At The Edge of a New Year

As we leave 2023 and enter 2024,

may we find the courage to be our truest self;

the strength to engage with whatever we encounter with open minds and hearts,

centered and rooted in compassion for ourself and others;

and always, always remember to choose love.

Namaste'

 

Centering

A worthwhile distinction, isn't it?

How many times do I find myself in the middle

trying to please or appease?

More than I care to acknowledge.

To be centered is the mission.

Feet gently and firmly on the ground.  

Rooted in the whole.

For me that means letting it all be exactly as it is...

(back to Monday's Manifesto)

to meet this moment exactly as it is, 

with no dream of being anyone else 

but our flawed and fabulous very self- and then, 

wholly present, bringing this self to the world,

touching again and again what is true.

I know from experience this calls for 

frequent mercy and forgiveness ...

toward the flawed aspects of myself

and the flawed aspects of the world around me.

Like a tree...deeply and intricately rooted and 

connected beneath the surface 

while bending and swaying, 

in rhythm with the weather of the moment,

 gracefully and graciously above ground.

Namaste'

Thousands of Imperfect Moments

Oh, to be a happy woman smiling 

despite thousands of imperfect moments.

To view the magnificence of my existence, 

in this vast, spacious, gracious universe;

 into the miraculous workings of this miniscule body I'm wearing... 

(72% water, 12% earth, 6% air, 4% fire and the rest is Ether),

including its imperfections.

Not to mention the speed at which we're all moving...

growing, 

expanding,

blooming.

to comprehend our sorrows, our sufferings;

and continue to seek out joy and recognize awe;

and remember to smile amidst it all

is truly astonishing and wondrous.

Namaste'

 

A Blessing

Adjusting to a morning without power,

this has been a balm indeed.

may peace find us again and again,

and may it shape us the way the river creates

its bed simply by flowing.

May we hear the unending verses of this river of peace.

May our river bed become a fertile garden of strong and tender growth 

to nourish and sustain us through the trying times, through the hungry times.

even when it's beyond our own capacity, may it grow in us,

surprise us again and again.

Namaste'

 

This Too

I define Christmas as bringing love into the world.

The meaning of it is so distorted by church and commerce.

If the only gifts we bring are

our attention, our trust

this feast is for the heart 

every single day.

I'm hoping we will be wrapped in 

the generosity of sunshine

and the 

deep sweetness of sharing 

whatever lays on our heart.

Namaste'

 

Manifesto

to meet this moment exactly as it is...

Isn't this a marvelous way to think?

with no dream of being anyone but our flawed

and fabulous very self--

wholly present, bringing this self to the world...

What a present that would be, under the tree,

inward toward our self, and outward to the world.

Touching again and again what is true.

What if we not only open our presents but

open all those closed doors inside us?

Or nudge the closest one just a crack?

What closed door will you open to bring to life this Christmas?

Namaste'

 

Surrounded By Bows and Ribbons

Even when you're not surrounded by bows and ribbons.

When Christmas feels more sad than cheerful.

Even then we can

unwrap our hearts and give them

again and again to each other.

Namaste'

 

Tranquility Is Contagious

I'm letting this sink in.

Why is it tranquility and peace seem like states reserved 

for statues and inanimate objects?

It certainly seems to me that being alive at this time

and paying any slight bit of attention means something quite different;

like being wary and watchful and ready to act.

But why not?  Why can't we see the disarray and confusion

and still maintain peace and tranquility? 

Why can't we be watchful and ready to act and joyfully serene?

I love the idea of it being contagious.

How about a pandemic of vigilant serenity? 

Namaste'

 

Evolution

For this winter solstice...

May we know our darkness from our light

and our light from our darkness.

May we live our lives in deep rootedness and glorious flight.

Each of us an axis of eternity, 

as mysterious and immense as a clear sky at night.

Capable of astonishing change ...

survivors of immeasurable events,

flung upon some reach of land.

small, wet miracles without instructions.

Namaste'

 

None of Our Existing Cultures

What is needed is not transcendence

but "incendence."

This calls to mind Sharon Blackie's (and others) imaginal world.

The realm of imagination where things can be reordered, shape shifted, transcribed.  

We have the capacity within ourselves to envision the world we wish to live in.

The trick is to develop and use this capacity for our own sanity and evolution

and create ripples that will grow and gain momentum toward a revolution of spirit.

We are in this together.

Namaste'

 

I Found My Way

"i have been given love with no holy strings attached."

