Friday Florilegium

Day 25 in a month-long series on Cultivating Sanctuary. (And yes, my faithful readers, I’ve had to choose not to blog a few times this week in order to ma...

Think Small

Day 22 in a month-long series on Cultivating Sanctuary. In chaos theory, small changes in the initial stages of a pattern are believed to have large effects. On...

Sweeping God

Day 12 in a month-long series on Cultivating Sanctuary. During the student years, I had a little house cleaning and home organization business. Cleaning is one ...

Counting Gratitudes

Day 10 in a month-long series on Cultivating Sanctuary. Every time I walk back from work to the cottage, and I see it perched on it’s little hill, I ...

On Kitchen Counters and Simple Delights

Day 9 in a month-long series on Cultivating Sanctuary. For many years, I was a “clean the kitchen counters in the morning” girl. I always felt that ...

Snail Mail

Day 8 in a month-long series on Cultivating Sanctuary. Only for a culture that values speed above all is snail a negative description. Back in 1998, the mo...

Friday Florilegium

Day 7 in a month-long series on Cultivating Sanctuary. When I visit the Trappist monasteries near Dubuque or the Sisters of the Love of God in Oxford, England, ...

Sacred Spaces

Day 4 in a month-long series on Cultivating Sanctuary. “Do you want to do the honors?” asked my realtor, Kelly, offering me the keys. We were s...

Introducing the Contemplative Cottage

Five years ago, walking up a street on Queen Anne hill in Seattle, I came to a corner house with a second lot as its backyard. I found myself frozen in wonder, ...