top of page
Bare Trees in Fog

Both/And

Writer: Marie LaureMarie Laure
Feb 182 min read

The Moon shot was taken in Washington State by photographer David Salisbury.*


We are living in a dichotomy of Awe and Wonder and Shock and Awe from Washington state to Washington, D.C. These are not flip sides of the same coin, but are as different as a majestic moon and a steely rat.


President's Day Protester's sign at a rally opposing what is happening in Washington D.C.
President's Day Protester's sign at a rally opposing what is happening in Washington D.C.

The Both/And of these two worlds will never be of a piece, but both will continue to co-exist whether or not we notice. There is a choice to be made by each of us in the way that we accept or reject one world or the other. Will we choose one over the other? Or, a little more of one than the other? Or, neither one? It is ours to decide.


So, let's imagine that each day there is at least one opportunity to see the sunrise or sunset and that watching this happen before our very eyes is worthwhile. Our amazing eyes can see millions of miles so as to notice a sparkling jewel like Venus suspended in the darkness. We just have to look up! How different things might look if Awe and Wonder framed the day rather than an endless cycle of stories intended to Shock and Awe for the sake of it.


When a sense of pure awe pervades all that we perceive, we are reminded of the Wonder that has always been and always will be, and that we ourselves are dust in the wind.



*According to the Pagan Grimoire, the Snow Moon “shines brightly during a time when winter still grips the earth but signs of spring are just around the corner. The Snow Moon represents transformation, hope and renewal, making it a powerful time for self-reflection and setting intentions for growth as you move into the next season.”


 
 
 

2 Comments

Rated 0 out of 5 stars.
No ratings yet
Add a rating
Guest
Feb 18

That's the truth!

Like
Guest
Feb 18
Rated 5 out of 5 stars.

As my dear mother-in-law used to say, it's all about choices. Thanks for reminding us! -- Ann

Like

© 2023 by Marie Laure

​Six Stages of Pilgrimage:

  • The Call:

  • The opening clarion of any spiritual journey. Often in the form of a feeling or some vague yearning, a fundamental human desire: finding meaning in an overscheduled world somehow requires leaving behind our daily obligations. Sameness is the enemy of spirituality.

  • The Separation:

  • Pilgrimage, by its very nature, undoes certainty. It rejects the safe and familiar. It asserts that one is freer when one frees oneself from daily obligations of family, work, and community, but also the obligations of science, reason, and technology.

  • The Journey:

  • The backbone of a sacred journey is the pain and sacrifice of the journey itself.  This personal sacrifice enhances the experience; it also elevates the sense of community one develops along the way.

  • The Contemplation:

  • Some pilgrimages go the direct route, right to the center of the holy of holies, directly to the heart of the matter. Others take a more indirect route, circling around the outside of the sacred place, transforming the physical journey into a spiritual path of contemplation like walking a labyrinth.

  • The Encounter:

  • After all the toil and trouble, after all the sunburn and swelling and blisters, after all the anticipation and expectation comes the approach, the sighting. The encounter is the climax of the journey, the moment when the traveler attempts to slide through a thin veil where humans live in concert with the Creator.

  • The Completion and Return:

  • At the culmination of the journey, the pilgrim returns home only to discover that meaning they sought lies in the familiar of one's own world. "Seeing the place for the first time . . ."

bottom of page