Coming Home

Standing stones at Kilmartin archeological site, Scotland

Have you ever felt called to go somewhere, but you weren't quite sure why? You only knew you needed to get there.

I just returned from a little over 2 weeks exploring the wonders and wilds of Scotland. It's been calling to me for 7 years. In the weeks following my husband's death, I started having dreams and visions of walking over green hills in the rain. It was later that I understood I was seeing myself in Scotland.

I'd intended to travel there with my son, but it didn't come together at that time. I've held this calling in my heart, wondering when it would be time to go there. And then it came. Suddenly. In the midst of another unexpected ending. An invitation to fill the last spot in a trip friends were leading through Scotland. Within 48 hours everything aligned to get me there. So, I went. Not quite sure what would transpire, why that land has been calling me for so long. And truth be told, I'm still not sure.

What I discovered were standing stones. Legit, giant, 5000 year old neolithic standing stones. They reminded me how we endure.

On a tiny island in the Hebrides, I attended an evening service in a chapel that has been in use for worship, as a sacred space, since 563 AD. It was candlelit, ferns growing through the walls, a final resting place for some whose names are lost to time. The theme of the service was sacred activism amidst the challenges humanity is faced with. It reminded me of the continuity of the human experience.

I walked through castle ruins, to mountain tops that were used as places of ceremony, then military forts, now hiking paths. There were battle fields. Ancient yew trees. Medicine plants covering hillsides. Lochs and legends of mystical creatures. And people who hold such pride in their clans, their history, their fortitude and resilience.

And then I returned home. But before I physically returned home, while walking the hills of Scotland, I returned home to myself.

I was reminded of the importance of the simple things. The simple pleasures of every day life. I was reminded that I am enough. That you are enough. Just as we are. That the importance is in following the call of each day. The call to come home.

In this window of the new moon, what is calling you home? What do you most need to feel more alive, grounded, present? How can you honor and attend to the simple pleasures that feed your soul and enliven your life? Can you give yourself space for even one more deep breath. A walk. A nap. A delicious meal that isn't rushed?

My journey was a reminder that sometimes we need to leave home, to come home. Even if that means taking a break from what feels difficult or impossible for a short while. To seek refuge in simplicity. To allow the land where you stand to hold you.

Leaning up against the ancient standing stones reminded me just how timeless and strong we all are. That the answers to our questions both big and small reside in the whispers of the wind, the songs of the birds, the rustle of the leaves on the trees, the twinkling lights of the stars.

When was the last time you listened to the elements around you? When you asked for a message and allowed yourself to receive the wisdom?

I invite you to create some space to listen in the days to come.

The message that came time and again as I walked the hills is that we are the ancient wisdom remembered. As we listen and walk and follow the call, we come home. Home to a place of greater peace within ourselves and we carry that peace into our families, our relationships, our communities, our passions.