“… the more you become aware of God, the more you … want to share the best of yourself with people, and you want to participate more fully in life. You … realize you have a choice: to admire the beautiful waterfall from a distance or to stand in its midst and let it pour over you. I’ve found that participation is the best part of being human.” — Katherine Dunham, IN SWEET COMPANY: CONVERSATIONS WITH EXTRAORDINARY WOMEN ABOUT LIVING A SPIRITUAL LIFE

I have 42 planets in Pisces. Not really, of course, but just the fact that I would say something like this gives you a a sense of how influenced I am by Piscean energies.

I am not an astrology aficionado. I believe in it, believe there are fine-tuned invisible energies that can exert influence on our comings and our goings. Though I cannot call them all by name, that they exist has never given me pause. This, too, gives you a sense of how influenced I am by the pull of the fish.

As a child, I related to the world, to everything in it, in term of its invisible properties. In Star Wars-speak, I felt “The Force” was with me. I had an animated relationship with “The Magic,” my then name for the God of my heart. I also had a relationship with Beauty. “Big Beauty” was the way I cognized experiences of harmony and grace, the things that made my heart stop or sing, things of Nature and of man. There was, I knew, a secret silken thread that held everything together. Kahlil Gibran gave me a name for that thread when he said, “Beauty is life when life unveils her holy face.” When I first read these words I understood what I wanted out of life, and that I could, must, employ my imagination and creativity into being on the lookout for Her holy face.

With the holiday season in full swing, when “two-for-one deals” and “special discounts taken at the register” predominate media buys, I want to put in a plug for Beauty. Take a peek!

Visit www.motheropearl.com and feast your eyes on a collection of hand carved, antique mother of pearl gaming counters from China transformed into pendants and earrings that are breathtakingly beautiful.

www.Chrismayne.net features stunning avian photographs. Chris sees to the heart of things; he sees Nature’s holy face.

www..beautydialogues.com is artist Amy Lenzo’s tribute to Beauty, to the Divine Feminine in her many forms.

A click on www.youtube.com/user/AlphabetPhotography will take you to a food court in middle America ( not a spot where Beauty normally predominates!) where shoppers had an encounter of unexpected Beauty as they munched their Arby’s and Chinese take out. 

www.powersofplace.com, The Powers of Place Initiative transports you to some of the most beautiful places in the world, to places that are alive, that are like “coming home.”

Enjoy. In joy.

Your thoughts?