The Mahavidyas in Everyday Life
Stepping more fully into the teachings, the writing, and the wisdom of the Divine Feminine Where the Physical and Spiritual Meet I recently listened to a podcast in which someone spoke about two primary aspects of our lives: the physical and the spiritual. The suggestion was that these two are constantly in conversation with one […]
The Gift of Release
Finding My Way to Shalom I first came to Shalom in September 2012 for the Men’s Gathering. Everything was very new to me, and there was definitely some awkwardness at first. But I fairly quickly got over that and dropped into the experience. I came back the following year, and not long after that, I […]
The Crone, the Void, and What Comes Next
Entering the Wisdom Years Not long ago, a friend described this stage of life as the wisdom years. Something in me responded immediately to that phrase. I am 62 now, and after more than six decades of living, loving, losing, choosing, failing, beginning again, and discovering just how rarely life unfolds according to plan, I […]
Jeff-Lazarus Story
Talking ‘Bout Lazarus In 1987, I came to Shalom Mountain and went on a retreat led by Jerry Jud. Only after a few more retreats did I realize that I didn’t have a particularly transformative mat trip that first time. What I did have was a life-changing, profound, and heart-exhilarating experience of loving community. I […]
Mary-Ok God, I’m Yours
A Prayer for Healing When I was about thirty, I remember saying, “Okay, God, I’m yours.” I wasn’t Christian, exactly, but I was deeply interested in early Christian mysticism. I was drawn to that kind of direct relationship with God, and I remember asking to learn how to heal the way Jesus healed. Looking back […]
Yvonne-Trusting the Process
An Invitation to Be Alive One of my favorite Shalom memories begins with a summer thunderstorm. I don’t remember exactly what retreat it was. It may have been the Spirituality and Sexuality retreat. What I do remember is sitting in the meditation room with everyone else, focused on whatever exercise we were doing, when one […]
Christina-Dancing in the Mystery
My Whole Life Led Me There I went to my first Shalom retreat in February 2023. A friend told me about it, but the deeper truth is that my whole life led me there. I got sober at twenty-one and spent sixteen years in twelve-step recovery. I was deeply committed, active in service, and it […]
Rebekah-Always Curious
Still Beginning I like to ask people a question: If you didn’t know how old you were, how old would you think you are? For me, the answer comes quickly. Twenty-four. Not in a denial-of-aging kind of way. More in a there’s still so much alive in me kind of way. That’s how I feel. […]
What Came Through the Gate
Lion’s Gate Oracle Deck and Guidebook Last year, during our Lion’s Gate gathering, we worked with an oracle deck created by one of my teachers from Africa. The deck held powerful teachings for me, supported my own journey, and offered meaningful guidance to our gathering. However, it was not created specifically for the Lion’s Gate […]
The First Date
That afternoon became a beautiful reminder of what happens when women of different generations come together and begin sharing stories. A thread appears. We recognize something of ourselves in one another. Memory becomes connection, and ordinary moments that might otherwise have been forgotten become alive again through the telling. This month, rather than highlighting one […]