TKF Foundation - Open Spaces, Sacred Places

Archive

8.14.08

Life is art. Express your art.

Journal entry from the TKF bench at the American Visionary Art Museum

8.07.08

What may seem like chaos...is really blessings that we haven’t received the instructions for yet.

Journal entry from the TKF bench at the Anne Arundel Medical Center

7.31.08

Love the access to nature and quiet. No idea life was so loud, until I came here and heard an osprey just dive (plunk!) into the inlet.

Journal entry from the TKF bench at the Chesapeake Bay Foundation

7.24.08

The best things in life are free. My son and I sit and soak up sun, watch the docks, feel the breeze on our face, and look at boats.

Journal entry from the TKF bench at the Annapolis Maritime Museum

7.17.08

This place is a midday antidote to phones and hard drives, flickering fluorescent light and gray carpets that don't show dirt. I love how the boundary between earth and sky is not a straight line, marked instead by the individual curves of trees and leaves. I keep coming back for more.

Journal entry from the TKF bench at the Mount Washington Arboretum

7.10.08

Respect each man’s walk in life no matter that you may not have any understanding of it.

Journal entry from the TKF bench at the Western Correctional Institution

7.03.08

Another perfect day in Annapolis with my beautiful wife and baby on the way. Listening to the music of the mast as they clink and clank…the rhythm of the Bay…the symphony of the sail.

Journal entry from the TKF bench at the Leon Wolfe Park

6.26.08

Love the Bay, so it can always be there.

Journal entry written by a youth at the TKF bench at the Maryland Hall for the Creative Arts

6.19.08

Turns out this bench is also good for lying on one's back. The view of the branches and leaves of the large American Beech above me is something else.

Journal entry from the TKF bench at the Annapolis Waterworks Park

6.12.08

To you, reading these pages I say " I love you, unconditionally and without judgement. You are perfect just as you are. There is nothing to change, there is nothing to fix."

Journal entry from the TKF bench at the Children's Peace Center

6.05.08

Every step with my friend John is a truly wonderful adventure. I'm sitting here enjoying the tranquility of this area, realizing I'm happy.

Journal entry from the TKF bench at the American Visionary Art Museum

5.29.08

Secret gardens are best when enjoyed with friends. We came across your garden by happenstance. What a treat!

Journal entry from the TKF bench at the Mount Washington Arboretum

5.22.08

We Americans are pragmatic. We forget the importance of poetry in our lives, of quiet time.

Journal entry from the TKF bench at the UMBC-Joseph Beuys Project

5.15.08

Don't you think it's weird how a little plastic yellow book can connect a whole bunch of people together? I hope you are all doing alright. I'll be back to check up on everyone soon.

Journal entry from the TKF bench at the UMBC-Joseph Beuys Project

5.08.08

Do not be impatient--sit quietly and perhaps a butterfly will light upon you.

Journal entry from the TKF bench at the Frederick Douglass Gardens, Inc.

5.01.08

No signs, no fences, no restrictions. Just a lovely place to sit. A little heaven on our penninsula.

Journal entry from the TKF bench at the Annapolis Maritime Museum

4.24.08

I'm reminded of words of wisdom given to me by my grandfather. He said "surround yourself with people going in the direction you want to go in."

Journal entry from the TKF bench at the Metropolitan Transition Center

4.17.08

I find comfort in the writings of strangers. I find peace in this shady spot. I find perspective when I look outside myself.

Journal entry from the TKF bench at the Children's Peace Center

4.10.08

Today I received the best professional news of my life to date. However, my heart did not leap even a fraction as much as it just did. Here, on this bench, my sister and I just hugged -- really hugged -- for the first time in too long.

Journal entry from the TKF bench at the Annapolis Maritime Museum

4.2.08

I am not a rich man by some men’s standards. But, for the second chance that was given to my wife, I am richer than they shall ever know.

Journal entry from the TKF bench at the UMMS - Kernan Hospital

3.27.08

The ospreys are very active today. What a delicate chirp from such a big bird. One splashed down in front of me and caught a nice, white perch. Thoughts of the office grind and headlines on Iraq sort of drift away on this Sacred Bench.

Journal entry from the TKF bench at Chesapeake Bay Foundation

3.20.08

The water is calm. The sky is dark. The ducklings are growing but not the sea grasses. The evening breeze cools my face. Oyster shells all over the place. And the osprey’s whistle.

Journal entry from the TKF bench at Annapolis Maritime Museum

3.13.08 Within everyone’s soul is the voice of God seeking permission to speak. Who am I to keep it from happening?

Journal entry from the TKF bench at American Visionary Art Museum

3.6.08 It looks barren and empty here but there is such a promise of new life and growth, a ripeness preparing to burst with color, fragrance and song. Spring has arrived to push back the veil of lingering frost. Let my heart awaken to the new possibilities.

