Kayak Dreams
I dreamt of kayaking last night, of kayaking with friends, and of kayaking alone, at sea. I’ve always felt a special pull toward the ocean. I love being near the ocean, love being able to smell the sea air.
Having said I want to go sea kayaking for years, I finally went for the first time this summer. I loved it; loved the magical feeling of being out on the open sea, gently rocked by waves while seals frolicked around and swam under my kayak.
I woke this morning remembering that feeling, the feeling of being gently rocked by waves, and found myself thinking of Yemaya Olokun, the orisha of the deep sea and quite possibly my mother orisha. Some say that you pray to Yemaya Olokun for dream magic, and it certainly seems to be dream magic that I’m experiencing. My dreams are more plentiful these days, it seems, if not quite as vivid, and I find myself turning the images over and over in my head, appreciating them for the beauty of the images, if not also for the many messages they contain, some of which are more clear, and some less.
There is so much more that can be said about Yemaya, Olokun, and Yemaya’s manifestation as Olokun. For now, however, this prayer to Olokun, spirit of the ocean:
Iba Olokun fe mi lo’re. Iba Olokun omo re wa se fun oyi o.
Olokun nu ni o si o ki e lu re ye toray. B’omi ta’afi. B’emi ta’afi.
Olokun ni’ka le. Mo juba. Ase.
I praise the Spirit of the vast Ocean. I praise the Spirit of the Ocean who is beyond understanding.
Spirit of the Ocean, I will worship you, as long as there is water in the Sea.
Let there be peace in the ocean. Let there be peace in my soul.
The Spirit of the Ocean, the ageless one, I give respect. May it be so.
The Strength of a Tree
The strength of a tree, the old ones say, comes not from growing thicker in the good years when there is water, but from staying alive in the bad, dry times.
— Joseph M. Marshall III, The Journey of Crazy Horse
The Antidote to Death is Life
What can one do? Go home, love your children, try not to bicker, eat well, walk in the rain, feel the sun on your face and laugh loud and often, as much as possible, and especially at yourself. Because the only antidote to death is not poetry, or drama, or miracle drugs, or a roomful of technical expertise and good intentions. The antidote to death is life.
Theresa Brown, “Perhaps Death Is Proud; More Reason to Savor Life,”
The New York Times
A Happy Life
A happy life cannot be without a measure of darkness, and the word “happy” would lose its meaning if it were not balanced by sadness.
— Carl Jung
The Mountain Pine
Our attitude must be like that of the mountain pine…: It does not get annoyed when its growth is obstructed by a stone, nor does it make plans about how to overcome the obstacles. It merely tries to feel whether it should grow more toward the left or the right, toward the slope or away from it. Like the tree, we should give in to this almost imperceptible, yet powerfully dominating impulse — an impulse that comes from the urge toward unique, creative self-realization. And this is a process in which one must repeatedly seek out and find something that is not yet known to anyone. The guiding hints or impulses come, not from the ego, but from the totality of the psyche: the Self.
Marie-Louise von Franz, “The Process of Individuation,” Man and His Symbols
Musings & Meditations 
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