tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3263277483313725070.post7292000189681930960..comments2023-06-01T04:16:03.883-08:00Comments on Whatever else my life is....it is also this dazzling darkness: Slippery SlopesUnknownnoreply@blogger.comBlogger18125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3263277483313725070.post-15757592155659306012010-01-26T20:35:31.490-09:002010-01-26T20:35:31.490-09:00What a great analogy. I can so relate! I never wan...What a great analogy. I can so relate! I never want to ski and people in Minnesota are starting to ski. I love your honest ending and it's relation to the journey.<br /><br />Thanks, my friend. I love your site so much!Suzhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01665971012821588161noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3263277483313725070.post-17374656559987439902010-01-26T18:09:14.095-09:002010-01-26T18:09:14.095-09:00Hi Rebecca,
I've been to Spirit Rock just nor...Hi Rebecca,<br /><br />I've been to Spirit Rock just north aof San Francisco for a number of retreats. Highly recommended. Yes, I have practiced a lot of Vipassana. Google Spirit Rock Meditation, and you'll find it.Dan Gurneyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11628603380292404658noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3263277483313725070.post-64773475612929595002010-01-26T11:20:24.419-09:002010-01-26T11:20:24.419-09:00Nicol, If I was in that picture I would be at the...Nicol, If I was in that picture I would be at the top peering over the side but not getting too close in case I might fall of the cliff. I always make Mark or the kids go down before me and tell me if I'm going to make it. Poor things. Then they stand at the bottom and make fun of me. (Well, Mark doesn't.) : )<br /><br />Love you....Rebecca Johnsonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07204958661623692803noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3263277483313725070.post-2201598943129229252010-01-26T11:18:54.934-09:002010-01-26T11:18:54.934-09:00Dan,
How exciting to have met with Jon and othe...Dan, <br /><br />How exciting to have met with Jon and other teachers like him. Did/do you practice vipassana? I am finally at a stage in my life where family schedules are going to work out to allow me to go to a meditation retreat, possibly ten day. I was wondering if you could recommend any retreat centers to me on the west coast. <br /><br />Thanks!Rebecca Johnsonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07204958661623692803noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3263277483313725070.post-12630341318213381142010-01-26T11:17:05.740-09:002010-01-26T11:17:05.740-09:00Beth, Thanks for your affirmation. My family act...Beth, Thanks for your affirmation. My family actually goes off and leaves me most of the time. More about that in future posts, I hope. : ) Love....Rebecca Johnsonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07204958661623692803noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3263277483313725070.post-83876368627743630642010-01-26T11:16:20.303-09:002010-01-26T11:16:20.303-09:00Dan, The idea that you share is the same one that...Dan, The idea that you share is the same one that I am constantly saying to my spiritual directees. You are exactly where you are supposed to be. Keep going. You're not screwing anything up. I would never ever ever call them bad pilgrims (what a very funny image when you stop to think about it. A bunch of people in black and white sitting around a Thanksgiving table acting very naughty) but I don't hesitate to judge my own journey. Thankfully, I have a director that keeps me on track as well. <br /><br />Thanks for reminding me as well. <br /><br />Love....Rebecca Johnsonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07204958661623692803noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3263277483313725070.post-16660045176793565592010-01-26T11:13:20.656-09:002010-01-26T11:13:20.656-09:00SS, I have heard that the mountains out east are ...SS, I have heard that the mountains out east are almost as bad as ours here. Alaska ain't no Colorado. Yep, life's a little tougher up here and we like it that way. (Not really, I'm a total fair weather skiier.)<br /><br />Love...Rebecca Johnsonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07204958661623692803noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3263277483313725070.post-18257847178088495002010-01-26T11:11:37.332-09:002010-01-26T11:11:37.332-09:00Polli,
Thank GOD we don't have to do it per...Polli, <br /><br />Thank GOD we don't have to do it perfectly! And much of the time, we don't get that "mid-air" correction. But, we get to try again. And again. <br /><br />Love....Rebecca Johnsonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07204958661623692803noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3263277483313725070.post-62394870827040578242010-01-26T11:10:32.158-09:002010-01-26T11:10:32.158-09:00Sulwyn, I think about fear constantly when I am o...Sulwyn, I think about fear constantly when I am on skis and also when I am in/on/around water. I so want to be fearless and in my inner life I feel pretty darn brave like I can face anything that is in there, but I constantly wonder if my fears of the outward world are feeding my inner life. I don't know. <br /><br />Love...Rebecca Johnsonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07204958661623692803noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3263277483313725070.post-68612971737736084022010-01-26T11:08:45.617-09:002010-01-26T11:08:45.617-09:00Barbara,
