Art Is The Answer

 

Tsagaglalal​ - creation of Sandy Wythawai Starbird​

Ask anyone why art is essential and you may hear that it's useless, or that it's necessary for the survival of our species. I've come to think that art is the answer to our current problems involving beliefs and our inability to assimilate facts. Any society which wants to suppress its people tries to eliminate art in its various forms. In the United States, we have been taught to believe that art is a luxury and is not essential in educating our children. This has caused some to think that anyone who appreciates art in its various forms is highfalutin in some way, perhaps defined as elitist for their love of beauty and critical thinking. I ask that we stop and remember the Coal Miner's Daughter, Loretta Lynn. She was as down-home as a person could be, and her songs praise the evolution of thought and the revolution for women and the pointlessness of sending our loved ones to war. Her stories rival those we think of as coming through great authors, and her melodies are as pure as our finest composers brought forth. Art in the United States is fabulously diverse and is representative of our country far more than corporations and politicians. We could list pages of writers and musicians and artists in all their glory, and they have all opened us to something more than we were before we heard or saw their creations. Yes, I think the answer to every question is art! 

"Creation is ever appearing, and must ever continue to appear from the nature of its inexhaustible source." Mary Baker Eddy - Science & Health Page 507:28

Surrendering Defenses

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Many words and actions may seem to bring on feelings of being attacked. The realization that all attack comes from within is an eye-opener! I may feel I’m defending myself when I attack others, but I’m not. It's not a defense against anything, only my acceptance of  perceived attack and the resultant retaliation. When I realize I cannot be attacked from anywhere except  within my own self, I can surrender the defenses I have built for protection against outside circumstances. Through a conscious choice to reject the unreality of material existence and claim our heritage as powerful spiritual beings, unafraid to stand up and declare our Oneness with divine Love and all of Its creation, we are able to transcend the fears we think are inevitable. I love the new world which is being revealed through this understanding!

"Every law of matter or the body, supposed to govern man, is rendered null and void by the law of Life, God. Ignorant of our God-given rights, we submit to unjust decrees, and the bias of education enforces this slavery." Mary Baker Eddy - Science & Health Page 380:32-4

Boundless Bliss

 It's easy to feel victimized by current events. It seems as if "they" are going to do whatever they want and come up with reasons why it's necessary. I don't know and don't want to wonder why things are as they are, but I am excited and expectant of good as I watch individuals working to improve communications and provide knowledge. One of my heroes is Michael Moore. He dares to question the powers that be on topics most of us are afraid to broach. One of his documentaries is "Capitalism: A Love Story". While he shows us transgressions of government and corporations, he also tells of individuals and businesses daring to challenge the accepted standards and bring about much-needed change. He gives us hope by showing how we, too, can carry a light and spread it to others. While we can never know what material truth is, as it is ever-changing and fickle, we can know spiritual Truth and allow it to lead our way toward a brave new world!

"Man is tributary to God, Spirit, and to nothing else. God's being is infinity, freedom, harmony, and boundless bliss." Mary Baker Eddy - Science & Health Page 481:2-4

Empathy Builds Community

I’m reading Dan Rather’s book, What Unites Us. He is old enough to remember what life was like in the aftermath of the great depression, times before we had government programs to help people in need, along with the suffering which was thought of as normal. When someone lost their job, it felt like death, because there was not another job to be found. Neighbors would do what they could for each other, and when Dan asked his mother why they were helping the people across the street, thinking perhaps it was pity which inspired his folks to give, he was told it wasn’t because they felt sorry for them, but because they understood the feeling of being in need. He writes of how empathy builds community. That feeling is strong here in Eureka Springs. In the last two-and-a-half decades, I’ve watched our town band together to help people in every kind of need imaginable. I have been the recipient of that kindness more than once, and it has built empathy within me, too. When we don’t blame people for their misfortune, we don’t judge their circumstances, but simply meet their need, whatever it may be. It seems so simple, and it is a beautiful thing to watch in action. I wish everyone in our country could read or listen to this book by Mr. Rather. Good will multiplies exponentially, don’t you think? Let’s go forth and multiply!

"Do we love our neighbor better because of this asking? Do we pursue the old selfishness, satisfied with having prayed for something better, though we give no evidence of the sincerity of our requests by living consistently with our prayer? If selfishness has given place to kindness, we shall regard our neighbor unselfishly, and bless them that curse us, but we shall never meet this great duty simply by asking that it may be done. There is a cross to be taken up before we can enjoy the fruition of our hope and faith."  Mary Baker Eddy - Science & Health Page 9:6

What is Morality?

