Ingrid Goff-Maidoff
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I have a friend who came to see me,
who danced naked under the stars.
She brought a friend who is now my friend,
and who laughed with ease and joy.
Sweet unity.
This is what we had.
Today my heart is full
of moonlight and sunlight and dancing.
Today my life is brimming
with laughter and ease, and stars.
~Ingrid
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Blue Serenity…
Beach Plum Flowers at Lambert’s Cove…
Rowboat…
Lilacs…
Solar and wind…
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Ask me for a certain amount of dollars if you will.
But do not ask me for my afternoons.
~Henry David Thoreau
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I took a few days off last week for a personal retreat. I went to a bed and breakfast on the Cape with a few books, journals and poems, a cooler full of snacks, and the wish to be emptied and filled.
Because it is the quiet season, I had my choice of rooms. It was the bathtub that won me. And so I chose this room.
I spent three nights here in solitude, and asked myself, “why do you retreat?”. I wondered if it was to get away from my cares, and I realized that I love my cares. I love my family and my home- even all of the distractions that they provide me. But I needed a few days to let some contemplations settle in, without the temptation of jumping up to do laundry or sweep the floor before they had really taken root within me.
I went for a few walks, but mostly hunkered down in the room. I wasn’t lonely. Not because I am such fascinating company, but because I do love the world, and find that it is fascinating.
I worked on poems, and I journaled and read…and somehow mostly settled into the realization that I love the Eternal Realm, the spiritual and poetical realm- not in opposition to my earthly experience, but in addition to it. This was a lovely personal epiphany which brought me a lot of excitement and ease, and a great sense of well being.
Last week I remembered that it is in the human heart that heaven and earth meet and mingle and are glorious company to each other. I realize this may sound obvious. But it was something I was in danger of forgetting.
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“Such blessings we receive,
such gifts of grace.
If we have wandered from the path of gladness,
point us back to life!”
~Ingrid Goff-Maidoff
Happy Thanksgiving to all. As is my habit, here are some excerpts from my book, Simple Graces for Every Meal. I penned these graces in hopes that they would be comfortable and inspiring in all kinds of company. Joy to you this holiday season, Ingrid
Let us join together
To all who live on Martha’s Vineyard: The Bunch of Grapes Bookstore in Vineyard Haven has honored me with a lovely display. I am very grateful to have a year round outlet for my work there. I’ll also be at the Artisan’s Fair on Friday and Saturday this week, so please come! And my work is available at the Holiday Cooperative Shop on Main Street in Vineyard Haven (near Leslie’s).
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To write about coming home may seem odd for a gal who hasn’t been away anywhere, yet that’s how these days feel - as if I am home again after a long while. I am slowing down, easing into autumn after the summer whirl- a whirl in which it feels as if I went from the basement studio, where I assemble my books and wares, to the old Grange hall where I sell them. As I slow down I begin to notice things and therefore to enjoy them - like the way the setting sun lit up Kwan Yin’s face the other night. And my gosh the fish are vibrant and healthy.
I’ve brought the plants in, and they make the house feel so cheery and alive.
I’ve even been taking the time to hang out the laundry. It’s a pleasure and a privilege not to rush. How is it that my “to do” list is so long, and my “to be” list is so short? To be less hurried, more loving, happy, peaceful, at ease….
Another quality of feeling at home is the sense of resting in belonging- of venturing out into the arms of the day that I feel when I head out on a walk somewhere. Here, the fields of Tea Lane farm are so beautiful.
The evening light filtering through the woods; the stone walls; the occasional deer- all remind me somehow of the hidden world of the soul, and the unhidden world which is right here, to be noticed, savored and enjoyed at any moment… as soon as I remember to slow myself down and to come home.
May all beings be well.
May all beings be free from suffering.
May all beings be peaceful and at ease.
May all beings know love and belonging…
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It was a moment I can only describe as grace. Yesterday, after I had finished my accounting, glued some House Blessings, and surveyed my long list for the next task to accomplish, I took boxes out onto the lawn to paint gold for 100 Fortunes. Having done that, I looked up. Bees were busily feasting in the lavender, a gentle breeze was moving through the trees, a woodpecker was tapping in the oaks, and I heard my inner voice declare, “enough.”
I stood up to take in all that I have been missing, my mind on other things.
The other day, Ivan Granger included this thought in a Poetry Chaikhana mailing:
What we call the ego
is the individual’s particular way
of not being fully present.
Isn’t that well said?
In my book, The Abundance of Grace, I wrote,
Grace is often found in surrendering our plans,
letting go the need for perfection,
giving up impossible ideals,
and humbling ourselves before the mystery…
~Ingrid Goff-Maidoff.
As I declared, “enough”, I was able to let go my list. I humbled myself before the mystery, wandered the garden, taking photos, and marvelling at the beauty all around me. And I am so glad I did! I will post more excerpts on grace next.
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When the mind is at peace,
the world too is at peace.
Nothing real, nothing absent.
Not holding on to reality,
not getting stuck in the void,
you are neither holy nor wise,
just an ordinary fellow
who has completed his work.
~P’ang Yun
English Version by Stephen Mitchell
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Hello Friends, I feel the need for a chatty catch-up… and the need for a sacred pause, for stillness. I’ll share some of my activities here… and then post a sacred pause. In fact, I think I’ll lean toward such posts as the summer frenzy begins. Because, as usual, I don’t want this blog to be about me as much as about all of us.
My sister and I visited with our good friend Wendy in Maine last week. We’ve known each other since high school. It was amazing how silly we all still are together… And how deep that connection, friendship, love still feels…amidst children, marriages, and long lengths of time between visits. I feel blessed.
One delicious ingredient of summer, for me, is to see my wares all set up at the Artisan’s Fairs here on Martha’s Vineyard, and to meet new people and catch up with old friends. This also means the beginning of frenzy for me. As much as I try to prepare ahead all winter, I still seem to generate huge lists of what I hope to produce 
in between shows. Pictured here is one quarter of my display…
The weather has been mostly unsunny here these days…. But still, it’s beautiful… Ok. Enough chat! xo, ing
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To wander on Wednesdays;
To sit quietly
by the shoreline of stillness;
To drop my mind down
below the surface chatter -
The radio waves of thought
and their compulsive agitations:
The insult channel; the gossip channel;
the channel of panic and confusion.
To drop down into the
deep quiet from which
all wisdom comes.
To rest in awareness
of all that is here.
I do not long for more projects
or lists,
No more doing
or ideas for doing.
I only want this.
This.
The holy embrace of the day.
~Ingrid
(Special thanks to my dear friend Lori, who helped me take out my schedule and block out this time. Tell me friends, how do you make time and space for stillness, contentment, for belonging and for love?)
~
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