The Energy of June is light and bright and full of promise. Daylight hours reach completion, personal energy and enthusiasm run high, and a celebratory sense is almost palpable. To those of us who never quite abandon the academic calendar, we intuitively respond to the notion that graduations/end of school year and summer vacations greet us fresh every morning. And, speaking of mornings, we might be fortunate enough to wake up to birdsong, catch the morning dew on the grass, and note little shoots and buds appearing in our gardens, and wonder at those that have come to rich, full bloom!
Mind you, I am writing from Vermont where we are a bit slower to arrive at the threshold of summer, but perhaps our delicate spring season makes the wait more worthwhile. Though many here flourish in snow, others relish the gorgeous days at the other side of the year’s life cycle.
Professionally I may be a Personal Trainer and Yoga Instructor, but I truly live my work. Concepts of strength, endurance, stability, mobility and balance infuse my daily hours and make my life one of abundance. I enjoy robust health and, as I was recently told, Qi! Perhaps it is a gift of experience, but I am also learning to trust my judgment a little more and to honor quieter moments integrating life’s action. Meditation, generously defined, seeps into many minutes as a reminder to focus on breath managing previously stressful pinches. Above all, my personal hunger to learn and experience life’s richness, enables me to share and even teach. In fact, I am mandated to do so.
That being said, I circle back to the academic concept of a year and to the many meanings of teacher/student. I encourage each of us to pause to consider that we, in our own individual ways, are always students. As research demonstrates, the best way to learn is to turn around and teach what we are learning to another. Therefore I suggest that we are all teachers and that teachers are always students. (talk about circling!)
June is a gorgeous month in which to ponder this. So much happens, so much promises, so much celebrates and all with such clarity. Borrowing from TCM (Traditional Chinese Medicine) and the Five Element theory, June is that perfect juxtaposition of Wood and Fire. Transitioning from the Wood Element’s spring season – one in which birth, growth and creativity thrive – into the Fire Element’s summer season – one in which the flames of Yang energy roar – this hiatus is one of clarity before the possible mugginess of summer’s heat settles.
June. With pearls as birthstones and roses as the June flower, what’s not to love? Long ago someone somewhere (probably ancient Italy?) suggested that June signify Juno, an important and powerful deity (counterpart to Greek Hera), and queen of a bunch of gods, goddess, etc. Not surprisingly, Latin could be the root with lunius associated with this month. And as so often happens with etymology, lunius segues to Juno.
June is considered gender neutral and borrows youth and playfulness from the French ‘jeune.’ Though I have only known females named June, I learned that there are men named June as well. (I wonder if the guys are as sunny as the gals I know.) If you are looking for a name for your pet, June is highly recommended! All joking aside, some of the characteristics of the recommendation for doing so point to the energy and quality of this month. For example, one site suggests: “June is a name that exudes warmth and energy. It brings to mind the summer months, which are often associated with fun and adventure.” Playfulness, a strong sense of loyalty, a mysterious side – all pieces of the puzzle that make up June.
Venturing into the animal kingdom, (are bugs animals?), there’s the junebug. You’ve probably heard this: “all over it like a duck on a junebug,” which refers to doing something with great eagerness. In my area, babies are showing up everywhere. So far we’ve only encountered six adult bears, but one was a mamma with triplets. Uncomfortable but exciting. And, after a brief territorial dispute of five geese, two won out the rights to the pond I see from my large windows and ultimately five little ones joined the community. June is a month of proliferation.
May you celebrate June 21, 2024, the day of the Summer Solstice. Though we may not gather at Stonehenge the evening before to watch the sunrise on the longest day of the year, we might at least pause to acknowledge this gift and open it with anticipation. Indeed, June is a time to live life, not just check the boxes and get the jobs done. I leave you with this:
“Help me to be less fearful of the measure of time, and more fully alive in the time that simply is. Help me to live time, not just to simply use it; to breathe it in, and return it in acts of love and presence.” (Avis Crowe)
Spring Equinox 2024 is just around the corner. Daylight Savings time is in full gear, spring break is not that far away, and most likely, after another mud season and maybe even another snow storm or two, spring will arrive in Vermont. For a number of years I was first, a contributor (Correspondent) to the Rutland Herald and Times Argus and eventually a Field Editor for a page appearing weekly on Sundays entitled “Active Vermont.” Though challenging to fill an entire page each week, it was a happy time as I not only had the opportunity to write, but I attended events, interviewed athletes, learned from experts and was happy to share it all. (I even had the opportunity of regularly working with the fabulous photographer, Jeb Wallace-Brodeur.) Just now, as I sat down to write a post about Spring in Vermont, I remembered several articles I had written for my page. The one, reprinted below, is one of my favs. Hope you enjoy and hope you make good use of those special days. Might they be gifts from the universe?
