I have not posted in this blog since September. My first semester of school was rigorous, as I sometimes struggled to balance the writing and reading assignments with the migraines. Additionally, I felt I was repeating myself in the posts, something that has caused me to take a break from this blog before. But since the semester ended in mid-December, I have been thinking about ways to resume this writing. It is a good discipline. I think I can maintain it if I make it a bit easier to post (more about that below). I am, after all, in grad school for writing and I need to keep a writer's presence here.
My second semester begins in two weeks. That gives me time to settle into a blogging routine and a slightly different format for posting. My sister, Joan, and I have decided to read together -- at a distance of 110 miles -- a daily meditation book: Open Mind: Women's Daily Inspirations for Becoming Mindful, by Diane Mariechild. Here is a bit from the back cover:
From the author of Mother Wit, the much-loved guide to women's spirituality, come crystalline daily readings that inspire and guide women toward mindfulness, compassion, and centered contemplation. [The book] leads readers through the year with guided visualizations, advice, parables, and quiet inspiration that draws seekers toward the serene and ancient wisdom of Buddhism.
Here is what I propose to do:
1. Post regularly about that day's "crystalline" (don't you just love that description?) reading;
2. Continue with my theme, although it is not the book's theme, of the interplay between my spiritual life and being in chronic pain;
3. Welcome others to get the book (whether living with chronic pain or not -- we all deal with pain of some sort or another) and join us in reading it, and in feeling free to leave comments and begin thoughtful discussion in the Comments section, below.
As I develop this series, I may change the format, but this will do for a start. I will make my first post tomorrow, January 1. Happy New Year!
