My library, which has been a very special part of my life, has been growing at a level which is both unsustainable and burdensome. As part of a greater move toward more simplicity and less possessions, I am in the process of selling off many things, including books. The books currently listed for sale can be found at the Apollonius Used Bookstore, but keep checking back as the list will continue to be added to in the coming months.

I apologize for my absence with posting as of late. My hiatus will likely continue until mid-June as time is very precious and in short supply these days with the course load I’m currently undergoing. I wanted to take a moment to poke my head out from my study cave to share some news that is very special to me: Today I was admitted into the postulancy of the Order of Ecumenical Franciscans. The journey from here to the possibility of becoming a professed member of the OEF is neither short nor guaranteed, but I’m sure it will be worth the effort. On this Earth Day, 2013, I feel moved to share with you this poem from St. Francis — who just happens to be the patron saint of ecology:

Mother Earth
By Saint Francis of Assisi

Dear mother earth, who day by day
Unfolds rich blessing on our way,
O praise God! Alleluia!
The fruits and flowers that verdant grow,
Let them his praise abundant show.
O praise God, O praise God,
Alleluia, Alleluia, Alleluia.

On this St. Valentine’s Day, I thought I would share 14 inspirational quotes on love:

1.   ”Darkness cannot drive out darkness: only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate: only love can do that.” ― Martin Luther King Jr.

2.   “Whoever does not love does not know God, for God is love.” — 1 John 4:8

3.   ”If you judge people, you have no time to love them.” — Mother Teresa

4.   ”To love at all is to be vulnerable. Love anything and your heart will be wrung and possibly broken. If you want to make sure of keeping it intact you must give it to no one, not even an animal. Wrap it carefully round with hobbies and little luxuries; avoid all entanglements. Lock it up safe in the casket or coffin of your selfishness. But in that casket, safe, dark, motionless, airless, it will change. It will not be broken; it will become unbreakable, impenetrable, irredeemable. To love is to be vulnerable.” ― C.S. Lewis

5.   ”Where there is love there is life.” ― Mahatma Gandhi

6.   ”I have found the paradox, that if you love until it hurts, there can be no more hurt, only more love.” ― Mother Teresa

7.   ”There are two basic motivating forces: fear and love. When we are afraid, we pull back from life. When we are in love, we open to all that life has to offer with passion, excitement, and acceptance. We need to learn to love ourselves first, in all our glory and our imperfections. If we cannot love ourselves, we cannot fully open to our ability to love others or our potential to create. Evolution and all hopes for a better world rest in the fearlessness and open-hearted vision of people who embrace life.” ― John Lennon

8.   ”When we love, we always strive to become better than we are. When we strive to become better than we are, everything around us becomes better too.” ― Paulo Coelho

9.   “Every heart sings a song, incomplete, until another heart whispers back. Those who wish to sing always find a song. At the touch of a lover, everyone becomes a poet.” ― Plato

10.  ”Who, being loved, is poor?” ― Oscar Wilde

11.  ”The minute I heard my first love story,
I started looking for you, not knowing
how blind that was.
Lovers don’t finally meet somewhere.
They’re in each other all along.” — Rumi

12.  ”Immature love says: ‘I love you because I need you.’ Mature love says ‘I need you because I love you.’” — Erich Fromm

13.  ”Of all forms of caution, caution in love is perhaps the most fatal to true happiness.” ― Bertrand Russell

14.  ”This is what we call love. When you are loved, you can do anything in creation. When you are loved, there’s no need at all to understand what’s happening, because everything happens within you.” ― Paulo Coelho

Earlier I posted information about the upcoming monthly community meditation group I am putting together in Fairview (here). After receiving some feedback from several people, I have decided to expand the idea and add a second group at a different location, place, and time to better accommodate work schedules. As with the Fairview group, the Gresham group sessions are aimed at seasoned veteran meditators and those new to meditation alike. The Gresham group will be meeting on the first Tuesday of the month and will begin at 7pm, and after a short group discussion, will be followed by a 20-minute guided breathing meditation. All are welcome, and it is my hope that these monthly group sessions will help to bring a daily meditation practice that works for you into your life.

Gresham Community Meditation
When: First Tuesday of each month, 7:00-7:45pm
Cost: $0.
Location: 385 NW Miller Ave., Gresham, Oregon.
More info: Facebook event page.