PROMISE KEPT

"Let God's promises shine." 

~ Corrie Ten Boom ~

It's called a brave new world because it takes bravery to create a new world. It takes departure from all that is familiar and all that is known. It takes breaking away and setting forth. It takes an open mind and steady heart. It takes faith and action and endurance and strength.
     And the place we arrive is the place we trust in, and the dream is delivered, and the promise is kept.

I smile as the brave new world appears.

CONGESTION AND FREEDOM

"Let freedom ring!" 

~ Samuel Francis Smith ~

Congestion suffocates growth- congestion of any sort- of the mind, the body, the road that lies ahead... Congestion is blocking. It shuts things down. And we live in it. We create it. But it's not the only way.
     The other option is open space and freedom with no constraints, and when we get that, let's appreciate it. Congestion is bound to come, but not bound to stay, and freedom, wherever we feel it, is a blessing of the highest degree.

I celebrate freedom! 

HONORING HEROES

"A hero is someone who has given his or her life to something bigger thank oneself." 

~ Joseph Campbell ~

Remembering heroes.

Honoring what has been.

Expressing gratitude.

Acknowledging sacrifice.

Feeling loss, gain, compassion, love, and the glories of freedom.

I appreciate all those who serve. 

BOUND FOR ADVENTURE

"I come to the forbidden edge.

I strap on the sheath of unfear and gird the strands of daring about me." 

~ Muriel Strode ~

We strike out for Montana with gusto and high hopes; with a bit of caution and a ton of risk. We are living large and playing with everything we've got. The stakes are appropriate for the experience we seek.
     Fresh and fearless, into the new day, we strike!

I am up for whatever comes!

THE POWER OF CHOOSING

"The gateways of wisdom and learning are always open, and more and more I am choosing to walk through them." 

~ Louise Hay ~

All the effort I've expended I have chosen to expend, and all the inner angst and sense of struggle as well. I have chosen my resentments, my fears, and my limiting beliefs. And they have held me back, by some kind of self-sabotaging design.
     But now, I'm choosing something different. I'm choosing choice itself, and freedom. I'm choosing adventure and the proposition of risk and reward. I'm choosing happiness, well-being, appreciation, and joy.
     Choice is my birthright and companion, my mother and closest friend. It represents an unlimited life where anything is possible, and that's the one I choose.

I live my life at the level of choice.

RESISTANCE

"I am free, no matter what rules surround me." 

~ Robert A Heinlein ~

There is power in resistance- the power of struggle and stubbornness- of being right and being justified. It's an oppositional kind of stance with arms crossed and a refusal to engage. It shuts us off from the world and from the expression of love and the experience of connection. It binds us in lock down, makes us miserable, and keeps us stuck.
     But we don't have to stay stuck. We can accept what is, agree to work with conditions as they are, and be honest about what we really want, which is likely peace of mind and to feel good. And that's what we can have as soon as we are willing to un-cross our arms.

I free myself from resistance and experience peace.

COMPLETION

"Wheresoever you go, go with all your heart." 

~ Kongzi ~

Sometimes completion comes with a ceremony, sometimes with a party, and sometimes with a vast and echoing emptiness. Whatever has happened is over, and there are feelings in every direction about that fact.
     What remains is what opens up- the clean space before us- where opportunity and the promise of a new adventure exist.

Each closure is an opening, and each ending a fresh start.

ACKNOWLEDGING SELF

"Learn to be what you are... and to resign with good grace all that you are not." 

~ Henri Frederic Amiel ~

I acknowledge myself for being human- for having a big heart and big dreams, for having been hurt and having been blessed, for being loving and caring and working hard.
     I have come through difficulty and not been discouraged by it, failed in business and started anew. I have been steady and strong and willing and eager. I have done my best and admitted many wrongs.

I am what I am, and I'm not what I'm not- complete in being human.

ACKNOWLEDGING MY DAUGHTER

"To send light into the darkness of mans' hearts- such is the duty of the artist." 

~ Schumann ~

I acknowledge my daughter, Sienna, for completing four years of college; for remaining true to her art even when she was misunderstood; for being a visionary, a creator on every level of her life, and an embodiment of the wild feminine.
     I acknowledge her for courage, heart, and willingness, and for being an individual on this earth who makes a difference in the lives of others.

I am inspired by the power of creative vision against all odds.

ACKNOWLEDGING MY SON

"Your children are not your children. They are the sons and daughters of Life's longing for itself." ~ Kahlil Gibran ~

I acknowledge my son, Nick, today for a personal milestone of significance, for facing what was scary and unpleasant to face, for soldiering on with determination, resilience, and an open mind no matter what, for owning his part in his life experience, and for achieving a goal that matters.
   

I honor achievement and acknowledge the work that it took.

ACKNOWLEDGING PARTNERS

"A partner is someone who makes you more than you are, simply by being by your side." 

~ Albert Kim ~

I acknowledge my husband for being the perfect mix of sensitivity and toughness, for being an excellent communicator, a creative problem solver, a loyal protector, and a man of his word. I acknowledge him for kindness, for compassion, for equal partnership, and for grand adventure! He is just right exactly the way he is, and I am blessed to share my life with him. :)

I celebrate loving partnership!

ACKNOWLEDGING FATHERS

"He didn't tell me how to live. He lived, and let me watch him do it." 

