Author: Melissa Payne

When I think about despair I can't help but hear the words of Marilla Cuthbert's from Canada's beloved Anne of Green Gable's, "to despair is to turn your back on God". This has never sat right with me. Frankly, I identified more with Anne. Full of wholehearted emotion and declaration of being in "the depths … Continue reading Despair

Longing is the thirst that never quite feels quenched. It is the salivating for and anticipation of satisfaction and completeness. Longing urges us toward something. It is energy. You can feel it, we all feel it. If we pay attention we can hear its name. This is what the great love stories are made of. Be it … Continue reading Longing

"Too often people try to change their lives by using the will as a kind of hammer to beat their life into proper shape.  The intellect identifies the goal of the program, and the will accordingly forces the life into shape. This way of approaching the sacredness of one's own presence is externalistic and violent. If you work with a … Continue reading Rhythms

Today I turn thirty. It is wild, weird, and very welcomed. I know for some, turning thirty may carry varying emotions and questions and fears. And that’s okay. There is no "right" way to feel when approaching your birthday, or a new decade or a new anything for that matter. But if I am completely honest, I … Continue reading Welcoming my 30’s. Thanking my 20’s.

I was first introduced to the concept of "Non-Attachment" by my spiritual director a number of years ago. She often would encourage me to sit with my desire and take a posture of openness and non-attachment to the outcome. Sounds so simple, doesn't it? Being a high feeler while also deeply analytical, there has been a … Continue reading Let it Be: A Practice of Non-Attachment

My writing partner and I decided to write on "Everyday life" before COVID 19 became what it is. At first I wondered if we should change the theme considering the global pandemic we all find ourselves in, but it really does seem fitting, doesn't it? It is difficult to write on this topic without at … Continue reading Everyday Life

I sit in my little corner chair, nestled in between two bookshelves today, and have been trying to ground myself in the midst of a week that, if I am completely honest, has been a bit of an internal fog. Like all of us, sometimes our harder and darker days are situational, and some just … Continue reading Moving through the Dark

There is something luminous about waking up to freshly fallen snow that wasn't there before your eyes settled into darkness. It's a gentle reminder of the mystery and beauty that takes place when we aren't always looking. That life continues on in spite of us. Sure, that can be a humbling sentiment to swallow, but … Continue reading Begin, again.

The irony of me writing a post is that I have had trouble finding the words to describe my thoughts and feelings around this week's tragedies. The same day, Wednesday, that there was a fatal shooting just a few blocks down from my house, Flight PS752 from Iran to Ukraine crashed. I don't know how … Continue reading A Response to Tragedy

The thought came to me a number of weeks ago. Through various conversations, and hearing people's ideas about social media, I was finally inspired enough to go for it and pitch the idea. It originally started just from a desire to experience life away from these platforms and to invite people along for the ride. … Continue reading Results from a Social Media Experiment