*

*
*

Wednesday, September 30, 2020

ALL AT ONCE

"Be ye therefore 'eloquent listeners.'" 
~ James Lendall Basford ~

If we can interact with others without an agenda,
And just be curious,
Genuinely curious,
About what it's like to be them, 
Then our connection exists at the level of authenticity,
And is vibrant and fresh
And relaxing
And solid
And loving
All at once. 

I listen, and in so doing, am somehow heard. 

Tuesday, September 29, 2020

MANAGING THE BEAST

"All sorrows are less with bread."
~ Miguel de Cervantes ~

When life requires an extra amount of effort,
Whether emotionally or physically,
Time careens us forward 
And we can inadvertently 
Go too long without eating,
And suddenly find ourselves a bit desperate,
And anxious,
And mis-emotional.
Food will fix it, but
It's so much better to not let it get that far.

I take care to eat at regular intervals, no matter what. 

Monday, September 28, 2020

THE ULTIMATE GIFT

"There is no grace in a benefit that sticks to the fingers."
~ Seneca ~

Though we might not always see and experience it this way,
The truth is that freedom, above all, is a gift. 
It's not something we can earn,
Or achieve.
It's something we are given, often without even realizing it,
Something we have to open
To receive.

I am grateful. 

Sunday, September 27, 2020

PITCH DARKNESS

"When you possess light within, you see it externally."
~ Anais Nin ~

Sometimes life feels like we're standing
In a cave in the pitch dark
And can't see anything at all-
Not even our hand in front of us-
And we have to take a step.
It requires blind (literally) 
Trust.
And we may have to grope and stumble for a bit,
But eventually....
Eventually,
We will see some kind of light somewhere
And be able 
to move 
in its direction.

I trust the light. 

Thursday, September 24, 2020

STICKING SEEDS

"People become attached to their burdens sometimes more than the burdens are attached to them." 
~ George Bernard Shaw~ 

I bought some lovely ornamental grass for the garden today, and when I loaded it into the car, I noticed that it shed its fluffy ends some. And when I unloaded it, I realized that the seeds were all over. They were stuck to a towel, and the floor rug, and the seat, and there was no blowing or shaking them out. They were lodged fast. I considered if that's what it did in my car, it would likely do that in the earth, so if these seeds were fertile, I may have just bought myself an invasive nightmare. 

I googled it to confirm, and yes indeed. There, online, were folks like me who had brought it home and planted it and now it was everywhere and impossible to control.

So-

I won't be planting this grass.

And I will remember the lesson, and notice all the ways it applies to life.

I watch for unwanted spreading of all kinds, and take care to stop it fast.


Wednesday, September 23, 2020

POSSIBILITY MEETS THE MIRACULOUS

"Things are only impossible until they're not."
~ Jean-Luc Picard ~

There are things we know,
And things that we know we don't know.
And then there is a whole other realm of 
Things that we don't know we don't know.
And that's where possibility meets the miraculous,
And synchronicity happens,
And all the dreams we didn't even know we had
Come true.

I stop thinking I have all the answers, and open to divine mystery. 

Tuesday, September 22, 2020

THE BEST WE CAN DO IS GOOD ENOUGH

"I used to worry about what other people think of me until I realized, they don't."
~ Colloquial Saying ~

I have to be vigilant at night when I'm tired
That my thoughts don't turn on me
And make me second guess every decision I've made during the day.

I seem to have this built in anxiety around 
What other people think,
Or might think,
About what I've said or done,

The world does not turn according to my plans and decisions. 
I am both smaller and larger than I think. 

Monday, September 21, 2020

OVER AND OVER AGAIN

"Little fears love to walk on stilts."
~ Henry Stanley Haskins ~

Every time we're faced with a new uncertainty,
The same old fears tend to come up-
That it won't work out,
That we are doomed,
Or whatever our favorite fears may be... 

And the truth is that
Maybe it won't work out in the way that we hope,
But life has shown us 
Over and over and over again,
That whatever it is, we get through it,
And it always works out somehow
And no matter what,
We're ok. 

I stop feeding my fears and live free. 



Sunday, September 20, 2020

WELL-BEING AT THE DEEPEST LEVEL

"God offers to every mind its choice between truth and repose. Take which you please- you can never have both."
~ RW Emerson ~

To be truly honest with ourselves and others takes courage
And trust.
It seems easier most of the time to pretend,
Or deny,
But in the long run,
And at the level of our 
Soul's well-being,
It's not. 

I have the courage to speak my truth.

Thursday, September 17, 2020

MENTAL TRICKERY

"Watch it unfold live."
~Evan I. Schwartz ~

It goes both ways:
Sometimes we sweeten things in our minds in anticipation,
And when they actually happen, 
we feel jolted, 
and let down;
Or,
We expect the worst,
And end up delighted instead.
So what's the message?