We have all been given this love.

Our mission is to clear our vision to see it, feel it, live it.

It's about taking up your binoculars and adjusting the dials 

until you see it in tack sharp living, breathing, moving color.

(When you still can't see it, consider turning to a sound app, like Merlin

to help you identify it singing nearby.)

And if you use all your resources and still come up short,

BE LOVE. 

Start close in...with yourself.

Love who you see there in your own reflection.

Namaste'

 

To Be Hopeful In Bad Times

Everything about this gives me courage and comfort.

The energy spent imagining the worst is such a waste.

Yet, there it is, in living color.  

"Turn it in to compost", comes a whisper.

Today is another "infinite succession of presents".

A gift unto itself...temporary and priceless.

"Live now as I think human beings should live."

A noble mission of there ever was one, I'm thinking.

Namaste'

 

Often I Imagine

with only one wing, helping each other fly home.

This is the world, I want to live in.

Watching bits of the Geminids meteor shower under that vast night sky

made me aware of how immense and mysterious this universe is.  

How long its gone on and how long it will continue to go on.

All that endless space surrounding me above and beneath.

I felt suspended in a sphere of stars or lets say atoms.

peculiar atoms everywhere-no me, no you, no opinions, 

no beginning, no middle, no end.

I'll meet you there.

We're made for this time. 

Namaste'

 

It Is Better To Light Candles

 The world needs all of our power and love and energy,

and each of us has something that we can give. The trick is 

to find it and use it, to find it and give it away.

So there will always be more.

This is no easy assignment inundated as we are with 

disturbing news from every direction.

I am reminded of these words I heard back in 2016.

Yet, I urge you, ask you, gentle you, to please not spend your spirit dry by bewailing these difficult times. Especially do not lose hope. Most particularly because, the fact is that we were made for these times. Yes. For years, we have been learning, practicing, been in training for and just waiting to meet on this exact plain of engagement. . .

Ours is not the task of fixing the entire world all at once, but of stretching out to mend the part of the world that is within our reach. Any small, calm thing that one soul can do to help another soul, to assist some portion of this poor suffering world, will help immensely. 

It is not given to us to know which acts or by whom, will cause the critical mass 

to tip toward an enduring good. 
What is needed for dramatic change is an accumulation of acts, adding, adding to, adding more, continuing. We know that it does not take everyone on Earth 

to bring justice and peace, but only a small, determined group 

who will not give up during the first, second, or hundredth gale."

Clarissa Pinkola Estes

I'm concentrating on small, calm things even if its simply breathing myself

through difficulties as they arise knowing this small gesture 

is contributing to the tipping point of lasting goodness for all.

We're in this together.

Namaste'

In The Morning

This was perfect for a morning when scanning email subject lines,

I decide its best to attend to this before reading any further.

I know there is a river (of goodness) somewhere,

lit, fragrant golden mist...

I thought millions of us gathering on courthouse steps across the country

standing in silence with signs indicating our support for democracy might

be the answer to "what can we do?".  Now I'm thinking we may want to 

bring pots and pans to crash together to underscore our point?  

We need to learn how to talk with each other, not at, or about each other.

Namaste'

 

How Not To Be A Perfectionist

 I really needed this today as I have to let go of the vision of 

perfect loaves of bread, boxed elegantly and wrapped with exquisite elegance.

It can be challenging to accept the real as well as the perceived shortcomings of oneself.

And to know the difference. 

The older I get, the more impatient I find myself with the embedded ideas

of perfection I've been programmed with...degrees from Ivy League universities, 

fashion model figure, Architectural Digest style home and garden, 

driving highfalutin automobiles, the list goes on.

It's embarrassing to realize how gullible I was to all that and 

how often it manages to trick me into shallow minded thinking.

People are vivid and small and don't live very long--

Thank you, Molly Brodak!

Namaste'

Autobiography of Eve

I fell in love with this the minute I encountered it.

You see, it upended, turned inside out, an old story embedded in my psyche.

One I wasn't entirely aware I was carrying until I read this.

This shows the power of changing the narrative.

I heard a mysterious echo: my own voice singing to me 

across the forbidden side.

I'm discovering how vital it is to listen for this echo no matter how faint.

No matter how many distorted stories are obscuring your sound.

Our voice is calling to us to shake awake at once alive in a blaze of green fire.

 I've never seen a fire as green and I'm dazzled by it. Why not?

A giant thank you to Ansel Elkins*!

