Carl the golden retriever learns about the limitations of the Golden Rule.

Is it not a marvel?

Remind me that life is magical and mysterious.

One of the Goddess’s best friends was a cardinal—a bright red bird who loved to play with the Goddess and the Sun.

My vet said, “She's telling you thank you for letting her go.”

The changes that take place in winter are a kind of alchemy, an enchantment performed by ordinary creatures to survive.

We already have everything we need within us to meet the life that is before us.

Maybe hope is fleeting. It leaves and returns again; there’s beauty in its impermanence.

Arm's length: What was once a defensive or suspicious expression has now become a gesture of care, an indication of love and protection.

Tip if you are video recording this story: you can have a clip of an adult stretching out their arm in one direction, then another clip of a different adult stretching out their arm in the other direction, so that when you edit it, it looks like they are stretching towards each other. It would be...

Part of being in community is noticing what's needed. Part of being in community is doing what is necessary but unclaimed.

We light this chalice in honor of the animal realm, Furred and hoofed, two-legged, four-legged, many-legged, Fanged and clawed, gentle and fierce, wild and tame. May we remember that all animals are our relatives, Worthy of our care and respect.

My church is a ring of alders tilting toward a living pond, backed by the punctuation of tall firs fondling the morning breeze. In my chapel, redwing blackbird unravels her liquid song in the cattails. The thick mud smell is an incense, a beaver-felled tree is my pew. I toss my donation, red...

There is relief and remorse equally in my heart as the growing season comes to a close.

What it means to have a pet is to love someone who speaks a language you do not. A dog will bow and prance, a cat will purr and blink. A guinea pig will giggle and squeak. A long time ago a friend of mine had a dog with soft ears, and considered herself the pup’s guardian....

If justice is to be realized, our voices must speak loudly—even boisterously—of love.

We can’t always predict which choices will wind up having a huge impact on us, whether it's bringing home a stuffed animal or taking a particular train to Oxford Circus.

Surrender is the last thing, often the only thing, available. And so we give ourselves to it. We fear it is our end. Sometimes—with grace or luck—we find it is our liberation.

What, exactly, are we doing when we invite love into our lives? Surely we know that it's much tidier without it, when things stay at a distance.

Who are the angry birds in my life? What are the sticks I carry in my heart so as not to be hurt again?