 

“If I had to write a book on morality, it would have a hundred pages and ninety-nine would be blank. On the last page I should write: 

'I recognize only one duty, and that is to love.'” 

Albert Camus

Peaceful, Thoughtful Resolution

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Working to correct injustice is not attacking — unless we make it so with thought! Many people feel the way of life we’re studying demands we sit around having happy thoughts, meditating, and turning away from pain and suffering. Of course, it does! But that does not preclude speaking truth to error when it is uncovered. By turning away from attack and demonstrating the Love which is our reality, we begin to understand our purpose on a totally different level than we may have espoused all our lives. I remind myself time and again of these words from A Course in Miracles: “There is no point in trying to change the world. It is incapable of change because it is merely an effect. But there is indeed a point in changing your thoughts about the world. Here you are changing the cause. The effect will change automatically.” It takes a change of thought to bring freedom. Let's free ourselves today -- and forever!

“By purifying human thought, this state of mind permeates with increased harmony all the minutiae of human affairs.” Mary Baker Eddy - Miscellaneous Writings Page 204:23-25

Seeing Through New Eyes

 

photo credit: Gerry Toler

Everywhere​,​​ huge changes are occurring. Let​'s​ not be afraid to look at traditional values in a new light! New ways of looking at old words, such as The Lord's Prayer, give us new insights and understanding. In the late 1800s, Mary Baker Eddy gave us a spiritual interpretation of this well-known prayer. Here is a beautiful modern-day interpretation by Peter Russell, which I feel is helpful in facilitating our shifting perception.

Peter Russell's Contemporary Lord's Prayer

​"​Our essential Being, that dwells within,

'I am' is thy name.

May thy true nature be revealed.

May thy knowing inform our daily lives,

As it does our inner Being.

Nourish us today with thy Presence.

Release us from any judgment we have held against ourselves,

As we release others from judgments we've held against them.

Let us not be tempted to seek solace in worldly things.

Liberate us from that which veils the truth.

For it is in our Being that we find your Presence,

The Source of all good, the home of all joy,

Eternally, and without change.

So be it."

http://www.peterrussell.com

Mary Baker Eddy quote: "Our Father-Mother God, all harmonious, Adorable One. They kingdom is come; thou art ever present. Enable us to know, -- as in heaven, so on earth, -- God is omnipotent, supreme. Give us grace for today; feed the famished affections. And Love is reflected in love. God leadeth us not into temptation, but delivereth us from sin, disease, and death. For God is infinite, all power, all Life, Truth, Love, over all, and All." Science & Health, Page 16:27-15

Peace Inherent

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photo credit: Aaron Springston

Peace is inherent in every seemingly volatile situation. Tell this to someone who has been involved in a violent attack and they will scoff at you — at the very least. It’s my understanding that one in every three calls to the police in our area involves domestic abuse. I can only assume this is a woman calling concerning a man's actions, although that isn't always the scenario. I know I can’t change anyone; only my thoughts about them or the situation. By this peaceful resolution within myself, I may be guided to take particular actions in my world, or I may be led to quietly know the Truth about us all and, by that knowing, facilitate peace. I wish I could quiet everyone's mind so they wouldn't need to lash out at others. Hum -- maybe I can, right here within me! Do I really understand Oneness? I certainly want to...  

 
“Truth and Love enlighten the understanding, in whose 'light shall we see light;' and this illumination is reflected spiritually by all who walk in the light and turn away from a false material sense.” Mary Baker Eddy - Science & Health Page 510:9-12

Reflections of Good

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photo credit: Kailey Jones

A good friend once called me and said she felt as though she had been punched in the face by God. Of course, I asked what she meant by this — as many different interpretations crossed my thought, mainly that she had awakened from the illusion! It turns out she had a toothache. So I immediately told her not to put that [expletive deleted] on God! We talked of definitions for God, specifically that we are the image and likeness of divine Love, and there is no way that this gentle Presence would ever punch us in the face. This particular friend is so receptive to Truth that she almost immediately felt better and has spoken with me often about the many instances wherein this new understanding has changed her outlook. What a joy it is to see someone open the door and not be afraid of the light!

