Author: Juliana Lightle

Woman Is Not Anonymous by Vanessa Rivera de la Fuente

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Vanessa Rivera de la Fuente's avatarFeminism and Religion

Vanessa Rivera Virginia Woolf

Lately I have been reflecting on this quote of Virginia Woolf: “For most of history, Anonymous was a woman.” Here she points out the deliberate invisibilization of women’s contribution in all areas of human endeavors.

Patriarchy always takes these contributions for granted. For centuries, domestic labor has been invisible and not considered work. It has put beauty over intelligence, even with women of outstanding intelligence. And in terms of knowledge and intellectual production, patriarchy has appropriated women’s ideas and in presenting them as “anonymous,” presents them as it’s own.

Thanks to the feminist reclaiming of history, and proving the accuracy of the premise that “Anonymous is woman,” we have learned of the long list of inventions that were made possible due to women’s ideas who were kept invisible, unnamed, unquoted,  and erased;  after all, she was “just” a “woman.”

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First Iris

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First spring iris

early evening light glows

soft wind whispers

 

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Note:  for those interested in growing iris, these rebloom.  They will bloom at a minimum again in the autumn.  They are so prolific, that I separate them annually and throw them everywhere I have a blank space like here near the barn.  They will bloom for at least a month.

 

Poem for Today

/ Juliana Lightle / 4 Comments

Inspired by a friend’s poem, I decided to take a look at some of my book stacks and write a poem from their titles–in honor of National Poetry Month.

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Now Is the Time to Open Your Hearts

the tongue’s blood does not run dry

The Mambo Kings Play Songs of Love

A Simple Havana Melody

Alejandro Blue

The Spirit of Indian Women

Still Life With Bread Crumbs

Ring of Fire

Gardens in the Dunes

Daughters of Fortune

The Way to Paradise

The Bingo Palace

Uppity Women

How We Became Human

Close Range

Native Guard

Things Fall Apart

Gone Home

 

 

 

April 7 – Neighborly Compassion

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This story quietly reteaches the old adage: “you can’t judge a book by its cover”. I find it is a lesson I need to remind myself occasionally. It is human nature to make those “first sight” judgements. When we do, we often miss out on the truly meaningful.

Driving on Your Own in Costa Rica–Hotel Playa Negra

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On March 17, I related the story of having to leave the first hotel in this area after dark with nowhere to go–see first post on driving on your own.  It was not until I awakened the next morning, dressed, and went in search of coffee, that I realized just how lucky we were.  I left my daughter and grandson asleep and ventured toward the restaurant indicated by a small sign.  I had not walked far when this scene greeted my eyes.

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Horses right by the beach.  Perhaps these were the horses one could ride–I had just seen a sign indicating horse back riding was available.  Then I walked a bit further and these scenes welcomed me.

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Except for the two dogs you can see here, no one was at the beach.  The tranquility amazed me.

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I walked back inside the restaurant–here I am standing at its edging looking toward the beach–ordered cafe con leche and luxuriated in our incredibly good karma.  This place exceeded all expectations considering our experience the previous night.

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This photo was taken from the beach looking back at the restaurant.  Except in colder areas like San Jose and Monteverde, I never saw or ate in any enclosed restaurants.  Even the fanciest are open air like this one.  Hotel Playa Negra is the only hotel near Playa Negra next to the beach.  It is a quiet, peaceful place with yoga, horse back riding, surf boarding lessons–the surf here is for beginners.  The restaurant serves a wide variety of food, but since I especially like the typical cuisine, it seemed perfect–more gallo pinto, platanos fritos, cafe con leche.

