Browsing Tag

sarah ban breathnach

time alone

July 23, 2018

I am sticking with my intention to read the book Simple Abundance throughout the year, more or less. I’m not diligent, but I do pick it up every few days and read the entry for that day. In today’s entry Sarah talks to us about spending time alone. Sometimes it is necessary to snatch time whenever we can find it. This may mean in the very early morning, the wee hours late into the night, or at some point in…

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in the moment

January 11, 2018

As part of my winter reading, I’m back to Simple Abundance by Sarah Ban Breathnach. Maybe because the book is laid out by daily chapters, one for each day of the year, I tend to start reading it at the first of each year as part of the fresh start mentality, then drift away. I do love this book and am going to try and stick with it for the whole year this time. In today’s entry Sarah writes about…

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soup

April 24, 2017

Getting back to reading Simple Abundance by Sarah Ban Breathnach. In her entry for today, she talks of tastes, specifically culinary tastes. She advises us to  seek out unusual, perhaps ethnic, grocery stores and to clean out our spice cabinets. I can admit that I tend to let spice jars hang out forever on my spice racks. While they do last quite a while, they do also have a shelf life at some point. I recently did a very quick,…

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answered prayers

November 13, 2016

Today in Simple Abundance, Sarah references Oscar Wilde, who believed that there are only two tragedies in life: not getting what you pray for and getting it. She goes on to discuss prayers, with all their inherent uncertainties. Are we praying for the right thing? Why do we always seem to receive a “No”? Could we even handle it if we got a “Yes” instead? When I silently pray for peace, for universal freedom, for forgiveness, can I send out that…

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a frog’s schedule

August 3, 2016

I found this little guy while I was watering the garden. He was no more than one inch long, a tiny thing. He stood stock-still and I snapped a few pictures of him. Then I went on about my business. When I came back through to refill my water pitcher, he was gone. Going on about his frog business, which likely means the business of getting food, I surmised. Sarah Ban Breathnach writes about “catching days” in today’s Simple Abundance…

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secret anniversaries

June 16, 2016

Today in Simple Abundance, Sarah writes about secret anniversaries, those special memories that mean something to us personally, which we honor in private, such as a first kiss or the last moment we spent with someone dear who has since passed on. Colors, scents or seasons of the year may trigger a remembrance of those occasions. This year my husband and I celebrated our 11th wedding anniversary. While that was not a private celebration, this sun sculpture always brings to my…

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vibrant morsels

April 25, 2016

Today in Simple Abundance, Sarah reminds us to look at the blue sky, hear the grass growing beneath our feet and inhale the scent of spring. She quotes naturalist Diane Ackerman, who says “The senses don’t just make sense of life in bold or subtle acts of clarity, they tear reality apart into vibrant morsels and reassemble them into a meaningful pattern.” I love the phrase “vibrant morsels.” Don’t you think these plants might be considered vibrant morsels, assembled to the…

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the best medicine

March 25, 2016

Today’s entry in the Simple Abundance book speaks to us about feeling blue. Occasionally, these feelings get the best of us. Sarah offers to us several ways to cope with these feelings, ranging from brewing a fresh pot of tea to clearing your head with a walk around the block, to preparing a new recipe for dinner. I love all of these suggestions. I especially take to heart her suggestion of cleaning our desks and organizing our papers. This never…

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stillness

March 15, 2016

Today’s message in the Simple Abundance book is about self-nurturing. Sarah Ban Breathnach asks us to consider simple acts of taking good care of ourselves. She asks “How much sleep are you getting? Are you walking often or getting enough exercise? Have you given meditation a fair chance?” I’ve recently begun spending one minute outside first thing each morning, listening to the birds as they start their day. This was so difficult at first – one whole minute during the…

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things that matter

March 8, 2016

Today in the Simple Abundance book, Sarah Ban Breathnach says that “simplicity gains importance in our lives as we begin to make peace with ourselves.” It seems that when we get very clear with who we are and what is truly important to us in life, simplicity just makes sense. I am reminded of this each time I take a walk in the woods. Or spend a morning tending to the seedlings which will soon become food. Or take the dogs for…

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