A Re-post / Repast
I thought this re-post was worth looking at again. It feels timely. Here’s the link: I, Too, Am Food
Real People is Now Available
Dear readers and friends, This week’s post is a jubilant announcement that my Memoir is out! Real People: At the Pinnacle with Irmis Popoff and the Second Basic Course with J.G. Bennett, A Memoir, is now available on Amazon. https://www.amazon.com/Real-People-Pinnacle-Sherborne-Bennett/dp/1954744706 Real People Synopsis In today’s world of political and climate instability, Real People tells the story of … Read more
What Does Being Human Mean?
What does Gurdjieff mean when he talks about becoming a “real” human being? One of Bennett’s goals for students at Sherborne House was to learn how to work at becoming such a person. My wish to meet “real people” and be “real” myself drew me in part to Bennett’s ten-month residential course at Sherborne. But … Read more
Something Extraordinary Happened
Something extraordinary happened at the grocery store yesterday. As always, I started out in the vegetable and fruit aisle. It’s been a long time since I’ve witnessed a woman who did not know how to manage her children in public. But there she was, with two young daughters, perhaps six and nine. Her voice was … Read more
Another Old White Man?
Gurdjieff presents as yet another old white man whose language, culture and message are woefully out of date in today’s world. Say it ain’t so, Joe! Well, from where I sit it is and it isn’t. First, Gurdjieff’s dad was Armenian, and his mom was Greek. He grew up in the Caucasus, so he certainly … Read more
Energetic Awareness
I was reminded the other day that there is an energetic awareness I need to heed. I was holding my husband accountable for not setting up a side-trip he’d wanted to tack onto an already planned vacation. We’d had most of a year to extend our itinerary, but never got around to it. Once or … Read more
The Story of Myself
Cynthia Bourgeault, a Christian Wisdom teacher, invited her students to, among other things, “fast completely from the story of yourself.” She suggested this as an Ascensiontide practice, lasting for the period between Easter Sunday and Pentecost, forty days. The entirety of her message and the Invitation she threw down was inspiring. But I was not sure … Read more
We’d Been on the Rooftop
We’d been on the rooftop in the restaurant lounge of a fancy hotel celebrating a friend’s birthday. The six of us included a couple who did volunteer work with the homeless in a food kitchen and with a transport service. Her career had been in social work and his as a lawyer. They split their … Read more
Sensation—the First Building Block
Sensation is the first building block in the Gurdjieff Work. I know I am repeating myself, but I recently had a new insight. When I was introduced to the Work, a lot of emphasis was put on sensation and the ability to recognize and direct it. Why is this important? I never really thought much … Read more
Money in the Bucket
I put money in the bucket an old black man in a white shirt, black pants, and vest, held out at a stop light. He’d been there other days, too. I recognized the uniform from other locations in Asheville and in Charles Town. I have no idea if this money really feeds the homeless as … Read more