Threshold:  doorsill, any doorway or entrance, the starting point of an experience, event or venture. While I grasp the basic definition, the part that intrigues me most is the “starting point of an experience, event or venture.” Perhaps this is because I love mystery and it speaks to a deeper longing and wonder in my soul.

John O’Donahue in his book, To Bless the Space Between Us, writes: “At any time you can ask yourself: At which threshold am I now standing? At this time in my life, what am I leaving? Where am I about to enter?”

This intrigues me. As I ponder the prompt of #threshold with 31 Days of SoulStrolling it causes me to reflect on the above questions. I’ve primarily been a ‘stay at home mom’ for many years. My children, now young adults, are maturing and crossing their own personal thresholds. I am both leaving and entering new facets of my life. At times I have volumes of creative ideas, unfolding desires and dreams, and at others I feel a certain loss, sorrow. This to me is the wonder, magic and mystery of threshold space.

Sometimes a threshold happens unexpectedly, suddenly, like a sudden illness or loss of a loved one. 9 years ago today I scattered my Dad’s ashes into the waters of English Bay, British Columbia. That was a sudden, grief filled, threshold crossing. I had never held ashes before. Those grey, gritty, ragged edge pieces that moved with the wind and sank into the bay, had been my Dad. That was a complex, deeply emotional threshold crossing.

Over time it prompted my book, Thresholds and Portals, and the following poem:

Instructions for Threshold and Portal Crossings

First, say ‘yes.’

Carry your soul tenderly.

When necessary, and often, ask for hugs.

Breathe deeply, relishing the pause.

Slow down, listen in the stillness.

Embrace the night as a dear friend.

Walk with intention, holding loosely your expectations.

Savor the ordinary. Laugh often. Eat well.

Kick up your heels and dance.

Greet yourself daily with ‘You’re welcome.’

Remember, you are not alone.

What does #threshold prompt in you today? How will you ponder, embrace and stroll with the threshold invitations in your life?