Let’s create a kinder, more harmonious world.
For reasons I won’t get into, the original cynthiagreb.com is gone. So I get the pleasure of recreating this webpage. And I realize this is a good thing.
Incidentally, several years ago when I first realized I wanted a website, I brainstormed all the names I could give it. I came up with all kinds of combinations of the words “peace,” “love,” “Earth,” “healing,” “harmony,” etc. And every single thing I came up with was already taken! I guess that’s good news, right? So that’s when I finally decided to just go with www.cynthiagreb.com. There aren’t too many of me! (If you find someone with my name associated with the University of Maryland, that’s not me. Nor is the 74-year-old who lives in Florida.)
Anyway, my life has changed quite a bit since the time of that original website. Prior to that time, I had been a massage therapist, a peace activist, a wife and stepmother, and then eventually a grad student, a hospice chaplain, and a caregiver, to name just a few of the many roles I’ve played. Then a couple life events shifted the course of my life—a breast cancer diagnosis, and the decline and subsequent passing of both my parents. Caring for my parents at the end of their lives and caring for myself after that diagnosis were both heart-opening, soul-growing experiences. What I eventually came away with after all that fear and sorrow and fatigue was this: 1) It’s really important for me to do what I love, and 2) It’s really important not to do those things that wear me down.
I’ve learned that when I put myself in situations where I am unhappy, my vibration gets lower and I start to get unwell. This is not to say we should avoid anything which is uncomfortable or hard. It’s saying that there needs to always be balance. If, for instance, I am in a nursing home several hours a day trying to lift up the spirits of others, I need to also take the time to lift myself up with walks in nature or music or time with soul friends. In addition, I believe that focusing on what we love, on that which brings us joy, almost always sets us on the path of our soul’s purpose.
Is there something that really lights you up? Do more of that!!!
So in the past eight years I feel like I’ve been getting closer to my soul’s purpose on the planet. The two things that especially grab my soul and won’t let go are:
- My love for the Earth—for all her creatures small and large, for the trees and all the plant kingdom, for water in all its many forms.
- My undeniable kinship and connection to Native Americans—to their history, their traditions, to the indigenous people today and the issues which most concern them.
(And of course these two soul paths are very interconnected.)
Much of what I do nowadays is connected to those two overarching passions. For instance, with regard to Mother Earth, I may help educate people about the importance of creating or maintaining habitat conducive to the survival of our pollinators, especially the butterflies, bees, and birds whose populations have been plummeting so precipitously. Or I may organize small groups of women to sing to and thank and bless the waters. (If you’re a woman, please visit this site.) Or the animal lover in me may spend time taking care of people’s animal companions while their humans are away.
Regarding my passion and concern for the indigenous people of the planet, I may travel, visiting many of their sacred sites. Or I may offer prayers where there were massacres of indigenous people. Or I may write or speak about the ancient earth mounds they created, or what happened at the infamous “Indian boarding schools.” (To read more about all of this, please visit my sister site: soulofcynthia.com.)
I like to write and I love to speak and give presentations. I have given presentations both on Zoom and in person and I speak at spiritual gatherings and retirement centers. I hope to soon speak at schools and colleges, as well.
You can read some of my writing at cindygreb.wordpress.com. This site includes mostly blog posts from my life prior to 2017. I especially recommend this one: “Goodbye House, Goodbye Dad.”
Also, if you’d like to purchase a copy of my book Grief and Grace: Stories at the Intersection of Life and Death, contact me at cynthia@cynthiagreb.com. (You can also order it through Amazon, but you will save money if you get it directly from me, and I will make a bigger profit.)
If you want a flyer about how we can support the survival of the pollinators and birds, please send me an email requesting one and I will gladly email a copy which you can distribute widely! Let’s help save the small creatures of the planet! cynthia@cynthiagreb.com
Here are some talks you can watch or listen to:
- “Living as if the World is Sacred” HERE.
- “Cultivating a Spirit of Hope” HERE.
- Inspirational videos HERE, including Loving this Earth, Being Light, Angels in our Midst–Human and Otherwise, and The Most Important Things Aren’t Things.
- Podcasts HERE, including: We All Have a Spiritual Support Team, How Can We Birth a New Earth (Or, Co-creating the Shift We Yearn to See), The Power of Pilgrimage, Transforming Our Fear of Death, and Communing with the Spirits.
There are two other things which bring me joy. Well, many many more than two, actually, but the two I want to mention right now are art and photography. I’m not a master at either of them, but I enjoy it and sometimes people like to bring a piece of my art into their home. I’ll share some of my photos below as well as a couple pieces of my art. In my ideal life, I’d have a little cottage with a studio so I could paint whenever inspiration struck. I’d also have some animals—maybe a pig, a goat, and a donkey. And of course I’d have cats and maybe a dog. I’d have beautiful gardens with gorgeous veggies and herbs as well as abundant flowers and bushes to attract and feed the sweet bees and butterflies. I’d also have a trusted friend to care for everyone and everything when I travel.
It’s so important to dream—not only of the life we want for ourselves, but of the world we long to live in. Please know that the power of our thoughts, words, and intentions is beyond what we can imagine. So, imagine that life you want! Imagine the world you want! Believe it to be possible, because it’s coming! In spite of evidence to the contrary, I swear to you, a better world is being born. (For inspiration, click HERE.)
“Another world is not only possible, she is on her way. On a quiet day, I can hear her breathing.” ~ Arundhati Roy
Blessings to each one of you. I bow to you for the soul being that you are.
Cynthia
If you would like to contact me, email me at cynthia@cynthiagreb.com.
All the photos and artwork below are by Cynthia Greb.
Even dogs love an amazing view
