Part 3 of a series on building our Killington dream lodge Every weekend and during vacations we fled to Vermont for more adventures while building the ski lodge Dad dreamed of. While residing in our tent in the woods, we cleared the land and leveled the ground, no small achievement in a state made of rock.…

Author’s note: This is part two of a series on the Dye family Vermont adventure.  We always arrived in Killington late on our drive from New Jersey on the highways. After winding our way up dark mountain roads, we forded across Roaring Brook (before the bridge was built), rounded the bend, and climbed to the…

Forward: I’ve decided to share my family’s adventures of building our ski house since I was a girl.  For several weeks, I’ll recount in my column early memories of our Killington years. Isn’t it strange while living our lives, we often lose sight of what is special—of people, places, and all that helps to form…

I haven’t been in touch with Bear Spirit for a while. I thought I’d let him hibernate in peace and quiet. But then I recalled I hadn’t shared all my interaction with the coyote who appeared in person and in spirit right before the snow fell. I entered my Radiant Heavenly Heat Sauna and began…

  When I was 5 my dad taught me to ski on a tiny slope in northern New Jersey. I remember the first time I grabbed a rope tow. I grasped it tightly with mittened hands and catapulted forward above the ground. The snow was soft and it didn’t hurt in spite of doing a…

“We are stars wrapped in skin. The light you are seeking has always been within,” said Rumi, a  13th-century poet. When winds of change stir up our world, we often feel unsteady and confused. But these strong winds are ushering in a new era for the human race and a new psyche for us. We’re…

    Mountain Meditation By Margeurite Jill Dye There’s something about the mountains That calms a troubled soul. The air is fresh, the sky is blue, serenity, extolled.   Red foxes, bears and coyotes, squirrels and beaver run, Hunt and play in meadows and fields, On peaks and ledges in fog or sun.   Honking…

Mountain Meditation Marguerite Jill Dye   A dear friend of mine keeps a gratitude journal to write down the good things that transpire—like a heart-to-heart talk with a friendly neighbor, a courteous driver, a fall she avoided. Gratitude grows blessings. It’s a high vibration that attracts the same back to it like a magnet. When…

Mountain Meditation Marguerite Jill Dye   A dear friend of mine keeps a gratitude journal to write down the good things that transpire—like a heart-to-heart talk with a friendly neighbor, a courteous driver, a fall she avoided. Gratitude grows blessings. It’s a high vibration that attracts the same back to it like a magnet. When…

By Marguerite Jill Dye We were elated to spend several days with our grandchildren just before Christmas. I am always in awe of how young ones, unencumbered, mold the world to their liking. Our grandson Silas’ enthusiasm is so far reaching he engages total strangers in collaborative activities. He also initiates grown up conversations that leave adults…

  By Marguerite Jill Dye Extending a helping hand to a neighbor is a longstanding Vermont tradition in an environment with harsh winters, snow and rain storms with increasing potency. That is how our forebears survived. Sharing kindness and passing on blessings is a great way to live our lives. Christian charity is a concept…

  It’s that time of year once again when we think of our dear family and friends. What would life be without special people who touch our souls and warm our hearts? Gift giving in many cultures is an honored tradition. It certainly is in ours. We live in a materialistic, throw-away society where objects…

  If you follow my columns, you know I’m an artist and writer with a vivid imagination. My spiritual mentor says it assists me in communicating with the spiritual world. Our anthropologist friend and neighbor says I’m lucky my imagination allows me to explore my unconscious like Swiss psychiatrist Carl Jung did. Jung believed the…

  “Good morning Bear. I am happy to be with you. What would you care to share today?” I ask. “Good day, sweet Jill. What a glorious day to meet in our cave. I want to convey an important point that good health is a state of mind. Whenever we permit a negative influence, thought…

I sit in a semi lotus position in the Bear Cave, seeking solace to quiet and comfort my anxious racing mind. I know I have come to a place of tranquility, knowledge and wisdom gained over eons. I close my eyes and simply breathe. I am transported to a winter wonderland with glittering ice and…