"Man is, and always has been, God's reflection." Mary Baker Eddy - Science & Health Page 471:17-18

Book Club in the Time of Covid

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Last fall, I was Zooming with my book club and Kevin was fascinated by the exchanges he overheard. He had always admired the books we read and how energized I was after attending one of our meetings, so when he heard us talking via computer, the journalist in him came to life and he wanted me to write an essay about our group, its history, and how the pandemic had affected us. I had forgotten our conversation and was happily surprised today to find these notes he made for me. He slipped the piece of paper into a stack of 2020 tax stuff I had in my desk. Since his passing two months ago, he is in my dreams almost every night, but seeing this note today brought him into the room as surely as if he had walked through the door! What a welcome surprise this was...

"Life is the law of Soul, even the law of the spirit of Truth, and Soul is never without its representative. Man's individual being can no more die nor disappear in unconsciousness than can Soul, for both are immortal." Mary Baker Eddy - Science & Health Page 427:5

Let Them BE

 

                                                            

Someone posted this on Facebook today. It reminds me of my beloved friends. Happy Spring to each and every one!

"When you meet that person, a person, one of your soulmates, let the connection, relationship be what it is. 

It may be five mins, five hours, five days, five months, five years, a lifetime, five lifetimes.

Let it manifest itself the way it is meant to, it has an organic destiny, this way if it stays or if it leaves, 

you will be softer from having been loved this authentically.

Souls come into, return, open, and sweep through your life for a myriad of reasons.

Let them be who and what they are meant.”

Nayyirah Waheed

Be The Ones

 

Art by Lucy Campbell  -- lupiart.com

​

"May we raise children

who love the unloved

things - the dandelion, the

worms & spiderlings.

Children who sense

the rose needs the thorn

& run into rainswept days

the same way they

turn towards sun...

And when they're grown &

someone has to speak for those

who have no voice

may they draw upon that

wilder bond, those days of

tending tender things

and be the ones."

~ Nicolette Sowder

wilderchild.com

Follow and Rejoice

photo credit: Aaron Springston

Have you ever felt as though you’re walking through quicksand when going about your daily activities? I’ve been feeling that way for a few days and have observed that it doesn’t take long to sink into expectations of difficulties. At first, I decided I had reached the “anger” phase of grief, because it seemed everything irritated me and nothing felt quite right. Knowing that our outer experiences are a direct result of our innermost thoughts, I began an examination of mine. In much the same way as early spring days call us to weed our flower beds, I began to cull through my random thoughts and emotions, identifying and transforming those which caused me to feel bad. I returned time and again to a mantra which Mary Baker Eddy called the daily prayer: “Thy kingdom come. May the reign of divine Truth, Life, and Love be established in me. And rule out of me all sin [anything which separates from Love], and may Thy word enrich the affections of all mankind and govern them.” Tomorrow may bring a different repetition to help me to keep thought in line with Love, but wherever I’m led, I will follow.

“Shepherd, show me how to go, o’re the hillside steep.

How to gather, how to sow, how to feed thy sheep.

I will listen for thy voice, lest my footsteps stray.

I will follow and rejoice, all the rugged way.”

Poem from Mary Baker Eddy

Words Matter

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I just read an editorial Kevin wrote in 2018 when he worked for the Elgin Courier in Texas. It's titled "We Print Facts, Not Speculation". This piece had to do with not knowing all the facts about a city official and some alleged shenanigans. He writes about times when people's lives have been ruined by speculation when a number of people know 10% of the facts and get together to speculate on the rest. He was always very careful not to gossip about anyone, and he learned those lessons from listening to his dad, who was on the local school board and many other community-centered committees and clubs. I will be posting the editorial in its entirety on Facebook tomorrow, but here's a snippet: "The thing that hurts, though, from a community perspective, is the loss of our presumption of good -- innocence. That loss is what drives what we now call 'fake news.'" One of the things Kevin strived to teach others was that words matter. He certainly has taught me this lesson, and if he had a tombstone that's what I'd put on it: Words Matter! 

