“God’s time is always near. He set the North Star in the heavens; He gave me the strength in my limbs; He meant I should be free.”

Harriet Tubman, American abolitionist, who died on this day in 1913

From Earth Bound: Daily Meditations for All Seasons by Brian Nelson,

“You can hear them morning, noon, and night, calling to each other, getting the work of this new year underway. The birds are returning, scavenging your neighborhood to make their homes, building cradles for their young, ceaselessly flying onward to the next task.

Terry Tempest Williams writes, “I pray to the birds because they remind me of what I love rather than what I fear.” Robins, jays, and wrens are the priests of springtime, confidently going about their rituals, selflessly offering inspiration, never resting upon their laurels (or elms or maples). Enter their green cathedral and sing a song of praise to the new season along with them.”

International Women’s Day

Goddess by Misha Sanders

“In a sacred place of honor
in the temple that is my home
stands a gleaming, powerful image of
The Venus of Willendorf,
proud and naked,
her unbound breasts resting on her
fully rotund belly, blissful and heavy
with the ripeness of all life
and the sweet milk that sustains it,
having no apologies to make for the
fat fullness of her thighs,
grown strong and proud from the
carrying of this wide expanse of hips,
and a rump the roundness of which
has enchanted poets and priests
since before time.
The Wise Goddess-Child
who is my daughter
calls this image The Mommy Doll,
and she has no interest in the notion
that maybe this lush feminine form
was not fashioned to look like me.
How, then, can I face this child
and not stand tall and BE A GODDESS
and in whatever size I am
be content?
I do not need
minimizing panels in my panties
and wires in my bra
to be divine and full of beauty.
Full of beauty.
Not starving.
Not starving for affection, approval,
appreciation, confirmation,
conformity, or anonymity.
But fully at home in the body of
this woman
who takes up her share of space
without saying I’m sorry,
and still leaves room enough in the world for
you.
So, to you,
and to me,
and to the Wise Goddess-Child who is my daughter,
I say,
fearlessly and wondrously are we made
in the image of
She Who is Most Holy,
and the
blasphemy
of body hatred
has no place
in this temple.”

“In the end, only three things matter: how much you loved, how gently you lived, and how gracefully you let go of things not meant for you.”

Attributed to the Buddha

“Your gifts lie in the place where your values, passions and strengths meet. Discovering that place is the first step toward sculpting your masterpiece, Your Life.”

Michelangelo, born on this day in 1475

“My Soul came to me pure,
drawn from the reservoir of the Holy.
All the time it remains within me,
I am thankful for its thirst
for compassion and justice.
Let my eyes behold the beauty of all creatures;
let my hands know the privilege of righteous deeds.”

Mishkan T’filah Siddur

“Don’t go off somewhere else
Kabir says: Just throw away
All thoughts of imaginary things
And stand firm in that which you are.”
Kabir

“When one door closes, another opens; but we often look so long and so regretfully upon the closed door that we do not see the one that has opened for us.”

Alexander Graham Bell, born on this day in 1847

BLESSING THE DUST by Jan Richardson,

“All those days
you felt like dust,
like dirt,
as if all you had to do
was turn your face
toward the wind
and be scattered
to the four corners
or swept away
by the smallest breath
as insubstantial—
did you not know
what the Holy One
can do with dust?
This is the day
we freely say
we are scorched.
This is the hour
we are marked
by what has made it
through the burning.
This is the moment
we ask for the blessing
that lives within
the ancient ashes,
that makes its home
inside the soil of
this sacred earth.
So let us be marked
not for sorrow.
And let us be marked
not for shame.
Let us be marked
not for false humility
or for thinking
we are less
than we are
but for claiming
what God can do
within the dust,
within the dirt,
within the stuff
of which the world
is made
and the stars that blaze
in our bones
and the galaxies that spiral
inside the smudge
we bear.”

“Be joyful, and keep your faith… Do the little things that you have seen me do and heard about. I will walk the path that our fathers have trod before us.”

Saint David of Wales