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I'm Wondering About Sanctuary Today


Guest GingerSnap

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Guest GingerSnap

I was just wondering about sanctuary and what that met to people. To me, it would be a physical place, like a pretty place - garden, some nature place - that I could escape to, a quiet place. I used to have places like that throughout my past but don't have one anymore. I once liked to go for a walk and stand by this old church built in the 1800's because I just liked the feel there. There was a brook at home that I just loved and the woods in MI and the desert in AZ and looking at the snow capped mountains in AK or the Gulf of Mexico in MS...........Everyone should have a special little place to take in whatever brings them joy and to me, that would "sanctuary".:)

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GingerSnap,

I find a "sanctuary" of the sort you describe to be very valuable to me. It's nice to have a place to go that is soothing, and that also draws attention away from whatever's going on in your mind or your daily life.

It helps to have a physical place to go, like the ones you describe. But sometimes, it's enough to close your eyes and go to one of those places, just in your own mind. A "happy place", as it were, where you can go to rest.

One question I had was, Can you identify a reason why you don't have such a place, where you live now? Maybe you can still find one.

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Lovely thread GingerSnap.

I love anywhere in the countryside, walking in the woods or beside the sea. It is nice too to have a place to go to in your mind as others have pointed out.

By the way a gingersnap is a biscuit (cookie) where I come from - does it have the same meaning for you ;). I love gingersnaps by the way!

Take care

Goose

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Guest GingerSnap

Yes, it is a cookie with a ginger/molasses taste and very crisp best dunked in milk, tea, coffee- my mother said I loved them that way before I had teeth! So, I actually picked that because it is my favorite cookie and sometimes I have trouble remembering my log-ins.:( I guess I could write them down but then it would not be so adventurous. I also have a place in my mind that I retreat to for a brief respite/sanctuary and I call it "Long ago, far away." And, goose, hope you are doing well.

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awesome thread idea Ginger!!!

I actually have a few "sanctuaries". My favorite is when riding my horse. No particular destination or place but I feel when I'm on him....especially when we're going really fast :( that my best friend or my worst enemy can't find me. It's very freeing and sometimes I just like that feeling of being able to "run away." Actually....most times I'm with my horse is a sanctuary :P Whether I"m brushing him or just melting into his neck it's one of the few times I feel safe and loved with no judgements or expectations.

My music is also a sanctuary. I play 11 instruments and can get totally lost in the music. It helps me clear my head and gives me a second wind at times to keep moving forward....especially on those really stressful days.

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My sanctuary is my home. I bought my first house in my 40's, I had waited a long time. It's a small condo home but it fits my needs just fine and I've made it my own over the years with home renos. Sometimes I'm at work and I just can't wait to get back <home>... :(

Another sanctuary for me is sacred writings. They take me to a place that is outside of time and space and they make me feel calm and focused ... they are a sweet balm for the soul.

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As a child, I found sanctuary by going across the street to the small pond. I would often sit alone and watch the many geese swimming and diving in the water. When they were done swimming, they'd all gather up on the shore and preen themselves before falling asleep standing up. I found it very relaxing with the water so close and the gentle sounds of nature... soft goose honking noises. Other times I'd go in the woods behind our house and sit and listen to the animals for hours at a time. Very soothing and relaxing.

Sanctuary these days is much harder to find with all the commotion and stress of everyday life, though I think I can find it just about anywhere if I'm feeling deep enough. I might find it in a nature video or a beautiful song or even in a familiar twinkle in my daughter's eyes. It's a place of serenity and connectivity with the self, a time when you can truly feel the moments of life and soak them in. And those are always precious moments.

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Guest GingerSnap

malign: I live in a place that is termed "psychology dark" and I refer to it as the "Gateway to Hell" - it is indescribable. This area of the country is ugly also not to mention the bugs. I was looking at Facebook, at pictures of a lake at home and joined there little group so I have beautiful pictures coming in of a place where we waded and fished as children (my brother & I) - had 2 relatives there and one was on the island where you took the car on a ferry to get there - that's as close as I am going to get to a physical place of sanctuary. And, it was funny because I read danni's post, I saw her there with 11 instruments bound to her body, even doing a little dance to go with the music - go danni!:(

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