"The divine Science of man is woven into one web of consistency without seam or rent. Mere speculation or superstiition appropriates no part of the divine vesture, while inspiration restores every part of the Christly garment of righteousness." Mary Baker Eddy - Science & Health Page 242:25

Translating Misidentification

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photo credit: Aaron Springston

"Gut feelings" are often discounted as being invalid for any number of reasons. Some say they're nothing more than paranoid thoughts, others may think of them as wishful thinking, a few of us see them as reflections of divine Mind. I'm reminded today that we must reinterpret everything we see. Discord and inharmony can be changed in thought by re-identification and reinterpretation.  As an example, when we see train tracks coming together in the distance, we immediately reinterpret that into the truth of the situation. We know that those tracks aren't coming together and that it will not be dangerous to travel on the train which carries us toward that end. The metaphysical studies we've embarked upon are doing the same thing: teaching us to recognize misidentification and translate it into Truth. Love extending Itself is ​the ​correct interpretation. Translating erroneous thought is our job!

Mary Baker Eddy quotes: “Rise in the strength of Spirit to resist all that is unlike good. God has made man capable of this, and nothing can vitiate the ability and power divinely bestowed on man.”  Science & Health Page 393:12-15

Centered in Truth

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photo credit: Aaron Springston

Upon awakening, I had about 20 inane and/or insane thoughts before I realized what I was doing! I started off with, What day is this and where am I supposed to be?, which was quickly followed by a chain of remembrances which took me from a lovely cooking store, to my childhood home, then my little mind zoomed over to a friend's house and a remembered conversation, before zipping back to a neglected household chore. This illustrates the importance of stilling rampant thinking and centering ourselves in Truth before beginning our day. We so often feel bombarded by thoughts of fear and hostility, lack and disease, error and disharmony. To hold thought in accord with divine Mind is a lofty goal, and may seem daunting, but we are learning it is a possibility and that even a glimpse of Truth is tantalizing. Join me in taking a stand for higher, deeper thought today and every day!

“Temporal things are the thoughts of mortals and are the unreal, being the opposite of the real or the spiritual and eternal.” ​Mary Baker Eddy - ​Science & Health Page 337:26-28

We Are All Sculptors

 

photo credit: Aaron Springston

It’s easy to feel peaceful when things are going according to our plans, but what of times when we have unexpected events such as loss of a job, breaking up of a marriage, illness, or accidents? At such times, it can feel as though our peace has been disrupted, perhaps never to be felt again. In order to extend peace to others, we must accept it for ourselves. How grateful I am for an inkling of knowledge about the Science of Being! The unfolding reality which has replaced the shattering illusions around me have been facilitating a change in perception and an acceptance of peace. It’s sort of like Michelangelo chiseling away everything but the image he was seeing. We are working to release everything unlike Love, leaving behind pure peace! 

“We are all sculptors, working at various forms, moulding and chiseling thought. What is the model before mortal mind? Is it imperfection, joy, sorrow, sin, suffering? Have you accepted the mortal model? Are you reproducing it? Then you are haunted in your work by vicious sculptors and hideous forms...To remedy this, we must first turn our gaze in the right direction, and then walk that way. We must form perfect models in thought and look at them continually, or we shall never carve them out in grand and noble lives.” Mary Baker Eddy - Science & Health Page 248:12

A Higher and More Permanent Peace

 

​Excitement is in the air! Warmer weather, the appearance of flowers, and the hope of full vaccinations allowing us to co-mingle again — well, it’s almost too much to bear! While colder weather and grey days don’t bother me (I enjoy being cozily swaddled in flannel and books), I’m ready to plant something and be outside. I have missed my book club and a spades game I regularly played with three dear friends, but other than that, I really don’t miss anything about the “old” life. I’m a bridge fanatic, and tournaments are more readily available online than they were in real time. I’m almost a Life Master after this year of seclusion. I never was into “party bridge”, but three friends and I play all Monday afternoon, online, with a conference call allowing us to talk on our phones. It’s better than being physically with each other — because we don’t have to go anywhere! I’ve never enjoyed small talk and chit chatting at parties and such, and it sometimes causes me discomfort to be forced into it. The past year has allowed me to realize many things about myself, as I’m sure you have, too. I look forward to embracing life in ways which bring peace and fulfillment!

“This scientific sense of being, forsaking matter for Spirit, by no means suggests man’s absorption into Deity and the loss of his identity, but confers upon man enlarged individuality, a wider sphere of thought and action, a more expansive love, a higher and more permanent peace.” ​Mary Baker Eddy - ​Science & Health Page 265:10-15

Why Are You Happy?