Journal entry from the TKF bench at Mt Washington Community Arboretum

2.28.08 The purpose of life is simple. It is to discover the gift you were endowed with...develop it, then return it.

Journal entry from the TKF bench at Annapolis Maritime Museum

2.21.08 The day after the snowfall…It’s sunny and calm. The labyrinth has not been walked since the snow fell. It’s a subtle path today. I have to pay attention to find it. Can tell where I’ve been, where I haven’t. On the way back out, I notice that sometimes I walk in my footprints, sometimes not – so many metaphors.

Journal entry from the TKF bench at Govans Presbyterian Church

2.14.08 2 people in love

2 slurpees

1 sunny day

1 beautiful setting

What a lovely way to spend an afternoon - together in such a beautiful spot.

Journal entry from the TKF bench at Leon Wolfe Park

2.7.08 I’ve met a perfect day. Wind still for a time, it now picks up. Almost too warm for pants, the sun peeks through to my left. This place gives me the gift of pause. A reminder of my true pace in life. As the breeze through the trees rustles leaves, I go my way...

Journal entry from the TKF bench at Chesapeake Bay Foundation

1.31.08 Through the mountainside's gentle pull, the breeze stirring a garden's stillness, a vibration opens a doorway within.

Journal entry from the TKF bench at Western Correctional Institution

1.24.08 I came here to pray for myself - for peace, for financial security and even for some weight loss. After reading everyone's story, I will instead pray for them. Perhaps, in return, someone will pray for me.

Journal entry from the TKF bench at Johns Hopkins Bayview Medical Center

1.17.08 I see you across the way, walking your own path. The same path, my path.

Journal entry from the TKF bench at Whitman Walker Clinic

1.10.08 This book transcends us beyond here and now, proving we can be universally whole when at peace.

Journal entry from the TKF bench at Mt Washington Community Arboretum

01.02.08 Three times around the labyrinth – once for how far I have already come – twice for where I am now – and thrice for where I am yet to go.

Journal entry from the TKF bench at Whitman Walker Clinic

12.26.07 Like a present, hidden way, just waiting to be unwrapped! How lovely and special!

Journal entry from the TKF bench at Mt Washington Community Arboretum

12.19.07 Feel the breeze! I had an urge to run, skip, and hop through the beginning, then dance with joy in the center, then gratefully and gracefully walk out. I made myself walk slowly and reflect. My gift was the joy of these thoughts.

Journal entry from the TKF bench at Bon Secours Spiritual Center

12.12.07 It was lovely.

My hope is we will have more “Open Spaces Sacred Places” in the future. I hope we (mankind) are smart enough to undo the damage our heavy footprint has made on this beautiful, fragile place we call Earth.

Journal entry from the TKF bench at Govans Presbyterian Church

12.05.07 Today it is raining acorns, each acorn connecting me with trees from the beginning of time. My walk was all about connection - connection with friends, family and the broader universe.

Journal entry from the TKF bench at Bon Secours Spiritual Center

11.29.07 There are places in Cambodia, Israel and elsewhere where you can go whisper a secret, write a wish, or otherwise express yourself. There need to be more true outlets for secrets, desires and confessions. I am glad this place, this book is one. It is a tiny step toward releasing the thought, desire that haunts you….it is out, some small comfort.

Journal entry from the TKF bench at American Visionary Art Museum

11.22.07 No matter where we go in the world, no matter how much “progress” our society achieves, we will always need open places filled with nature that let us recharge our soul and see the world in a fresh new light. At this time of Thanksgiving, let us be thankful for these places.

Journal entry from the TKF bench at Mt Washington Community Arboretum

11.15.07 If it is obvious that everything, everything and everywhere are all deeply interconnected, then why does our government and culture encourage us to stand alone, to be independent and private? Get off the texting, IMing and all these technologies that keep us apart. Stand together and let’s live this life!

Journal entry from the TKF bench at American Visionary Art Museum

11.08.07 In this city, it’s easy to get caught up in the momentum and chaos of daily life. It’s nice to take a step back and reflect on the things that make it feel worthwhile.

Journal entry from the TKF bench at Embassy Row

11.01.07 I was sad until I sat here and discovered this book. As I listen to the water and curve into this lovely bench, I am reminded gently that each moment is a gift.

