A few winters ago I was attending a water ceremony by the Mississippi River. It was a very cold morning, I was tired and fuzzy headed, and I still felt new and awkward with the group. When Sharon Day, the Ojibwe elder who leads the ceremony, handed me the sage Read more…
“Who is the next walker? We need someone right now!” I was on the Cannon River Water Walk last week, and there was a group of water walkers coming towards us carrying the vessel of water we had gathered at the headwaters. The water is not supposed to stop moving Read more…
Back to School is in the air. Summer always goes too quickly but I’m honestly happy to be returning to the school routine. Even before I had a child every fall I felt the back to school spirit. After all the excitement of summer its time to get down to Read more…
One of my biggest weaknesses has been getting overwhelmed by the enormity and depth of our intersecting global crises. This weakness is the flip side of one of my super powers: the ability to see, synthesize, and transmit the big picture. As part of the effort to feel strong rather Read more…
Water is making the headlines big time right now. Catastrophic storms. Severe droughts. Water is giving fearsome expression to the changes in our climate. Climate can be such a vague notion. But water is tangible. Water is my way of staying focused in the complicated work of reversing climate change Read more…
This past weekend I participated in the Minnehaha Creek Water Walk, a prayer walk that traveled the 22 miles from Lake Minnetonka to the Mississippi River. Sharon Day, an Ojibwe elder, led this ceremony. Before you think about being impressed by my long distance walking skills, I should tell you Read more…
Nearly six years ago I drove home from the hospital with our newborn daughter. She was (and is) a precious passenger and it felt like a jarring risk to drive this tender bundle along the highways on that sub-zero day. I still glance into the backseat, feeling like I am Read more…