Kevin Wright

I heard of a study which has been in the making for 40+ years. It followed certain people throughout their lives and came to conclusions about why they are or are not happy. Turns out happiness isn’t reliant on how much money people have, nor does it matter what religion they espouse — or not. Happiness isn’t dependent or where people live, what job they have, nor if they’re married or single. But it does have a direct correlation to their interpersonal relationships, their friendships, their interactions with others. While there was no direct correlation to marriage nor job, the way we relate to our spouse or co-workers affects our happiness levels. Those who were not married or didn’t have a job were still happier if they interacted with others on a regular basis. So let’s go out and gather joy, spread happiness, and be Love!

"Happiness is spiritual, born of Truth and Love. It is unselfish; therefore it cannot exist alone, but requires all mankind to share it." Mary Baker Eddy - Science & Health Page 57:18-21

The Truth About Ourselves

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photo credit: Aaron Springston

An old friend tells me that it has taken her seven decades to stop believing the things her parents told her about herself. They said she was ugly, stupid, worthless, and other horrid things. She believed them, and their words stayed with her until she joined a group of spiritually-aware people who allowed her to see the truth about herself. She no longer feels unworthy of love and goodness. Hallelujah! Her salvation has come! How often we believe lies about the reality of our being. We don’t realize we have chosen guilt for ourselves, but thankfully we are recognizing this and seeing that we have a choice. Nothing outside of our own Self can save us; nothing from outside can bring us peace. The source of salvation and peace lies within. This acceptance is, indeed, cause for celebration!

“Innocence and Truth overcome guilt and error.”  Mary Baker Eddy - Science & Health Page 568:1

Mindful Love

 

photo credit: Steve Shogren

​It’s difficult to think we would want anything other than happiness for ourselves. I know from personal experience that there have been many times when it seems I have set myself up for misery, yet I also do not think I did this purposefully, simply Mindlessly. The egotistical leanings of a person who is wild and blue oftentimes leads to poor life choices, and I feel fortunate to have survived and thrived despite turning away from goodness. There is so much beauty in this life, and we need only pay attention in order to experience it. Leaving behind our expectations may seem futile, but I think of it as freeing me to experience Love in its many manifestations. And I am grateful.

"The substance, Life, intelligence, Truth, and Love, which constitute Deity, are reflected by His creation; and when we subordinate the false testimony of the corporeal senses to the facts of Science, we shall see this true likeness and reflection everywhere." Mary Baker Eddy - Science & Health Page 515:4-8

True Recognition

photo credit: Aaron Springston

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My thoughts turn today toward the holy relationship. We have many relationships in this life and, if you're like me, you prefer to think of them all as holy! If God is Love, and we express that Love, then isn't everything we do coming from that Love which is our essence? Unfortunately, our human ego often gets in the way. What we think of as love is often colored with human emotions such as guilt, jealousy, lust, and fear. This is a tough admission for any of us to make. A dear friend has been talking to me recently about a romantic relationship he is ending, and it's caused me to examine the reasons my marriages have not become a holy union. The thing that keeps coming back time and again is that each and every entanglement I have ever had was based in some way or another on the words, "I want". Maybe I wanted to be a grown up, maybe I wanted to be IN love, maybe I wanted a love affair like the movies and songs tell us is the be-all, end-all. My friend is feeling sad for the loss of this relationship. He liked so many things about this woman, but there differences which caused their incompatibility. He could have stayed, but there was something missing: It wasn't a holy relationship. It was based on expectation of change and other material desires. My friend innately knows that settling down with someone because it's easy is not what he wants. And I know he will recognize, within himSelf, what it is he's waiting for.

“Will, as a quality of so-called mortal mind, is a wrong-doer; hence it should not be confounded with the term as applied to Mind or to one of God’s qualities.” Mary Baker Eddy - Science & Health Page 597:24-26

Truth Sets Us Free

 ​The Dog Whisperer, (whom I’ve mentioned often in these writings) Cesar Millan, tells us he rehabilitates dogs and trains people. He observes that dogs live in the moment. When he is helping people to understand a dog which seems maimed by past experiences in its life, he always tells us that feeling sorry for the animal is of no benefit. How can this be? The dog is hurting and we're being asked to deny that? Yes!!

A Course in Miracles teaches us it's necessary to give up all beliefs -- not just those we deem to be "bad", but all material beliefs. By letting them go and replacing them with an openness of thought which allows us to hear the Truth of our Being, we experience the miracle which is the natural order of Life. It may not seem logical to say that we can simply release feelings of fear and anger. They can appear very real to us, but if we stop and examine them, do they have any purpose other than to bind us to the past? One dog Cesar worked with was afraid to walk on any floor without a carpet, because it had once gone sliding into a glass door. Upon investigation of its people's reactions, they had immediately reinforced the dog's fears by petting, commiserating, and talking about what a horrible experience it had been. They were holding the dog in fear by acts they thought of as compassion. What Cesar explains is that dogs live in the moment, unless they're held in the past by everyone around them. I’m so grateful for every experience which helps me to discern between belief and reality -- especially when it's shown to me by a dog!

