In this season of love and giving I thought it fruitful to remind my readers — and myself — of the essence of what this blog is about. The nature of True Beauty (to make the distinction from the the sort sought at cosmetics counters), is its importance in our everyday lives. How to … Read More
One Woman’s Evolving Epilepsy Cycles
Life cycles through different stages. In Feminine Wisdom we know about the main three that influence the developmental cycles of women: Virgin (or maiden), Mother (self-explanatory), and Crone — or as I like to think of the last — Wise Woman. I am at the Wise Woman stage. I’ve noticed and experienced many sub-cycles … Read More
Holidays, Holy Days, Holi-Daze
I’ve never liked November. I don’t exactly know why, especially since there are so many celebrations in my family in November as well as, of course, Thanksgiving. And I’ve always enjoyed Thanksgiving, so why do I dread November? Perhaps it is the dreary weather so often encountered in the Northeast, where I grew up and … Read More
It’s Everywhere!
The Ubiquitous Presence and (Yay!) Appreciation of True Beauty I have stayed in the homes of people living in Russia, Sri Lanka, England, New Zealand, France, Italy, Turkey, and Peru. I have also traveled in Ecuador, Tahiti, China, Canada, Hong Kong, Thailand, Wales, Germany, Puerto Rico, various islands in the Caribbean, several amazing ancient sites in … Read More
Other Perceptions of the Truly Beautiful – II, Hozho
Hozho of the Navajo: A definitively beauty-centric culture is that of the Navajo, or the Diné (meaning “the people” as they refer to themselves). It is guided by a fundamental principle of “hozho,” which embodies a pervasive philosophy of integrated balance, order, harmony and well-being. Difficult to fully translate into English, hozho is at … Read More
Other Perceptions of The Truly Beautiful – I
Wabi Sabi: Evolving out of the ancient Japanese Tea Ceremony traditions and still thriving in today’s world, Wabi-Sabi is a decidedly non-Western and non-Pop Culture method of perceiving beauty. Some, on “automatic pilot” might even perceive a “wabi sabi” object as ugly, or perhaps just ready to be thrown out, for Wabi-Sabi is the beauty … Read More