Journal entry from the TKF bench at Leon Wolfe Park

10.25.07 Today is the 1st day of the rest of my life. It is only what I make of it.

Journal entry from the TKF bench at Hopkins Bayview

10.18.07 Society churns; nature breathes. And here they meet where nature has an upper hand. How glorious a collision.

Journal entry from the TKF bench at Annapolis Waterworks Park

10.11.07 I’m thankful for such a beautiful day, peaceful day and a marvelous day. I’m not using drugs or drinking alcohol. I’m serene right where I am sitting in the garden. God, thank you for 4 years clean today.

Journal entry from the TKF bench at Newborn Holistic Ministries

Archive

8.14.08 Life is art. Express your art.

8.07.08 What may seem like chaos...is really blessings that we haven’t received the instructions for yet.

7.31.08 Love the access to nature and quiet. No idea life was so loud, until I came here and heard an osprey just dive (plunk!) into the inlet.

7.24.08 The best things in life are free. My son and I sit and soak up sun, watch the docks, feel the breeze on our face, and look at boats.

7.17.08 This place is a midday antidote to phones and hard drives, flickering fluorescent light and gray carpets that don't show dirt. I love how the boundary between earth and sky is not a straight line, marked instead by the individual curves of trees and leaves. I keep coming back for more.

7.10.08 Respect each man’s walk in life no matter that you may not have any understanding of it.

7.03.08 Another perfect day in Annapolis with my beautiful wife and baby on the way. Listening to the music of the mast as they clink and clank…the rhythm of the Bay…the symphony of the sail.

6.26.08 Love the Bay, so it can always be there.

6.19.08 Turns out this bench is also good for lying on one's back. The view of the branches and leaves of the large American Beech above me is something else.

6.12.08 To you, reading these pages I say " I love you, unconditionally and without judgement. You are perfect just as you are. There is nothing to change, there is nothing to fix."

6.05.08 Every step with my friend John is a truly wonderful adventure. I'm sitting here enjoying the tranquility of this area, realizing I'm happy.

5.29.08 Secret gardens are best when enjoyed with friends. We came across your garden by happenstance. What a treat!

5.22.08 We Americans are pragmatic. We forget the importance of poetry in our lives, of quiet time.

5.15.08 Don't you think it's weird how a little plastic yellow book can connect a whole bunch of people together? I hope you are all doing alright. I'll be back to check up on everyone soon.

5.08.08 Do not be impatient--sit quietly and perhaps a butterfly will light upon you.

5.01.08 No signs, no fences, no restrictions. Just a lovely place to sit. A little heaven on our penninsula.

4.24.08 I'm reminded of words of wisdom given to me by my grandfather. He said "surround yourself with people going in the direction you want to go in."

4.17.08 I find comfort in the writings of strangers. I find peace in this shady spot. I find perspective when I look outside myself.

4.10.08 Today I received the best professional news of my life to date. However, my heart did not leap even a fraction as much as it just did. Here, on this bench, my sister and I just hugged -- really hugged -- for the first time in too long.

4.2.08 I am not a rich man by some men’s standards. But, for the second chance that was given to my wife, I am richer than they shall ever know.

3.27.08 The ospreys are very active today. What a delicate chirp from such a big bird. One splashed down in front of me and caught a nice, white perch. Thoughts of the office grind and headlines on Iraq sort of drift away on this Sacred Bench.

3.20.08 The water is calm. The sky is dark. The ducklings are growing but not the sea grasses. The evening breeze cools my face. Oyster shells all over the place. And the osprey’s whistle.

3.13.08

Within everyone’s soul is the voice of God seeking permission to speak. Who am I to keep it from happening?

3.6.08

It looks barren and empty here but there is such a promise of new life and growth, a ripeness preparing to burst with color, fragrance and song. Spring has arrived to push back the veil of lingering frost. Let my heart awaken to the new possibilities.

2.28.08

The purpose of life is simple. It is to discover the gift you were endowed with...develop it, then return it.

2.21.08

2.14.08

2 people in love

2 slurpees

1 sunny day

1 beautiful setting

What a lovely way to spend an afternoon - together in such a beautiful spot.

2.7.08

I’ve met a perfect day. Wind still for a time, it now picks up. Almost too warm for pants, the sun peeks through to my left. This place gives me the gift of pause. A reminder of my true pace in life. As the breeze through the trees rustles leaves, I go my way...

1.31.08

Through the mountainside's gentle pull, the breeze stirring a garden's stillness, a vibration opens a doorway within.

1.24.08

I came here to pray for myself - for peace, for financial security and even for some weight loss. After reading everyone's story, I will instead pray for them. Perhaps, in return, someone will pray for me.

1.17.08

I see you across the way, walking your own path. The same path, my path.

1.10.08

This book transcends us beyond here and now, proving we can be universally whole when at peace.

01.02.08

Three times around the labyrinth – once for how far I have already come – twice for where I am now – and thrice for where I am yet to go.