Namaste"

*Ansel Elkins was born in Alabama. She earned her BA from Sarah Lawrence College and MFA from the University of North Carolina at Greensboro.

 

Look Things Straight In The Face

 to discover the small, naked human being amid the monstrous wreckage

caused by [hu]mans senseless deeds.

Living on that ribbon of land where looking things straight in the face

while believing in the river of goodness and cultivating what is decent and fair,

is the undertaking of a lifetime.  

May we realize the dream of transformation from fear, greed and overlording

to mutual respect and cooperation among all living entities.

Namaste'

I've Been Thinking

Many words but worthwhile ones in my estimation.

it is only when I tend to what's close in first that I can be with the complexities...

A message we keep hearing over and over.

The naked truth of what's close in is often highly charged or deeply buried.  

It takes brave attention to allow and accept whatever bubbles up. 

It is only when I stay connected to my own moral compass . . .

that I can witness others more clearly, without my own gunk 

creating residue on the clarity needed to see the truth.

I want to shield myself from everything that upsets my desire

to live in peace and tranquility and joy. 

Yet, everything that disturbs that desire IS 

my moral compass, isn't it?

We're in this together.  

Namaste'

 

Probably The Only Right Way

I LOVE the idea of 

 letting it all soak in, . . .to mature slowly

inside you until it becomes a part of yourself.

 If only this attitude existed in my earlier years.

Instead, I absorbed the feeling I needed to hurry and finish one thing so as to move on to another.  Perhaps that isn't surprising growing up in a large family where there was a staggering amount of daily tasks to be accomplished each day. The only way to get 

time for yourself was to speed through your responsibilities.  It was embedded in me early.

But still, the most important thing is the organic process of growing.

Whether its trees in the forest or lettuce in the garden, plants make great teachers.

Namaste'

True Peace Will Come

. . . when we have all vanquished our hatred for our fellow human beings.

I would add: and awakened to the dignity of all beings on earth. 

For me, this means deep focus and diligent vigilance to what's going on inside of me.

Strengthening my inner coach to gently redirect the thoughts that detract from the mission.

Noting the uprisings of distress and annoyance and soothing them with acceptance and understanding while encouraging a shift in perspective and response.

The smallest adjustment is cause for celebration.

(Not giving in to the desire to yell at the barking dog, for example.)

I'm coming to realize the truth of what it takes to be at peace.

The calm visible on the outside has most likely been achieved with some

serious sweating, wrestling and rumbling beneath the surface.

Namaste'

PS: Esther (Etty) Hillesum (15 January 1914 – 30 November 1943) was a Dutch Jewish author  in Amsterdam during the German occupation. In 1943, she was deported and murdered in the Auschwitz concentration camp

Water Dissolves

It's challenging to find an uplifting thought for today.

My spirit feels battered from the harbingers of doom

echoing loudly in the public square.

It feels naive to believe the often silent and invisible river of goodness exists

and is mighty enough to overcome the forces of fear and division.

Yet, I'm still holding up this little wild bouquet.*

Water dissolves ... even acid.

May the water of the river of goodness dissolve the acid of hate,

the acid of fear, the acid of inequality.

May the ripples of dignity and fairness transfigure the landscape.

Namaste'

*Leonard Cohen, Democracy Is Coming To the USA.

 

I Have Nothing To Say

 

It's far easier to say nothing in person.

Namaste'

To Love Our Enemy Is Impossible

Lately, I've been wrestling with the idea of loving my enemy

as I continue to fall far short of that goal.

I've read lots and lots of words on the matter.

So, at first, it was a relief to read this.

This statement makes it sound deceptively simple.

However, I'm thinking its fruitless to understand someone 

through the lens of the media and my own prejudices. 

Now what?  I ask myself. 

I still feel the lack of love churning around toward those I see as enemies.

Once again the impetus circles back to the ground beneath me.

My particular tiny world is the one place where I can actually "do" something constructive.

Perhaps I can adjust my view and see beyond the despicable behavior**

to the wounded human being?  

Namaste'

** However, this does NOT mean I condone or allow the despicable behavior does it?

 

Nonstop Irony

Nonstop irony is a vicious cycle. 

The key word is nonstop.  

I find irony, done gracefully, to be quite effective in making a point.

It's when irony leads to cynicism 

then leads to propaganda and lies, that it gets twisted.

Irony can't convey truth for a simple reason:

it never means what it says. But for the same reason,

thank heavens, it can't invalidate the truth.