“When an accident happens, you think or exclaim, 'I am hurt!' Your thought is more powerful than your words, more powerful than the accident itself, to make the injury real." Mary Baker Eddy - Science & Health Page 397:12-16

The Secret Life of Bees

photo credit: Aaron Springston

 "The Secret Life of Bees" is one of my favorite books ever. I've read it twice and listened to it once, but that was years ago. So tonight when I had the opportunity to watch the movie, I was delighted! And rightfully so. The narrator is a broken, young girl whose mother deserted her in every way possible. Its setting is 1960s rural America, with all the racial paranoia you can imagine would be present. I ponder why some people are able to transcend awful events in their lives, while others are stuck in them. I'd love to have a round-table discussion about this. Every person, their experiences, their perceptions of life, they are all individual to us each, and nothing is universal about our pain. The honesty and grace lived by the family our main character is living with (and their love) heal her. By fearlessly looking at the pain and its source, she is able to make sense of it, feel it thoroughly, and find ways to be happy around it, until she will let it go. My focus for this year is: How to know the truth, and how to be an anti-racist. This movie sparked many ideas in my brain and I'm excited to see where they lead. I hope you have a joyous spring day!

"'Love one another', (I John, 3:23) is the most simple and profound counsel of the inspired writer. " Mary Baker Eddy - Science & Health Page 572:6

Rolling Back The Clouds With Light

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photo credit: Aaron Springston

What am I? This question has been asked from the beginning of recorded history -- and probably longer. Spiritual seers inform us that we are not a body. So if I am not a body, what am I? Intellectually, we can say that we are the reflection of God. We can tell ourselves and others that we're not material, we're spiritual. Then we'll stump our toe and declare that we can't be blamed if it hurts because we're not walking on water yet. We make jokes to explain why we aren't living the precepts which Jesus tells us are our heritage as children of God. But really, why is it that we've been so stunted in our realization of what all this means? Actually, we're not evolving slowly. There is no evolution involved in spiritual awakening, there is only getting rid of material belief and dogma. What we're doing now is cleaning the windowpane so the light has a transparency to flow through, rather than thousands of years of grime hiding our illumination. What are we? We're finding out more every day -- but that doesn't mean we have to wait a certain amount of time to learn a set amount of liberating facts in order to experience this light. That's the miracle! 

"Divine Science rolls back the clouds of error with the light of Truth, and lifts the curtain on man as never born and as never dying, but as coexistent with his creator." Mary Baker Eddy - Science & Health Page 596:11-19

Let These Be Your Desires

photo credit: Aaron Springston

 

LET THESE BE YOUR DESIRES - KAHLIL GIBRAN

"Love has no other desire but to fulfill itself

But if your love and must needs have desires,

Let these be your desires:

To melt and be like a running brook

That sings its melody to the night.

To know the pain of too much tenderness.

To be wounded by your own understanding of love;

And to bleed willingly and joyfully.

To wake at dawn with a winged heart

And give thanks for another day of loving;

To rest at the noon hour and meditate love's ecstasy;

To return home at eventide with gratitude;

And then to sleep with a prayer

For the beloved in your heart

And a song of praise upon your lips."

KAHLIL GIBRAN

Contributing To The Delinquency

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photo credit: Aaron Springston

What would you think if you heard I had been issued a citation for “contributing to the delinquency of minors”? The Boston Globe has started a program called Fresh Start, where people can ask them to forgive and forget. In other words, the newspaper will consider updating old articles about lesser crimes and misdemeanors, or hiding them from Internet search engines. The debate between people is now: Is this a fresh start or a cover-up? So back to my first sentence: Yes, I was issued such a citation, but it’s not what it sounds like! My son was 14 and going to The Principia in St Louis. It was spring break and he was visiting with some lifelong friends who lived on our street. About 10 o’clock, he called and asked if he could stay awhile because they were having fun. Of course I agreed, and went to sleep shortly thereafter. The phone rang at 1 a.m. and it was Aaron asking me if I could come to get them; that they were in jail. It turns out they had taken a walk on this beautiful spring night (it’s perfectly safe to do this in Eureka Springs), and they had been picked up by a new policeman and charged with curfew violation. When I went to get the teenagers, I was given a ticket for contributing to the delinquency of a minor because I didn’t know where my children were! This caused quite a brouhaha in our village with letters to the editor and even an editorial written about the whole situation. In a couple of weeks, the chief of police apologized and expunged my record. But what if he hadn’t? If this ticket showed up on my record from an internet search, what doors might have closed to me? Obviously, I’m all for this wonderful program called Fresh Start! 

