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I was born and raised on the west coast of the USA, studied engineering at university and have had an eclectic work history with stints as a sandwich maker, dorm supervisor, dishwasher, ditch digger, service station attendant, biscuit mix packer, outplacement specialist, corporate secretary, cabaret pianist and a 20 year career in the USAF.  I learned to sail on Lake Washington and have chartered and owned boats for the past few years, pottering around Puget Sound.  I’ve also had an ongoing interest in history and it doesn’t take long as a history enthusiast to discover the outsize role that religion has played in human affairs throughout the centuries. 

As someone raised in the western, Christian tradition I initially gravitated to writers such as Thomas Merton, Mother Teresa, C.S. Lewis, Foster, Bonhoeffer, Thoreau, Newell, Weatherhead, etc.  Later, as my horizons expanded, I explored the Quran, Bhagavad Gita, the philosophical views of Gautama Buddha, Gandhi, Thich Nhat Hanh, Rumi, Confucius and other inspiring Eastern ascetics, poets and authors. 

These studies led to the ecumenical belief that numerous paths to spiritual salvation and enlightenment exist (a truly heretical belief in Christian orthodoxy) and that our purpose here is to actively practice the principles common to all major religions and benevolent theosophies: patience, understanding, peace, kindness, compassion, generosity, self-control, altruism, modesty in temperament & material desires, etc.  I support NGOs that demonstrate these principles in active service, and also manage a small charitable fund that strives to help people evade or escape homelessness [SZ Fund].  I believe our omniscient Supreme Being laughs at the folly of human endeavor and cries in despair as we demonstrate repeatedly how unworthy we are to inhabit this beautiful and precious world; I present myself as a prime example of our unfailing fallibility.

This fairly cynical, Augustinian view of humanity led me to investigate the monastic tradition of the Catholic faith; likely a prime motivator for the early desert hermits as they sought to retreat from the world and live in solitude.  Reading about Francis of Assisi, Julian of Norwich, Hildegard of Bingen, Catherine of Siena, and of course Benedict of Nursia and his wonderful little book of monastic rules, I found comfort & peace and was drawn further into this world.  I began taking retreats to various monasteries and abbeys, learning how the canonical hours are celebrated and enjoying the immersion into an ascetic life of scheduled liturgy, prayer, psalmody, silence, work, fellowship and devotional reading.  

This exploration culminated in discernment retreats at New Camaldoli Hermitage and New Clairvaux Abbey. I discovered a calling to the contemplative, eremitic life, but this urge lacked the impulse needed to commit as a cenobitic novice.  I began seeking a way forward as an oblate or other secular practitioner, but as a non-Catholic, the opportunities are limited.  Thankfully, if you are seeking to connect with the power, mystery & awe of your own Sublime Divinity, the ocean is a good place to start.  My goal is to create a floating hermitage, furthering my journey as a maritime, ecumenical pilgrim.

My personal spiritual practice has evolved to mirror the Catholic monastic structure of a morning meditation focused on praise & petition (sim. Lauds) and an evening meditation of silent gratitude & reflection (sim. Vespers & Compline) yet it incorporates elements of Christianity, Buddhism, Islam and Hinduism; this is best demonstrated visually with my personal mandala:

The five circles symbolize the five pillars of Islam, including salat (ritual, daily prayer) and zakat (using a portion of one’s wealth for charitable endeavors).

The eight line segments symbolize the noble eightfold path of Buddhism (right view, right intention, right speech, right action, right livelihood, right effort, right mindfulness, right concentration)

The cross represents the life, the death, the resurrection, the words, the deeds, the teachings, and most importantly, the example set for us by Jesus of Nazareth.

The large center circle represents the divinity of Yehovah, God and/or Allah in the Abrahamic religions, and the Buddhist ideal of Enlightenment & Nirvana.

The four lines connecting the outer circles to the center circle symbolize the Hindu belief that there are four paths to Brahman: bhakata (love), karma (work), raja (meditation), and jnana (knowledge).

The golden ratio (divine proportion) is used to size the various lines and circles, represented by the Greek letter phi, highlighted in darker blue at the center of the mandala; a visual representation of the beauty, elegance and mystery central to the natural world.

If you would like to begin or continue your own spiritual journey, here is a more conventional, land-based way that doesn’t involve buying and refitting a boat:  Seattle Camino