Astrophysicist Carl Sagan once said, “If you want to bake an apple pie from scratch, you must first invent the universe.” Every subatomic particle in an apple pie appeared in the first second after the universe expanded into being 13.7 billion years ago. He could have said the same of mud pies, though it wouldn’t have […]
The intimate bond: humans and dirt Read More »
Laudato si — Praise be! — are the opening words of each of the verses in Saint Francis’s beautiful Canticle to the Sun. It is also the title of Pope Francis’ 2015 encyclical defining the Catholic Church’s doctrines on the care of the earth. This year, September 1 is the annual World Day of Prayer
Laudato si: wonder and care Read More »
I’m still wandering the Utah desert with Moses. He’d be very used to this, but, though I love it, I’m positive I’d find forty years a few decades too many. “Well, of course,” he would say, with the air of a man who has come to grips with doing what his god says. No matter
A land of stone tablets Read More »
Humans are story making animals. We have a story for everything, and many, many stories for the same things, depending on where and with whom we found ourselves when we arrived in this life. Our tales explain where we came from, how we got here, why we’re here at all, how to behave now that
Eostre and the universe story Read More »
One of my greatest moments of transcendence happened on the Marin headlands. I was standing within view of the glittering city of San Francisco and the elegant curve of the Golden Gate bridge. It was early in March, and the wildflower season had started. I had been hiking and photographing them for three hours, working
Transcendence: surprised by joy Read More »
I didn’t know I was going to a place I love in New Jersey until two weeks before I went, and had no idea I’d be celebrating Samhain there. But it’s the sort of place where that happens, so I might have guessed. Miriam McGillis is a friend, mentor, teacher. She started Genesis Farm, an
Samhain in New Jersey Read More »
A few years ago, I realized that daylight has a different sound than night does. Not the usual distinctions, like birdsong, crickets, traffic. When the sun rises, I hear a difference in the world. A tone, very subtle, with more vibrance in sunlight than the velvety sound of night. I haven’t found an explanation for
The Place Where You Go to Listen Read More »
A new version of this essay is here: https://thesouloftheearth.com/utah-land-stone-tablets/
A land of stone tablets Read More »
There is a new version of this post: https://thesouloftheearth.com/desert-wildlife-mysteries-at-my-feet/
Mysteries at my feet Read More »