sarah mclachlan, and spiritual ramblings

[rivendellrose]

For all my fellow Sarah Mclachlan fans out there, this interview on NPR is something you will not want to miss. Listen to the full version, if your connection can handle the extra download time - not only is it an insightful and interesting interview with the woman behind the music, the Morning Edition folks kindly gave her reign on a baby grand in the studio and had her sing quite a bit throughout the interview. If you've never heard a recording of her singing live, let me assure you that it's a real treat.

(Tangentially: I believe in artists who, from the moment you first hear their work, touch your heart and soul, often for reasons you never fully understand. Sometimes it's just for one song, or one album - sometimes you grow with the artist, forever finding something new in their old work, and gaining new insights from their new work. Sarah Mclachlan is the latter, for me. I can remember the first time I heard one of her songs, loved it immediately, and still love just about all her music seven years later. ♥)

In more personal news, I've been feeling a bit disengaged with my spirituality for the last few months. I literally forgot Lughnassadh, which was hugely embarassing to me. It's never been one of my favorite holidays, granted, but it's just sad that I could let it slip by like that. I'm not quite sure how to get in touch again - this is the hazard of being solitary in spiritual practice, since you don't have a group to fall back on in moments when things just don't have the spark they once did.

More or less, I think my 'practical' take on spirituality is taking an unexpected toll - without ritual and reminders to act as touchstones, I lose connection. Maybe it's time to take holidays and reverence a bit more seriously again, and see how that feels for a while. I've also picked up a few books from the library, which I hope will do a bit of good at stoking the flames, and I'm planning to get more serious about my nightly prayers again - the habit got broken, somehow, when classes ended. It's funny how habits disappear when your circumstances change. If nothing else, I usually feel stronger in my spirituality during the dark months of the year - I don't know why, but autumn, winter, and spring have always been more spiritual times for me than summer.

Comments

[theladyfeylene.livejournal.com]

I think you are very spritual. And you don't need rituals or holidays or prayers to be spirtual or have a spirituality. It's all inside, and that's the only place you really need to look for that connection. But everybody is devout in their own way. I love you.

[rivendellrose.livejournal.com]

That's always what I've thought, but I think occasionally it helps to have external things (rituals, prayers, what-have-you, whatever suits your attitudes best) to sort of cement that connection. I don't, oftentimes... but every now and then, I love to have a little something to remind me.

I love you, too.