Truth matters. 

Namaste'

 

The Quiet And Extraordinary Power Of Love

by being open to love and risking its way, love's yearning

can reach toward . . .unknowing, into . . .uncertainty...

I consider it risky to speak of love with words. However, when I feel my yearning for goodness,

truth, fairness, dignity and beauty, love takes on greater proportions.  It strengthens my resolve to 

do whatever I can to increase their impact in my immediate world whenever and wherever I can.

And now I begin to see where love/yearning can exist even in the absolute worst of circumstances.

Namaste'

 

One Insight Has To Do With Power

In this world of what feels like constant threat, uncertainty and disarray,

I confess to some doubt about the power of love.  That's when I have to remind myself

that people in past times have felt a similar kind of dread, believing we are doomed and yet here we are

still living in a free democracy with a river of goodness flowing strong amidst the turmoil.

Loves power operates by allure ... 

by stirring a desire that longs for what is good, beautiful and true.

Reflecting on this, I think of all the signs that the power of longing for truth, beauty and goodness exists and is growing ever stronger...shores up my doubting mind and heart. And inspires me to shift my mindset

and contribute everything I am to sustaining and strengthening that force in this world, for this world.  

Isn't that the message we're receiving?  

How learning how to love ourselves in our deepest chambers and at our most unloveable 

is the point of beginning.  Then follow where those threads of mercy and kindness lead us.

See our fears and doubts and terrors as doorways to healing. 

With deep listening, whatever you need will come at just the right moment to show you the way. 

Namaste'

P.S. Sun House is a saga giving a glimpse of what it's like to live from this power.

 

Maybe The Point Isn't To Live More

to be more alive in any given moment

I started to write "think" about this for a breath or two

but "feel" this seems more appropriate.

I'm not quite sure about her meaning of outward and across.

For me, movement inward is vital...inward to my often shielded heart, 

sensing the rhythm within and around me, following the strings,

which move more like a gentle spiral beginning exactly where I am.

Sometimes, I find "nothing" which has come to signify

"something" inviting my attention. 

Isn't the meaning of to be alive mine to define? 

If so, does that mean its also mine to deny? 

Namaste'

 

Remains

Thanks

Every sincere expression of thanks is a choice

to meet what is good in the world and to honor it with our attention.

I extend my deepest and most heartfelt thanks for each one of you.

You enrich my life beyond measure.

May your day be immense and spacious with love and beauty.

Namaste'

I Need To Express

Namaste'

 

We Think We Tell Stories

This makes me think of all the stories I heard as a child;

fairy tales and bible stories for starters.

As I got older, saint's stories filled my head.

Juxtapose those with the "bodice rippers" that came later.

Looking back, it strikes me how they contributed to forming me.

How deftly and deeply I was programmed with other's values and beliefs.

Many values and beliefs that repel me now.  

It's helpful now to exercise the right to retell the tales.

Or at least to question their agenda.

Gone With The Wind is a good example.

Caught up in the romance of Scarlett, Ashley and Rhett,

I never questioned the setting...the world they lived in.

This is the wonder of aging.  Eyesight might diminish, but mindsight gets clearer.

It's also the wonder of learning, of questioning, of listening to your intuition.

If you're fortunate, you realize you have the power

to write your own stories.  

You can create them from scratch or 

you can rewrite the ones who've been telling you.

Namaste'

An Unexamined Life

I confess to a former assumption that others think like I do.

While it still baffles me, there's lots and lots and lots of evidence 

to the contrary these days.

perhaps an honorable and informed life requires 

examining others' lives, not just our own.

This sounds like wise advice in this world of vast diversity.

Think of all we can learn from examining the complex variety of human experience.

Perhaps we do not know ourselves unless we know others.

I'm not sure how I feel about this.  I think its vital that we know who we are

distinct from the influence of others. 

As soon as I say that, I ask myself if that's even possible?

The most important thought to carry with me is 

 nobody is nobody.

I would also add that no thing is nothing.

Namaste'

Stubborn Optimism

why is the future worth fighting for?

My answer would be, for those humans coming after us with an important caveat.

I want those humans to be decent, fair-minded and truly just;

to evolve past fear and scarcity and greed; 

to have learned how to respect themselves, others and the world we live in; 

to value working together so everyone thrives;

to witness the wonder of our earth regenerating herself with our partnership. 

I could go on and on and on.

Why is your future worth fighting for?

Namaste'