“It is this we must learn: not once, but again and again…” —Bruno Barnhart
This week’s audio is a collage: my words, words from Tracy Cochran that I’ve adapted into the first person, and Bruno Barnhart’s words from Second Simplicity.
Remember yourself, dearheart.
Love,
Kirsten
Here I am. I am here.
In this moment, I stand on nameable thresholds.
In this moment, I hover on thresholds I sense but cannot begin to find words for.
In this moment, I float within transparent thresholds. My nervous system is not quite ready to bear them.
Life is always in movement and always uncertain. Yet deeper truths are revealed when I need them; doors open from the inside.
I make myself available to life, opening my heart...knowing I will blunder and get it wrong, but sometimes right.*
A felt sense of ease is my stalwart guide.
Watch: The Sound of Yellow
Lee Van Laer & Elan on DeHartmann and Kandinsky
Here’s the entire 32-minute video on YouTube, “De Hartmann and Kandinsky.”
Listen: Yellow
Audrey Assad’s Coldplay cover of “Yellow” on YouTube
Resources
Italicized lines are not my own. I adapted them into the first person from Tracy Cochran’s article about finding light in the darkest of times, “In the Midst of Winter, an Invincible Summer,” Parabola (Spring 2017).
Tracy is the author of the book PRESENCE: THE ART OF BEING AT HOME IN YOURSELF (Shambhala, 2024). The book is available on Amazon, Shambhala, and other places where people buy books.
Here’s how Shambhala describes the book:
In 20 short, gem-like chapters, meditation teacher Tracy Cochran invites us to explore living fully in the present moment as a revolutionary practice.
Tracy’s vibrant essays from her storied life give plenty of encouragement to reframe and dive deep into our own experiences.
Mindfulness offers us a way to be fully in the present moment—and as we start to embrace this practice, we learn that our lives are made of present moments. That gift of presence is the palpable experience of awareness that appears when we remember to be mindful of those moments.
Cochran encourages us to see presence as a living force—and to recognize and explore how that shows up in our lives. She offers riveting and relatable stories from her life—a spiritually transformative wine-making trip in France, a near-death experience while being mugged, managing her feisty child while on a retreat with Thich Nhat Hanh, among many others—and Buddhist teachings to encourage us to see the power of presence to illuminate and transform our past, present, and future.
Cochran's observations and reminiscences are wise and pithy, and she gives us plenty of encouragement to explore and reframe our own experiences.
You’ll find “Three” in Second Simplicity by Bruno Barhart (there’s one used copy at Thriftbooks). Bruno includes two Wallace Stevens poems in his meditation: “A Well Dressed Man With a Beard” and “Of Bright and Blue Birds.”
My name is Kirsten. In spiritual direction, I accompany folks as they attune to the inner dimensions of life. This way of being together is grounding and spacious. Together, we anchor into presence and a familiar flow of relating. To read more and book a free exploratory session, click the button below.
