à la carte spirit by ilona fried
Adventure
Returning to El Camino at an Aikido Camp
As an à la carte spirit, I have an aversion to package deals. I’d rather do my own selecting, thank you. Yet I recently had to put my à la carte attitude aside to attend an Aikido “summer camp” in Montreal, taught by master Christian Tissier. The venue, a private college, didn’t excite me, although the photograph of … Continue reading
How Do You Know You’re on the Right Track?
Life can be discombobulating if not frustrating for those of us who crave a degree of certainty and predictability yet who also want to embrace the mystery of existence, be open to surprises or connect with the divine. At what point does too much certainty, predictability and routine crowd out mystery and preclude the possibility of transcendence? Can … Continue reading
Oh, the Places You’ll Go! HuffPo?!
As some of you know, my recent piece, An Open Letter to Ivanka Trump from One Daughter to Another, was published on The Huffington Post. It first appeared in the unindexed, unsearchable contributors’ section, sort of a virtual slush pile. Then an editor highlighted some quotes and posted it on the political blog, a place I never expected to see … Continue reading
When a Flat Tire Inflates the Spirit
I’m spending some time in and around Ludlow, Vermont, “warming” a family member’s rental condo before the snow falls. Shortly before I drove here, the heater in my Subaru began clicking and whirring. I packed a wool blanket in case I ran into trouble and needed to wait for help. The other day, driving back to my temporary abode … Continue reading
Awareness Through Meandering: Walking in the Woods, Differently
How many times can you visit a place without getting bored? I used to be a checklist kind of gal. If I visited an area once, I wanted to move onto the next. When I was an avid hiker, I didn’t want to repeat trails or summits when there were others I hadn’t climbed. Nor did I want to … Continue reading
à la carte spirit by ilona fried 
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