Sangha of Auspicious Companions

July 17, 2021

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The Book of Delights: Ross Gay’s Year of Willful Gladness

“On the day he turned 42, the writer Ross Gay set himself a challenge. Every day for a year, he would write an essay about something delightful. He wrote about nicknames, fireflies, reckless air quotes. And about a hundred of those essays are now collected in his new book appropriately enough titled “The Book Of Delights.” When he came into our studios, Ross Gay told me that finding those delights turned out to be easier than he expected.” Hear more from Ross Gay in this NPR interview. { read more }

Submitted by: Jane Jackson

Be The Change

Read excerpts from The Book of Delights in this delightful BrainPickings post on “Ross Gay’s Yearlong Experiment in Willful Gladness.” { more }

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July 16, 2021

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Diary of a Young Naturalist

“This diary chronicles the turning of my world, from spring to winter, at home, in the wild, in my head. It travels from the west of Northern Ireland in County Fermanagh to the east in County Down. It records the uprooting of a home, a change in county and landscape, and at times the de-rooting of my senses and my mind. I’m Dara, a boy, an acorn. Mum used to call me lon dubh (which is Irish for blackbird) when I was a baby, and sometimes she still does. I have the heart of a naturalist, the head of a would-be scientist, and the bones of someone who is already wearied by the apathy and destruction wielded against the natural world. The outpourings on these pages express my connection to wildlife, try to explain the way I see the world, and describe how we weather the storms as a family…” Teenager Dara McAnulty has fast become one of Britain’s most acclaimed nature writers and activists. His debut work ‘Diary of a Young Naturalist’ salutes the wonders of the natural world, the threats they face, and details his own life as a 14-year-old with autism, campaigning to protect the wilds. Read the prologue here. { read more }

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Learn more about Dara’s newest book, “Wild Child” here. { more }

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July 15, 2021

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Practicing the Art of Wonder: Lessons from the Hummingbird

“A Broad-billed Hummingbird hangs for a few seconds, not three feet away. The brilliant sapphire gorget flashes for an instant, and then the tiny bird is gone in a shot, his raspy cry fading like a lost thought into the oaks. I close my eyes and try to feel the impact that the hundreds of hummingbirds I’ve seen over the past few days have had on my psyche. The swirl of their presence, their diminutive size, their radiant color, their adroit quickness, their bickering flurries, all seep into me, and finally well up into awed appreciation, just for their being in the world. Past, future, and self fall away. In that moment, Ive become the planet-as-human, in wonder at hummingbirds, feeling them as part of the splendor of life.” { read more }

Be The Change

Practice the art of wonder through radical presence today.

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July 14, 2021

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Sacred Earth, Sacred Soul

“We know things in the core of our being that we have not necessarily been taught. And some of this deep knowing may actually be at odds with what our culture or religion or nation has tried to teach us. This book is about reawakening to what we know in the depths of our being, that the earth is sacred, and that this sacredness is at the heart of every human being and life-form. To awaken again to this deep knowing is to be transformed in the ways we choose to live and relate and act.” John Philip Newell is a modern-day Celtic bard and spiritual teacher in the prophetic tradition who communicates across the boundaries of religion and race, following in the footsteps of other “wandering” teachers from the Celtic diaspora scattered across the centuries. What follows is an excerpt from his new book, “Sacred Earth, Sacred Soul.” { read more }

Be The Change

Join this Saturday’s Awakin Call with John Philip Newell: Gathering and Sowing Forgotten Seeds for Our Time. More details and RSVP info here. { more }

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July 13, 2021

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Indigenous Knowledge and Gift Giving

“In our way we are always told not to ask for anything. We are always told in our community, as a practice, that when we have to start asking for something, that’s when we’re agreeing that people be irresponsible. Irresponsible in not understanding what we’re needing, irresponsible in not seeing what’s needed, and irresponsible in not having moved our resources and our actions to make sure that need isn’t there, because this is the responsibility that we, and the people that surround us, mutually bear. So in our community we cannot go to a person and say, “I want you to do this for me.” All we can do is clarify for them what is happening and what the consequences are for our family, or for our community, or for the land. We must clarify for them what needs to be done and how it needs to be done, and then it is up to them and if they fall short of that responsibility, at some point they will face the same need themselves.” Jeannette Armstrong shares more about the profound world-view and practices of the Okanagan people in this insightful essay. { read more }

Be The Change

Many of the practices and perspectives in the above piece challenge mainstream culture and norms. Pick one that particularly calls out to you, or perhaps, if you prefer, one that slightly intimidates you– and try implementing it in your own life for a period of your own choosing.

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July 12, 2021

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Seven Lessons Learned from Leaves

“I’ve been thinking more deeply about leaves –what these simple gifts of nature can teach us, and how they can help us overcome the challenges we face in life. Over the past year, I jotted down thoughts in a vintage leather-covered notebook that I keep on my desk. And in the spirit of this deeper exploration, I used a macro lens on my camera to reveal a closer look at the wondrous structure of leaves. Here are seven things I’m grateful for having observed.” Paul Cotter shares more. { read more }

Be The Change

Look closely at the leaves of your house plant, or the tree outside your window, or on a neighbors shrubbery. What do you see?

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July 11, 2021

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Earning Humility: My Story of Meeting Rollie Grandbois

“It was a bright August morning and I had the shop all to myself. Since my wife and I were staying nearby, we’d driven past the place before on the way to town. To tell the truth, from the look of it, I’d decided it was best avoided. But this morning, I’d decided to go against my snap judgments. Besides, I needed a little break. So as an exercise, I thought I’d go out for a walk and strike up a conversation with strangers as the opportunity appeared. This required an effort to go against my usual tendency. To be candid, the idea of approaching strangers stirred up a little anxiety. So I thought I’d start with a shopkeeper. It wasn’t going so well.” In this quiet, beautifully written piece, art magazine editor, Richard Whittaker shares the story of a day of unexpected encounters, and the riches that sometimes reveal themselves when we withhold conclusion. { read more }

Be The Change

The next time you have an instantaneous judgment come up about someone, or something — see if you can summon the curiosity to step past it, and see what there is to discover on the other side.

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