new decade, new orbit

As I start a new chapter with this seventh decade, I wonder what my prayer will be. What feels urgent?

Can we love ourselves enough to change? Can we love each other enough to change? Can we embrace change in all of its manifestations? That is my prayer for today. 

Manhattanhenge 11 July 2026 - Grand Central Station, NYC

Can we create the kind of changes necessary - together, to thrive on this planet? The only planet that we will ever call home. That's my prayer. ~ Terry Tempest Williams 

Beloved books of this author are often about what is easy to overlook – the holy ordinary as she calls it. Whether it's the beauty and plight of the natural world, or the silence and struggle of a loved one. 

In this session of Wild Card, she talks about why women with big ideas get labeled crazy and how her late mother influences her. 

Tara Mangalartha

The Tara Mangalartha Mantra is a prayer to restore climate balance. 

Oṃ tāre tuttāre ture Maṅgalaṃ śrī mahā pāṇi svāhā

Tara Mangalartha, the 12th Tara

Translated as, "she who brings about auspiciousness." This mantra is a sacred chant associated with the deity Tara - a revered figure in Tibetan Buddhism.

Tara Mangalartha (Drölma Tashi Dönjema) is the twelfth Tara, depicted as peaceful and golden yellow goddess. Seated serenely on her lotus flower with an auspicious infinity knot.

ceremony

Ceremony is a conscious act performed, uniting in ritual and purpose, the specialness of an event or occasion. Cultural or traditional, religious or civil, communal or private - a ceremony is a creative, powerful, and impactful means of communication and connectivity. 

Canterbury Cathedral Altar

Adding ceremony to our daily prayer is valuable because it consciously directs our purpose and intent. Prayers are universal and every individual prays one way or another. Prayer is deliberate communication issued or action taken to connect with spirit, the divine, all that is, source, the God of our heart. 

A Shinto Kamidana [home altar]

When we pray we are either naming, asking, or declaring with prayers of invocation, petition or decree. The idea expressed or action taken are an expression of honour, worship, or devotion. 

The Opferstein or sacrificial rock, Austria