~ Clarence Budington Kelland ~

I acknowledge my father for providing structure in my life, for raising me with a sense of right and wrong, and for teaching me to read powerfully out loud. I acknowledge him for being brave, unique, creative, and principled; for valuing education, being willing to pay for things of quality, and standing for what matters. I acknowledge him for all the things he's taught me by being who he is, and for his having been willing to take risks over and over in his life.
     Today is his Birthday, and I thank him for all of the years past, and wish him well-being in all of the years to come.

I am thankful for my father.

ACKNOWLEDGING MOTHERS

"The heart of a mother is a deep abyss at the bottom of which you will always find forgiveness." 

~ Horace de Balzac ~

I acknowledge my mother for her contribution to my life; for her enthusiasm, integrity, courage, and resilience; for her driving me all over as a kid, teaching me what mattered, being encouraging, and appreciating me for who I am and loving me in spite of all my mis-adventures.
     I am grateful that she never lost faith in me, and for all the ways that she has positively impacted my life.

I recognize the contribution of my own mother, and of mothers all over the world.

CONFRONTATION

"Confront the dark parts of yourself, and work to banish them with illumination and forgiveness. Your willingness to wrestle with your demons will cause your angels to sing." 

~ August Wilson ~

I have always considered myself a "non-confrontational" individual, and I am realizing lately that may not be true, and also that it is through confrontation that we evolve.
     When we confront death and our own mortality, we transform the way we live. When we confront the impact of our negative behavior on the condition of our lives, we can alter our behavior. We we confront what limits us, we can become unlimited. But it has to be a hard confrontation. A mini-acknowledgement that throws blame at others gets us nowhere. Confrontation, by its definition, creates discomfort in us. That discomfort is what we avoid, and ironically, that discomfort is the very thing that can ultimately set us free.

I confront the reality of how I am in the world and what it gets me.

INTO ACTION

"We... think too much and too morbidly- brood (and) become sickly with our own pallid fancies, allowing them to swarm upon us by night and by day." 

~ Mose Velsor ~

Some thoughts are more credible than others; and many are positively dis-regardable, nonsensical, wrong, destructive, unhelpful, and mis-guided. And if we hook in, our thoughts can make us believe what's not true, tie us in emotional knots, and torment us the same as any full-fledged interrogation.
     So we need to take our thoughts with a grain of salt, get out of our heads, act based on our values and commitments, and get into conversation and movement in the world, because that's where the results that we want actually show up.

When my mind is noisy and steering me astray, I get into action and remember that thoughts are just thoughts.

THE SLOW PROCESS OF LETTING GO

"Grieving is a necessary passage and a difficult transition to finally letting go of sorrow- it is not a permanent rest stop." 

~ Dodinski ~

I wish letting go were as quick and easy as it sounds, but more often, I find it's a process- a slow release over time. Hurts fade, what was sharp and poking softens; we accept acceptance and our muscles relax.
     Sometimes it does happens in an instant, it's true; and sometimes, we have to wait patiently for it to dissolve slowly... like a melting mountain of bulldozed snow in a parking lot.

I am willing to be patient and trusting, knowing that some things take longer to release than others.

ACTION!

"The shortest answer is doing." 

~ Lord Herbert ~

Thinking doesn't move us forward.
Action does.
Action is what creates new experience.
We can think all we want to about our plans and dreams, but until we do something to move us forward, we are nothing but spinning wheels.

If I want to get traction, I have to take action.

LIVING LARGE

"To dare is to lose one's footing momentarily. To not dare is to lose oneself."

~ Soren Kierkegaard ~

Practicality has its place, but sometimes, we need to be impractical in order to feel vital and alive. We need to take a risk, step out of our comfort zone, and live large.
     Playing small makes us small, and restricts our options and our sense of well-being. Let's step out and be bold instead. Let's audaciously experience all the variability of life!

I am willing to be unreasonable once in a while in order to feel alive!

UNLIMITED ADAPTABILITY

"Your legs will get heavy and tired. Then comes a moment of feeling the wings you've grown lifting." 

~ Rumi ~

We are adaptable beyond our wildest imaginations, and yet, we so fearfully approach change. In the first moment we face something new and uncertain, we often balk and resist, backpedaling with all our might; but very quickly, especially if we know what's best for us and what we can control and what we can't control, we stop resisting and accept whatever has come. We settle in and feel good. And then we're resisting again, like a crazy, vicious cycle, with each new wrinkle in our plan.
     Let's surrender to all of it instead, and learn finally and absolutely to simply enjoy the ride!

I adapt fluidly and gracefully to whatever comes up.

LIFE IS A DYNAMIC DANCE

"Whosoever knoweth the power of the dance, dwelleth in God." 

~ Rumi ~

There are times when the best thing we can do is to stay put, and when being quiet and still serves us best. And then they pass, and movement returns. 

Life is a dynamic dance that never rests for long.

I move and bend with the rhythm of life.

WHEREVER WE ARE

"It is important that students bring a certain ragamuffin, barefoot irreverence to their studies; they are not here to worship what is known, but to question it."

~ Jacob Bronowski ~

It's ok to not know what we're doing and be at the bottom of the learning curve. So often, we want to pretend that we are further down the path than we are, but it's inauthentic to do so. Being a beginner has its advantages. For one thing, those who have gone before like to be able to teach us what they know and show us the way. We are all in it together, and helping each other out wherever we can is the natural and fulfilling cycle of human exchange.
     Plus, we have the advantage of a fresh perspective, and it's always possible that we might see things with our fresh eyes that have never been seen before.

I look to those ahead for a hand, and lend one to those coming up behind.