and suddenly turn into a crone. There is a missing phase.

Just as there are four seasons, we are missing “Autumn”, and what Henes has titled “the Queen phase” of life. This is an apt description of midlife. For one thing, Autumn weather is a season of fluctuation and change, which is what women experience at mid-life. We may not be in our prime, instead we are beginning to reap an abundant harvest of all we’ve planted and tended to in our earlier years.

I bought this as a gift for myself for my forty-eighth birthday and have only read through chapter three. However, I have felt so validated and comforted by her words; seen and heard. This isn’t a part of life to pretend doesn’t happen, to be ashamed of or to hide, and I’m so glad she addressed it in this book. It’s a natural phase of life and we can choose to celebrate it.

The second book is Jennifer Louden’s The Life Organizer: A Woman’s Guide to a Mindful Year. I waited to start this book until my birthday at the beginning of September. I thought it would be interesting to start a yearlong book and see where it takes me by the time another birthday comes around.

It’s not a “whip yourself into shape and get it together” type of book. Instead of barking at us like we are in boot camp, she comes alongside with very deep questions that lead to insights about ourselves that we wouldn’t otherwise have addressed. It’s a gentle and unexpected delight that I am thankful to have as a companion for this year.

It’s one that you’ll return to again and again. I also like the small size. I expected a huge book but it’s one that fits well in my hands (6×7.5 inches and only. .5 inches thick).

At various times in life, you may feel like the path has become uncertain, hard to define, or that you are lost and are not sure what to do next. This is such a helpful tool to guide you with questions so that you can pick up the threads of your own life and begin weaving again. In other words, you can live in a way that is more you and less the person you think you should be. You can allow yourself to explore, to rest, to learn, to discover, to grow, to just be you. Also if the word “mindful” in the title bothers you (because it is overused these days), when you see it, simply substitute it for the word “intentional”.

I am reading a string of excellent books these days. If you’d like to find get some more recommendations, read my latest bookish Substack post: September Reading. (And become a paid subcriber to my Substack–it helps me fund this blog so I can keep it an ad-free space of quietness, beauty, and reflection for all of us!)

Have a lovely weekend, all!

Fiction to Read or Consider

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This post contains Amazon affiliate links. If you click through and make a purchase, I will receive a small commission at no extra cost to you. This helps keep my blog ad-free.

Family Family by Laurie Frankel had such an unusual feel to me. Themes include teen pregnancy, adoption, and childhood trauma, but it isn’t sad or even serious. Everything almost feels like a joke.

Her main character, India Allwood, is bright, determined, creative, and goes after what she wants. She makes mistakes but makes the best of tough situations too. All the characters seemed weird, too quirky, and bit unreal. The lighthearted feel the characters and the writing had seemed too bright, too glossy, too fake like Hollywood where India lives with her adopted kids. I like that India won’t paint herself as a victim, but she also doesn’t seem to think her poor choices are worth learning from. I found her habit of ripping up pieces of paper and throwing them all over like confetti whenever (and wherever) she celebrated really irritating.

At the end some things come to the surface and are dealt with, but everything wraps up a bit too perfectly. It’s almost as if the book was written from a kid’s perspective, except it wasn’t. If you read it, I’d love to know what you think.

North Woods by Daniel Mason felt like a collection of short stories all centered around one place, instead of a novel. But I don’t like short story collections and I loved this book. It had an element of magic realism with ghosts and also a strong sense of the swiftness of time passing, and of the never-ending cycles of life, death, and rebirth.

There was a deep reverence of wild nature embedded into the novel. When I finished reading it I wanted to bow and kiss the earth and embrace the trees nearby. The author also imbued an interest in human history, starting from Puritan times and going into the future. I found it so creative and refreshing to have story after story of humans interacting with the land, the trees, wildlife, and the house as the years went on. Most were written in story form, sometimes as a letter, article, or poem. Certain characters I cared about more than others, but I never was bored. North Woods is a sweeping, unforgettable novel that is unlike anything I’ve ever read. Highly recommended!!

One of the Good Guys by Araminta Hall is a mystery/thriller that has a few surprises up its sleeve. I knew that all must not be what it seemed as it starts out with Cole’s POV because this novel is a commentary on the #MeToo movement. Cole obviously thinks he’s “one of the good guys” and just seems too good to be true but he’s the only viewpoint for more than half of the book. So something felt off but I just didn’t know what exactly.