In the cosmic scheme of things maybe I a...Barbara,<br /><br />In the cosmic scheme of things maybe I am only on the bunny slope, but sometimes it FEELS like a double black diamond. Sometimes what is most interesting about getting down a run is to look back up at it and say, I did THAT?!! It's all pretty remarkable, on the slopes, but mostly off. : )<br /><br />Love...Rebecca Johnsonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07204958661623692803noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3263277483313725070.post-38147479612481664502010-01-26T09:17:20.705-09:002010-01-26T09:17:20.705-09:00Rebecca~ first of LOL at it not being you in the p...Rebecca~ first of LOL at it not being you in the picture. <br /><br />You are truly amazing to me. your braveness and honesty make me so proud to call you my friend.<br />love youAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3263277483313725070.post-42279586527825186522010-01-25T21:15:08.665-09:002010-01-25T21:15:08.665-09:00And, oh, by the way, I see you list Jon Kabat-Zinn...And, oh, by the way, I see you list Jon Kabat-Zinn's book "Wherever You Go, There You Are." I want to concur: It's a wonderful, non-sectarian introduction to mindfulness by a very good writer. I had the privilege of meeting him a while back and I've studied meditation with a bunch of his cohorts. A more accessible, reliable, readable, and useful guide would be difficult to find.Dan Gurneyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11628603380292404658noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3263277483313725070.post-91493882293364072010-01-25T20:50:00.507-09:002010-01-25T20:50:00.507-09:00Rebecca - what a great metaphor of spiritual pilg...Rebecca - what a great metaphor of spiritual pilgrimage. I applaud your courage and persistence for the goal of outdoor winter sports communion with your family ! Thank you for this great story !<br />bkBeth Knighthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05849933857186268455noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3263277483313725070.post-716464474754140062010-01-25T17:14:37.233-09:002010-01-25T17:14:37.233-09:00Fear is a great obstacle. So is judgment, positive...Fear is a great obstacle. So is judgment, positive or negative. Good/Bad thinking obscures reality, covering it up with a lot of irrelevancy. <br /><br />How can anyone be a bad pilgrim? <br /><br />You're the perfect pilgrim, with, maybe, but only if you insist on it, just a little room for improvement.Dan Gurneyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11628603380292404658noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3263277483313725070.post-86982681845882065952010-01-25T13:52:31.253-09:002010-01-25T13:52:31.253-09:00Rebecca,
Oh the ski/spiritual journey connection i...Rebecca,<br />Oh the ski/spiritual journey connection is terrific, so apt, so real. I learned to ski almost as you did although the snow/mostly ice I encountered was in Vermont. Bunny slopes and the very beginners were sorta fun. I think I actually had a pair of my own boots for a while but the distance from slopes, the great stretches of in between times of practice overcame any desire to head to higher ground. Thankfully, I DO NOT run my spiritual quest in that manner - much bolder, much more confident, but still on ice a lot of the time. Thanks for the sharing.<br /><br />xoDianna Woolleyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11901349180265745138noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3263277483313725070.post-23708392458560626162010-01-25T11:04:00.492-09:002010-01-25T11:04:00.492-09:00This is just glorious.
I'm reminded of a skat...This is just glorious.<br /><br />I'm reminded of a skateboarding video I watched with a soul-friend of mine who's a serious skateboarder. The guy in the video would sail from one ramp to another effortlessly - and they were seventy feet apart and VERY high off the ground! Sometimes his board would start to fall out from under his feet, but he would just ever-so-casually reach down and pull it back into position again as he was zooming through the empty air. It was breathtakingly graceful and thrilling.<br /><br />The analogy I saw in this is that it's not about doing it perfectly but about being able to correct oneself "in midair."Susan Carpenter Simshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13566372904106529839noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3263277483313725070.post-29333966398683578422010-01-25T11:03:20.120-09:002010-01-25T11:03:20.120-09:00Great corollary, especially when I think about all...Great corollary, especially when I think about all of the things that "fear" has kept me from doing, and still does keep me from trying. I wonder if I would have the guts to even get as far as you have on the slopes!Sulwynhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07955517410337921985noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3263277483313725070.post-91772756016753139462010-01-25T10:48:12.365-09:002010-01-25T10:48:12.365-09:00When it comes to spirituality, we all navigate the...When it comes to spirituality, we all navigate the "bunny slopes".Barbarahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17078914306329037697noreply@blogger.com