Be the observer of it all.

I am the unassociated witness of life happening. 

Wednesday, September 16, 2020

WIPED OUT

"The vision must be followed by the venture."
~ Vance Havner ~

In some ways, mental activity can be more draining than physical activity,
And it doesn't feel as honest somehow,
Or as clean.

I balance figuring things out with moving my body. Otherwise, I go stale. 

Tuesday, September 15, 2020

HELP COMES

"We are all benefactors and beneficiaries, dependent upon each other."
~ James Lendall Basford ~

Help comes-
Not in the way we hope for,
Or expect,
But nonetheless.

We are stuck,
And can't see our way forward.
Someone shines a light
In the opposite direction
From where we were looking
And shows us that actually,
We're not stuck at all.

What freedom 
In knowing
That helps comes.

When we need it,
It comes. 

I breathe and relax and know that all is well. 


Monday, September 14, 2020

THE JOURNEY OF MOODS

"I will wear my heart upon my sleeve."
~ William Shakespeare ~

Sadness.
Anger.
Worry.
Trust.
Peace. 

Emotions rise and fall in me like the tides. 

Sunday, September 13, 2020

NO MATTER WHAT

"We were born to make manifest the glory of God that is within us.'
~ Marianne Williamson ~

No matter what we may have survived, 
or witnessed, 
or been ashamed of, 
We are not some tragic, cautionary tale.
We don't need to shrink and be afraid. 

We are pure, divine power experiencing manifest life, 
and we would do well to remember that 
as we go about our daily business.

I stand in my power. 

Thursday, September 10, 2020

BEING AWARE

"Love. The indigenous nature of the soul."
~ Morris Hyman ~

Even after something has been created,
If it has been created with love,
The love lingers.
It can be felt.

Love leaves footsteps and fingerprints wherever it goes.

Tuesday, September 8, 2020

WALKING THE ROAD

"Life is the game that must be played."
~ Edwin Arlington Robinson ~

When facing complexities and seeming impossibilities
in the world
and in our lives,
There's nothing for it but to 
move forward
one little bit at a time;
to pause if we need to,
to stop if we must,
but to pick up the road again
when we're rested,
and take a small step,
and then another...
And that's the way it goes.
forever and ever,
Amen. 

I keep on keeping on.

Monday, September 7, 2020

BEAUTY FROM THE SOURCE

"A morning glory at my window satisfies me more than the metaphysics of books."
~ Walt Whitman ~

I love candles 
and flowers.
Each so simple,
and so profound.
They change a space and make it sacred
And beautiful
And bright
And alive. 

I fill my environment with color and light.

Sunday, September 6, 2020

DECISION BY INSTINCT

"Instinct is untaught ability."
~ Alexander Bain ~

More often than not, 
when a decision has to be made, 
we actually know what our choice is going to be intuitively before we choose it.
Sometimes, however, 
in spite of our knowing, 
we talk ourselves in to an alternative option for logic's sake, 
or some other mental reasoning.
And inevitably, 
when we go that route, 
we pay for it.

I trust my intuitive knowing.

Thursday, September 3, 2020

THE MIDDLE OF THE NIGHT

"My back is broken by the conflict of my thoughts."
~ Rumi ~

I imagine most of us have had the experience of 
waking up in the middle of the night 
with a "figure it all out right now" kind of mindset. 
I've had a few of those lately... 
and the other night, 
in particular, 
I felt overwhelmed with the thought that, "There's so much happening!" 
Which was followed immediately by the thought that's there's actually nothing happening.
I'm just lying here in my bed in the middle of the night
With the ceiling fan flapping away overhead.

I stay in the moment and breathe. 

Wednesday, September 2, 2020

THE RECIPE

"You don't have to cook fancy or complicated masterpieces- just good from fresh ingredients."
~ Julia Child ~

Life is cumulative.
We start raw and experience tenderizes us,
And the input of our community
Marinates us,
And clarity emerging out of chaos
Slow cooks us until
We become a delicacy.

And then begin raw 
yet again. 

I become deliciously sweet and savory through the slow process of life in small bits.

Tuesday, September 1, 2020

THE SHIFTING EXPERIENCE

"The fact that life is a grind is what sharpens many a man's wits."
~ Boston Transcript ~

As children, we like puzzles and riddles and things we can't figure out.
They're FUN!
So why, when we become adults,
Do we shift,
And experience puzzles as problems,
And grind our teeth over them,
And sweat nervously,
And fret?

I look at problems as challenges, and enjoy the process of seeking solutions.