Sitting Vigil
Waiting my turn to sit silent with Bill He is waiting, too but not for you or me Bill is waiting for the path to be clear the light to be bright the curtain to be opened wide to be called home I am merely a companion for the briefest of moments, perhaps witness to an...
Feathers and Things
Nature’s beauty and bounty comes in many forms. Artist and author Will Holsinger combines feathers, driftwood, crystals, and found materials to create an esthetic to fill the nooks and crannies of our personal spaces with reminders of these miracles. Much of his work...
Styles of Meditation
Meditation is practiced in cultures all over the world. Although the practice has ties to many different religious teachings, meditation is less about faith and more about freeing oneself from inner conflict, becoming aware and achieving peace. Meditation continues to...
Hospice and Creativity
Creativity is the ability to produce or use new and unusual ideas in original and productive ways. Every volunteer and professional involved with hospice and hospice care participates in the support of the hospice patient, their family and friends, relying on their...
Where Do You Turn
Where do you turn, what road do you follow When there is no map to guide you? Turn to the sun each morning, rest at mid-day And follow it to twilight; there is no surer way.
Death in 2020 – 21
Does death seek us out Impatient, intolerant of our delay A lunar eclipse, blocking the sun Creating its own shadow? Does death wait for us Pausing at the edge of the wood Bathed in cooling shade Watching, calm, compassionate? Surely, the world of COVID, The world of...
The Origin of the Song, Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer by Will Holsinger
A man named Bob May, depressed and brokenhearted, stared out his drafty apartment window into the chilling December night. His 4-year-old daughter Barbara sat on his lap quietly sobbing. Bob's wife, Evelyn, was dying of cancer. Little Barbara couldn't understand why...
Tales of a Black Cat on Hallow’s Eve
My name is Robbie. I’m a black cat with green eyes. Most of the year, I live quietly and peaceably enough. Imagine what it’s been like for me, though, these past 12 years on All Hallow’s Eve, assigned to this life as a black cat with green eyes. Try as I might to stay...
Death is Our Teacher
The important things are not world peace, an end to hunger and poverty, or other issues affecting billions of people. The important things are the smile I'm sure I saw as you waited for me, the honey bee finding just the right flower, and the butterfly just emerging....
Emergence
I don’t see the days go by Passing with them, alone The morning dawn and day’s end dusk are of a piece now, bookmarks of shadow Waiting on me The world is a quieter place No shops, no diners, people Hidden behind masks of fear ... There are no familiar faces now Only...