12.26.07

Like a present, hidden way, just waiting to be unwrapped! How lovely and special!

12.19.07

Feel the breeze! I had an urge to run, skip, and hop through the beginning, then dance with joy in the center, then gratefully and gracefully walk out. I made myself walk slowly and reflect. My gift was the joy of these thoughts.

12.12.07

It was lovely. My hope is we will have more “Open Spaces Sacred Places” in the future. I hope we (mankind) are smart enough to undo the damage our heavy footprint has made on this beautiful, fragile place we call Earth.

12.05.07

Today it is raining acorns, each acorn connecting me with trees from the beginning of time. My walk was all about connection - connection with friends, family and the broader universe.

11.29.07

11.22.07

No matter where we go in the world, no matter how much “progress” our society achieves, we will always need open places filled with nature that let us recharge our soul and see the world in a fresh new light. At this time of Thanksgiving, let us be thankful for these places.

11.15.07

11.08.07

In this city, it’s easy to get caught up in the momentum and chaos of daily life. It’s nice to take a step back and reflect on the things that make it feel worthwhile.

11.01.07

I was sad until I sat here and discovered this book. As I listen to the water and curve into this lovely bench, I am reminded gently that each moment is a gift.

10.25.07

Today is the 1st day of the rest of my life. It is only what I make of it.

10.18.07

Society churns; nature breathes. And here they meet where nature has an upper hand. How glorious a collision.

10.11.07

I’m thankful for such a beautiful day, peaceful day and a marvelous day. I’m not using drugs or drinking alcohol. I’m serene right where I am sitting in the garden. God, thank you for 4 years clean today.

8.14.08

Life is art. Express your art.

8.07.08

What may seem like chaos...is really blessings that we haven’t received the instructions for yet.

7.31.08

Love the access to nature and quiet. No idea life was so loud, until I came here and heard an osprey just dive (plunk!) into the inlet.

7.24.08

The best things in life are free. My son and I sit and soak up sun, watch the docks, feel the breeze on our face, and look at boats.

7.17.08

This place is a midday antidote to phones and hard drives, flickering fluorescent light and gray carpets that don't show dirt. I love how the boundary between earth and sky is not a straight line, marked instead by the individual curves of trees and leaves. I keep coming back for more.

7.10.08

Respect each man’s walk in life no matter that you may not have any understanding of it.

7.03.08

Another perfect day in Annapolis with my beautiful wife and baby on the way. Listening to the music of the mast as they clink and clank…the rhythm of the Bay…the symphony of the sail.

6.26.08

Love the Bay, so it can always be there.

6.19.08

Turns out this bench is also good for lying on one's back. The view of the branches and leaves of the large American Beech above me is something else.

6.12.08

To you, reading these pages I say " I love you, unconditionally and without judgement. You are perfect just as you are. There is nothing to change, there is nothing to fix."

6.05.08

Every step with my friend John is a truly wonderful adventure. I'm sitting here enjoying the tranquility of this area, realizing I'm happy.

5.29.08

Secret gardens are best when enjoyed with friends. We came across your garden by happenstance. What a treat!

5.22.08

We Americans are pragmatic. We forget the importance of poetry in our lives, of quiet time.

5.15.08

Don't you think it's weird how a little plastic yellow book can connect a whole bunch of people together? I hope you are all doing alright. I'll be back to check up on everyone soon.

5.08.08

Do not be impatient--sit quietly and perhaps a butterfly will light upon you.

5.01.08

No signs, no fences, no restrictions. Just a lovely place to sit. A little heaven on our penninsula.

4.24.08

I'm reminded of words of wisdom given to me by my grandfather. He said "surround yourself with people going in the direction you want to go in."

4.17.08

I find comfort in the writings of strangers. I find peace in this shady spot. I find perspective when I look outside myself.

4.10.08

Today I received the best professional news of my life to date. However, my heart did not leap even a fraction as much as it just did. Here, on this bench, my sister and I just hugged -- really hugged -- for the first time in too long.

4.2.08

I am not a rich man by some men’s standards. But, for the second chance that was given to my wife, I am richer than they shall ever know.

3.27.08

The ospreys are very active today. What a delicate chirp from such a big bird. One splashed down in front of me and caught a nice, white perch. Thoughts of the office grind and headlines on Iraq sort of drift away on this Sacred Bench.

3.20.08

The water is calm. The sky is dark. The ducklings are growing but not the sea grasses. The evening breeze cools my face. Oyster shells all over the place. And the osprey’s whistle.

It was lovely.

My hope is we will have more “Open Spaces Sacred Places” in the future. I hope we (mankind) are smart enough to undo the damage our heavy footprint has made on this beautiful, fragile place we call Earth.