Change is one of those Yin/Yang words. Just thinking of change has the power to initiate thoughts of fear, loss or unease. Reframed, the concept might be exciting, rich with opportunity, at the very least different but potentially better. The Yang version might be drive or struggle while the Yin side might be flow and process. In any event, change – something different – is often just around the corner.
November gets a bad rap. (Or if you prefer, it has a bad rep-utation.) Why? Oh, you can just tick the reasons off on all fingers and toes and have some left over – much has to do with the weather, shorter days, colder temps, holiday stress on the rise, yadayadayada. November is a month of contradictions. Here in Vermont, though the trees are bare and there’s often an engulfing bleakness, it’s also a time of growing excitement for winter sports enthusiasts. Goodness, one of our ski areas, Killington, is already open! Ice hockey, ice climbing, winter hiking, snowshoeing, downhill and cross-country skiing, riding (snowboard), fat-biking and even dog-sledding provide loads of outdoor activities in spite of, or because of, the colder temps.
Even the Thanksgiving Day holiday has generated debate. While November is often referred to as a month of remembrance, note this: in some traditions it is the dead (especially those who are reportedly in purgatory) who need our prayers; yet it is on Veteran’s Day that we remember the living who have served our country and need our thanks.
And if you are upset over the first Thanksgiving feast, perhaps focus on the intention might be sharpened. I do not need to belabor this concept. 
Gratitude is an enormous word – especially these days as so many work to support mental well-being.
*Speaking of outside – do we GO outside EVERY day? For some, this is a no-brainer. If we are fortunate enough to live in a place where outdoor space is abundant and welcoming, well, we are fortunate and therefore have no reason not to open that door and venture out. If we work outdoors, even if we need to get to our cars, or have dogs that need to be walked – again, fortunate. But sometimes we do need to pick ourselves up and spend time in outdoor awareness, noticing the terrain, feeling the air, observing the surroundings and listening. One of the advantages (yes, I count this as advantage) of having a dog is that he or she absolutely must go outside. Opening the door and granting pee time is not enough. Our furry friends need exercise so outside it is – rain, snow, sleet, hail – or so the saying goes. Invariably, we find that even the worst weather conditions offer their own benefits.
The month of August falls squarely in the middle of the Five Element cycle*. According to Gail Reichstein, Wood Becomes Water, Chinese Medicine In Everyday Life, “Earth is considered the prime stabilizing force.” Think also of the season, a time that brings spring’s seeds and summer’s growth to fruition, harvest, plenty. Think Mother Earth, nurturing, nourishing, balancing, accumulating, allowing and perhaps even sustaining deeply rooted hope. In today’s world of daily disasters, atrocities and frenetic technology, it is good to step back for a few moments and simply to be.
Recently I have stepped outside my comfort zone to join a book club led by my friend Ana del Rosal (
One of my favorite things to do is practice framing and reframing. I use the latter for problem solving and the former to capture scenes when I choose to take a leisurely walk to simply enjoy the beautiful state in which I live. Yes, ok, I get it. When I actually click the button on my phone to take a picture and not simply file in my memory, yes, ok, I have not turned my cell phone off.
Today was one of those days – serious rain followed by sun then by clouds then by hot sun then by a good drenching while the sun was shining then by thunder and a downpour then by bright sun …..But walk we did. Coming upon a road closure with two Labs on leash was a real find! Even the invasives are gorgeous as they thrive. Driving home from the local market I was forced to stop to capture the view. Letting my girls play in the beaver pond was so breathtaking, I just had to whip out the phone … and you know what followed.
Enjoy. Love from Sophie, Lizzie and me
No, I have nothing profound to say and certainly nothing that can pass as original thinking. But I have been thinking. A lot. Especially as I walk through the woods with scattered attention looking ahead and in the trees (yes in the trees) for a bear sighting (as that’s where they go when they hear my Sophie) and trying not to trip on the tennis ball that my Lizzie continually drops just as I am about to step.
Life happens. (Please feel free to substitute another four-letter word.) It’s been a challenging 6 months for absolutely everyone I know. I won’t go into detail but, yes, I know you and you have had it as well! To give a nod to the glass half full, perhaps the challenges are also helping foster growth. We may need to think about this or smother a groan but if we look at the world around us, we might plug in for a little personal growth as well.
Growth is apparent everywhere in nature as plants, bees, mushrooms, ferns, trees, slugs and of course the wicked woods flies all flourish and thrive! But it is all growth. May we grow as well.