“It would sometimes seem as if truth were rejected because meekness and spirituality are the conditions of its acceptance, while Christendom generally demands so much less.” Mary Baker Eddy - Science & Health page 343:21

The Humanity Behind the Headline

 

Behind every headline there is a human being with a story. When we hear about frightening events, real people just like us have been affected. When we read about uplifting stories of people’s lives, those are actual people with friends and pets and sorrows and joys. An earthquake, a car accident, any event affects someone with a story. When we hear about a diplomat being tortured or a bomb blowing up in a public place, we feel bad for the people involved, rarely the place which has been destroyed. When we hear about half-a-million deaths because of Covid-19, it’s tempting to ignore the families left behind, grieving the loss of someone they love. Everybody has a story and good journalism brings them to life for us, allowing us to see the humanity behind the headline. In a world of headline readers, it’s nice to ponder the rest of the story sometimes!

   
“The object of the Monitor is to injure no man, but to bless all mankind.” Mary Baker Eddy

Uplifting Dialogues

"School Rules" painting by William Holbrook Beard

Do you ever feel a kinship with others which is so perfect that you know you are one Self, united in Creation? Perfect unity precludes conflict, and we feel this perfection with people whom we love no matter whether they agree with our every idea or not. It seems difficult, if not impossible, to feel this wholeness with everyone, especially those who are diametrically opposed toward our beliefs.  Today I will practice enjoying the middle road of conversations. If someone wants to talk about things I think are wrong, or foolish, or simply counter to my thoughts, I will listen with the purpose of understanding, not responding. I will find ways to encourage deep thinking without jumping up on my high horse and insisting that my way is the only way. It really doesn’t matter what the topic of conversation is, there is a middle ground to be found and an uplifting dialogue to be had. I want that. I want that a lot.

“Atonement is the exemplification of man's unity with God, whereby man reflects divine Truth, Life, and Love. Jesus of Nazareth taught and demonstrated man's oneness with the Father, and for this we owe him endless homage.” Mary Baker Eddy - Science & Health Page 18:1-5

Empty Vessels

 

photo credit: Gerry Toler

Many of life’s experiences are humbling. They help us to admit that we know nothing or that we’re wrong. I’ve gone through phases in the last 60 years when I didn’t want to admit either of these things, but now I am willing. On this beautiful nearly-spring day, join me in having no opinions and allowing beliefs to dissolve. Let’s see what shows up when we are an empty vessel! 

"We cannot fill vessels already full. They must first be emptied. Let us disrobe error. Then, when the winds of God blow, we shall not hug our tatters close about us.” Mary Baker Eddy - Science & Health Page 201:13-15

Changeless

photo credit: Gabrielle Schäfer

We seem like such fragile beings, with our emotional, physical, and mental states easily influenced by the circumstances surrounding us. Perhaps it’s the enforced isolation we have experienced during the last year which has caused so much “stuff” to surface. I think it’s a good thing to recognize the source of our pain, face it, and deal with it in whatever way necessary. In the last few weeks, numerous people have confided to me issues regarding their parents. One can’t release the blame and guilt associated with an abusive situation, another is upset because her father was in prison when she was born and she didn’t know who he was until recently, then there is the recurring situation when someone is adopted and they feel a part of their lives is missing. All of these situations can seem dire, but everything is being experienced by how we interpret it, and that is a choice. True forgiveness lies in not blaming. When we let that go, there is nothing to forgive. I’ve been there, and I know it can seem impossible. As I told one young person, no matter what someone did to you, nothing can touch the real you. And what is real? That which does not change. Namaste...

“Mortal error will vanish in a moral chemicalization. This mental fermentation has begun, and will continue until all errors of belief yield to understanding. Belief is changeable, but spiritual understanding is changeless.” Mary Baker Eddy - Science & Health Page 96:21