 

 

Sleep, Fitbit, and Essential Oils

/ Juliana Lightle / 1 Comment

Several months ago I won a Fitbit at work.  At that time my main concern, heath question, was this:  Am I getting enough exercise?  Quite quickly I realized I was concerned about the wrong health issue.  I apparently get more exercise on a normal day than I ever imagined, just doing what I do:  yoga in the morning, walking around the building at work, feeding my horse, chores.  Much to my horror, however, I discovered that I was getting way less deep sleep than recommended by every article I had seen.  It became such a concern that I was getting less, not more sleep.  I decided to investigate.  If you want to track the stages of sleep, forget Fitbit.  You may be able to use it as some sort of general guide but nothing definitive.  To actually know how many hours and minutes of various stages you sleep, you must go to experts and they must measure your brainwaves.  Predictably, once I learned that, guess what, I immediately slept better.

If you have sleep issues or just want to go to sleep in a fabulous smelling atmosphere, try essential oils.  You can go online and find a list from various “experts” outlining the top ten for relaxation and better sleep.  These include lavender, myrrh, Roman chamomile, cedar wood, sandalwood, neroli–the list varies slightly depending on the site.  Plus, everyone differs so experiment to see what works for you.  Here is what I found works for me:  diffuse lavender and melaleuca in a diffuser next to your bed (melaleuca or tea tree does nothing for sleep but is good for so many other things;  I also use doTerra breathe for allergies), rub several drops of cedar wood on both feet, rub several drops sandalwood on your wrists.  This combination has improved my sleep greatly.  I read yesterday that mixing lavender with Roman chamomile is effective, but I have not tried that yet.

I would be interested in hearing from others what works for them.  Happy Dreams!!

Four Reasons We Need To Reclaim The Power of the Divine Feminine Now by Mary Petiet

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Why is the divine feminine so important? What does it promote that values others, our planet? This says everything I could have said myself.

Guest Contributor's avatarFeminism and Religion

Mary Petiet photo(Spoiler alert:  She’s already here)

The power of the divine feminine taps into the power of life. The power is accessible to everyone as the equal opportunity energy surrounding and connecting all living things. The power is ancient, and meditative practices such as yoga, which in Sanskrit means linking to the divine, can connect us to this power. When we make the connection, we find the balance we need to realize our highest selves, and through that balance we can realize the highest self of the larger society.  To reclaim the divine feminine, we need only remember, and as more and more of us remember, we heal first ourselves, and ultimately the planet.

1. She is the route back to the self.

In her mother aspect the divine feminine offers a route back to the self and She is all-inclusive. She embraces all of creation, men, women and nature, and we…

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Jesus and Easter

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Yesterday, I learned several new aspects of the religious debates surrounding the teachings of Jesus, Christianity, Mormonism., and how Easter is viewed.  Mostly, it followed a discussion on a post about Jesus, Good Friday, and Christian politics.  Whether most modern Christians want to believe it, Jesus’ teachings were radical, revolutionary.  However, most modern Christians pay much more attention to the teachings of the misogynist Greek, Paul.  The debate centered on comments after this particular post about the politics of Christianity.

It centered on Mormon beliefs about Easter.  According to the comments, Mormons do not use crosses because they focus on the teachings of Jesus and his life.  They use these teachings and his life as a guide.  I thought to myself:  what a good idea.  If the whole world followed his teachings, the world would be a much better place full of peace, equality for all, not just the powerful few, tolerance, understanding–the list is long.

The contention of many of the so-called Christians commenting is that true Christianity focuses on the death of Jesus and his subsequent rising from the dead, that what matters is that he died for their sins, and rose on the third day, that Mormons are not Christians because they focus on his life.  Really??  Not only did I find this information new–and perhaps this is what many Christians believe–but astonishing.  Although my family celebrated Easter in a big way, I was always taught that Jesus’ teachings held the center of belief.

I will admit that although I grew up in a mainstream Protestant, Christian denomination, I no longer consider myself a Christian.  I firmly think (notice I did not use the word believe) the world would be a much better place if everyone followed the teachings of Jesus!!!!  Religion, as most practice it, is ruining the world.  Perhaps if everyone focused on Jesus’ teachings instead of arguing over who is right, we could attain some sort of mutual respect and peace.  As Jesus taught:

-respect one another

-love one another

-share

-treat others as you hope to be treated

May your day be filled with joy and peace!!!