*At this point in my writing, I reached back in my memory for something I had read by Rabbi Harold Kushner along the lines of answering the age-old question how could tragedy happen and where was God? His answer was that God was seen in the human response to tragedy, the love and generosity of those reaching out to help. As I searched for the exact quote I stumbled upon Rabbi Kushner’s obituary. I was stunned to learn that he had passed on April 28, 2023. Since reading “Living a Life That Matters,” (Anchor Books, A Division of Random House, Inc, 2001,2002) a book of his that I treasure, I have been a devoted fan. When a friend gave me a signed copy of one of his books, she proclaimed that I had found “my Rabbi!” May I suggest that you find a book title of his that peaks your interest and spend some reading time with this wonderful man? I share here from Ralph Waldo Emerson: “To leave the world a bit better, whether by a healthy child, a garden patch, or a redeemed social condition; to know that even one life has breathed easier because you lived – that is to have succeeded.” Oh, Rabbi Kushner, you have succeeded.
Spring would not be spring without a field of dandelions. The scourge of the perfect lawn, this common weed is due attention and respect. Just three weeks ago, this landed on the internet about the Chelsea Flower Show: “Four of its 12 show gardens will feature plants traditionally regarded as weeds, which are now being 
And so, as I have worked with these concepts moving through each day, helping to shape optimism and enthusiasm productively, making decisions that need to be made and observing changes in the outdoors around me, I have made the decision to visit the common dandelion.
But let’s get down with this: ok, perhaps dandelions are viewed with frustration when they overtake an expensively maintained lawn. But they are also viewed with wonder as they collectively blanket a meadow or individually speak of personal worth. A dandelion reminds us of rebirth, growth, that precious and delicate spring green that breaks forth into myriad shades and intensities after the cold winter months, and their own mini portraits of strength and grace.
It’s a wrap. Almost. December 31 to January 1 – the annual and inevitable threshold, the measurement of time witnessed by days, weeks and months throughout an entire year. Sometimes we arrive at this threshold, surprised, as if it is something new to be encountered. Sometimes we anticipate crossing into the new year with a mixture of relief and hope. We are relieved to have the old one done, wrapped up like a regifted holiday present, and hope that life must certainly become easier, or better, or warmer or well fed. 
After listening and reading O’Donohue, I can never again take the word “threshold” lightly. Yes, there is the threshold the carpenter installs in our homes as well as a myriad of objects and structures one must step over to move from one space to another. But, profoundly, we are faced with oh so many thresholds of living, proceeding from one moment to the next, sometimes heralded and sometimes passing in oblivion.
Perhaps you notice a collective change in the approach to the holiday season in recent years. In my circle of family, friends, clients, acquaintances and community, I do. Since March 2020 when Covid became a household word and unwanted guest, the concept of connection topped the list of that which is most important. Distant relatives and friends were able to visit face to face with the click of a mouse. Consumerism took a turn away from impulse buying in the checkout aisle to scrolling and searching in the infinite world of the internet. Instant acquisition governed shopping habits as gift cards became the gift of choice. But then, even as the virus kept us largely out of crowded shopping areas, financial insecurity put the brakes on spending for those thoughtful enough to recognize it.
In my small world, there is suffering this year. I can only offer compassion to those who have lost loved ones (animal and human), to those struggling with health issues, to those facing scarcity. I see in a friend’s face that she is conflicted and by another’s body language that there is sadness. Is it more pronounced in these years of Covid? Are we more vulnerable?
Watching as the world around us transition from season to season circling the year’s clock face, pass through clearly defined phases and then reconnect to begin again is a lesson in change, adaptation, and light. Yes, light. If we look – really look – with our physical eyes, inner sight, mental clarity and creative vision, we learn lessons that support and sustain us as we move forward.
Last weekend here in Vermont we were flooded with gorgeous, brilliant colors topped with a dusting of snow on our highest peaks. This weekend we are Past Peak and Still Beautiful. As I noted this on my walk, I was startled to realize that this is a meaningful concept indeed! How often do we admire an antique, painting, vintage clothing or older friend? How much do we appreciate the athlete who has transitioned from the prime days of record-breaking achievement to an athlete who, with maturity, coaches, writes, and reaches out with shared skills?
Is any of this less? Perhaps the transition itself is the learning curve to land experience as something useful rather than degenerative.
Arthur C. Brooks is a popular author whose latest book is From Strength to Strength, Finding Success, Happiness and Deep Purpose in the Second Half of Life. I’m taking my time with this one as there are gems on each, page. You might also enjoy this podcast conversation of Brooks with Rich Roll: 
Within the principles of the Five Element Theory of Traditional Chinese Medicine, we have fully entered the time of year associated with the Metal Element and find ourselves involved with the process of refining, honoring wisdom and self-knowledge. (Past Peak but Still Beautiful?) As Gail Reichstein writes in her excellent book, Wood Becomes Water, Chinese Medicine in Everyday Life, the emotion associated with this time of year is grief. “Grief also teaches us what we value in our lives and in the lives of others, giving us the opportunity to redirect our energies toward becoming who we most want to be.”