And then, as Leonora takes over telling the tale, the reader begins to be clued in to what is really happening. And that there is a clever, daring, carefully-laid trap for one unsuspecting person. It didn’t have the same feel as a typical murder mystery because of the point the book is trying to make is so loud and clear. It takes over any mysterious elements. It definitely held my interest and had some creepy/scary elements. I liked the switching POVs in the second half as it gave a clearer picture of what was going on. Trigger warnings include IVF treatment and violence toward women. Oh and I forgot to mention the book is set on the English coast with dangerous cliffs and mist and cozy cottages and the stormy sea. If any of these elements or the novel’s theme interest you, I think you’ll enjoy reading One of the Good Guys.

Evening Poetry, January 25

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The Moon over the water, Whitby by hayley green is licensed under CC-BY-SA 2.0

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Moon Clock 
by Donald Hall

Like an oarless boat through midnight's watery
ghosthouse, through lumens and shallows
of shadow, under smoky light that the full moon
reflects from snowfields to ceilings. I drift
on January's tide from room to room, pausing
by the wooden clock with its pendulum that keeps
the beat like a heart certainly beating, to wait
for the pause allowing passage
to repose's shore--where all waves halt
upreared and stony as the moon's Mycenaean lions.

You can find this poem in The Selected Poems of Donald Hall.

Evening Poetry, December 3

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Advent Calendar
by Rowan Williams

He will come like last leaf’s fall.
One night when the November wind
has flayed the trees to the bone, and earth
wakes choking on the mould,
the soft shroud’s folding.

He will come like frost.
One morning when the shrinking earth
opens on mist, to find itself
arrested in the net
of alien, sword-set beauty.

He will come like dark.
One evening when the bursting red
December sun draws up the sheet
and penny-masks its eye to yield
the star-snowed fields of sky.

He will come, will come,
will come like crying in the night,
like blood, like breaking,
as the earth writhes to toss him free.
He will come like child.

You can find this poem in Haphazard by Starlight.

Evening Poetry, December 2

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Moon setting over The Sound of Arisaig by Dumgoyach is licensed under CC-BY-SA 2.0
Why Are Your Poems So Dark?
by Linda Pastan

Isn't the moon dark too,
most of the time?

And doesn't the white page
seem unfinished

without the dark stain
of alphabets?

When God demanded light,
he didn't banish darkness.

Instead he invented
ebony and crows

and that small mole
on your left cheekbone.

Or did you mean to ask
"Why are you sad so often?"

Ask the moon.
Ask what it has witnessed.

You can find this poem on the Poetry Foundation website.

Evening Poetry, December 1

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Approach to B9119 junction by Stanley Howe is licensed under CC-BY-SA 2.0

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Slow Down
by Michelle Weigers

This morning I'm so tired
from pushing myself hard,
that as I drive down this country road
I can't bring myself to go

anywhere close to the speed limit.
I feel like a silver haired lady
peeking over my steering wheel
as I creep along, letting

the cars whiz by me.
I always assume the elderly
go slowly because they're cautious,
not wanting to hit anyone

or miss the ambulance
racing down the road with siren blaring.
But maybe they've figured out
a secret that I'm still trying to learn.

What if driving slowly
is the only way
to live my best life,
to keep from running so fast

that I go right past myself?
Running by the small child inside
who seeks to fill herself with wonder,
passing up the chance for rest,

for play, to slow myself
long enough to notice
how pleasant the rain sounds
dripping onto the roof

of the house next door,
tiny wet whispers tapping
those few remaining leaves
clinging to the maple

in my backyard,
an almost silent thrumming
slowing down my weary soul.
The steady chime

of church bells ringing
in the distance, in this moment,
reminding me, I've already
been given all that I need.

You can find this poem in The Wonder of Small Things: Poems of Peace & Renewal.

Evening Poetry, November 30

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Frosty morning near New Bridge, Taw Valley, near Barnstaple. by Thor Beverley is licensed under CC-BY-SA 2.0

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The Only Way I Know To Love the World
by Julia Fehrenbacher

It's not just a cup of coffee
but the warm hum of hello, an invitation
to wake, to sip, to say thank you
for another chance to dance
with another new day.

It's not just a ceramic mug, but the one she
shaped with her own 16-year-old
hands for me. For me.

It's not just one heart held open
to another, or a kiss blown in the mirror,
not just the soft circle of smile,
but a nod of--I see you. You are not alone.

Not just life. But your life. Your very temporary life.

It's isn't just the earth you stand on
but the giver of every single thing, a reason
to get down on humbled, human knees
and say thank you thank you thank you.

It is not just another moment but a door flung open,
a flooded-with-light entrance to every real thing

not just a poem but a prayer whispered
from one listening ear
to another. The only way I know
to love the world.

You can find this poem in The Wonder of Small Things: Poems of Peace & Renewal.