Simple Things

Long Creek Herbs
Blue Eye, Missouri

This quote, from Eckhart Tolle, I've had at the bottom of my emails for a few months: "True happiness is found in simple, seemingly unremarkable things." I feel particularly grateful for the unremarkable things I've done today! Visiting with old friends was pleasant and wonderful. These men are both talented writers, gardeners, chefs,  and a joy to be around. Moments spent with them brings a particular happiness, one which comes from being around those who help your Being. If you haven't done this in some form -- as many of us have not recently -- I urge you to find a way to partake of pure people energy. Please, have a beautiful Monday, relish the moments, and spread some joy today!

"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 57:23 

Peace To You

Have a Good Day

photo credit: Aaron Springston

How often have you heard someone say something like: It's been a bad day? I agree we can perceive events as being bad for us, personally, but to blame the day? Our interpretation of what causes a day to be good or bad is interesting, too. I remember when I ran an art gallery, often people would come in and say, Have you had a good day? I most always would enthusiastically say, Yes! And often they would say, Oh, I'm so glad you made lots of sales! And then I'd have to tell them, No, I didn't sell many pieces, but it sure was a fun day! So now, in mid-August of this interesting year, many people are feeling down, tired, disheartened, perhaps frightened. If I defined this day by some things, I would say it was a bad day. For instance, I didn't care for any of the acts on America's Got Talent, I played sloppy bridge online, I learned that a friend died, I didn't feel like writing, or even reading. But, on the other hand, I put together a super good tuna salad for the weekend, the watermelon Kevin brought home is great, a local writer posted a fabulous tribute to Eureka Springs on Facebook today which has kept me smiling much of the day, my cilantro plants are sprouting, my cats are beautiful and happy, we have a project to help a sick fox and this brings us joy, a group of women I love will be having an outdoor gathering before long -- well, my point is, there are always many things we can point to which make our days "good" or "bad". It's all about where we put our attention. Namaste...

"Your influence for good depends upon the weight you throw into the right scale. The good you do and embody gives you the only power obtainable. Evil is not power. It is a mockery of strength, which erelong betrays its weakness and falls, never to rise." Mary Baker Eddy - Science & Health Page 192:22

Pick Yourself Up And Start All Over Again

photo credit: Aaron Springston

Starting over. Making changes. Reinventing ourselves. Most of us have done this more than once, haven't we? Sea changes in our lives may come about because of illness, loss of a job, losing a loved one, or just needing to let go of behaviors which no longer serve us. Whatever the case, many of us resist these changes. Those of us who have done it numerous times may embrace these adventures with excitement and gratitude. It seems we are all in the midst of major shifts in our perceptions and our daily activities, and it can be frightening. I see many wishing someone would throw them a life preserver and tow them to safety. Some seem to be grasping at illusions of hope, not seeing through the mist to the pitfalls on the other side. In our desire to show others the danger, we can drive them further away from seeing what's going on. And so we must remember that we cannot save anyone, we cannot change anyone; only ourselves. By living true to my own values, expressing them through my votes at elections, by the foods I purchase, by the entertainment I choose, these values are supported. Yes, life changes can be difficult, but we have seen how life is meant to be lived reciprocally. The longer I live, the more I realize what that means. Let's be here for each other. It's the most we can do!

"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

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZIC0cdblBog

Did It Happen?

photo credit: Jim Young

Childhood memories: We all have them, I think. But I've begun to question how many of mine actually happened! When you're thinking back decades, perhaps the memories are stories parents or siblings told over and over, or maybe they come from photographs that you've looked at repeatedly. Don't get me wrong here, because I don't think that's a bad thing. Stories teach us and stories lead us to places we need to be. But sometimes those stories can mislead us, too. Recently an aged-aunt called me wanting confirmation about a family rumor. I had never heard about this occurrence and told her so. While she was questioning me, she said she was calling me rather than writing on Messenger (our usual mode of communication) because another relative had told her that I was getting off of Facebook. I have never considered doing such a thing, because I keep up with friends and family through that medium. But this has caused me to think on many things! What we believe to be true may be nothing more than words we want to believe. So let's keep an open mind and heart, whether we are remembering our past or listening to someone else's ideas which they want us to think are true. We live in an age of rampant propaganda, whether it be commercials bombarding us or bots inundating our Twitter feed, be aware that most people have an agenda they are doing their best to propel into being. Our brains are pretty good at picking out illusions, and I'm going to practice ascertaining truth by looking back through those childhood moments which seem so real. 

"As vapor melts before the sun, so evil would vanish before the reality of good. One must hide the other. How important, then, to choose good as the reality!" Mary Baker Eddy - Science & Health Page 480:31

A Poem From Hafiz

All the Hemispheres

Leave the familiar for a while.

Let your senses and bodies stretch out

Like a welcomed season

Onto the meadows and shores and hills.

Open up to the Roof.

Make a new water-mark on your excitement

And love.

Like a blooming night flower,

Bestow your vital fragrance of happiness

And giving

Upon our intimate assembly.

Change rooms in your mind for a day.

All the hemispheres in existence

Lie beside an equator

In your heart.

Greet Yourself

In your thousand other forms

As you mount the hidden tide and travel

Back home.

All the hemispheres in heaven

Are sitting around a fire

Chatting

While stitching themselves together

Into the Great Circle inside of

You.

From: 'The Subject Tonight is Love'

Translated by Daniel Ladinsky

You Can't Hide Behind Words

photo credit: Aaron Springston

We’re all trying to be kinder in our communications. We’re all learning how to listen and ask questions without being confrontational. To me, this is one of the most difficult lessons coming through this time in our lives. Listening without reaction, questioning without self-righteousness, learning from everyone, even those with whom I don’t believe — maybe especially from them! One thing I’ve discovered is that it doesn’t matter what I say out loud if my thoughts are confrontational. We can’t hide our true feelings behind the facade of kind words: we must be kind. Those of you who have pets know how true this is. You can’t hide your true feelings from an animal — or an aware human. Go forth with joy, because it shines through in your actions!

“A spiritual idea has not a single element of error, and this truth removes properly whatever is offensive. The new idea, conceived and born of Truth and Love, is clad in white garments.” Mary Baker Eddy - Science & Health Page 463:12

Leap of Faith

A woman I knew would always put herself down when she thought she had not done her best (which was often). The expression she used was, I’m not walking on water yet. Her idea was that she could never meet her own expectations of what Jesus wanted her to do. Father Joseph, the priest at the Catholic Church where I am the organist, tied walking on water with taking a leap of faith. He encouraged us to speak to people we normally would ignore, or try a food we think we don’t like, or to try anything which takes us out of our comfort zone. Writing, for instance, is a frightening activity at first, because you’re putting your thoughts out there for everyone to interpret, critique, or challenge. Art, in all of its forms, is an act of bravery. Raising a child is a supreme leap of faith! The world needs us right now, so let’s open our hearts and follow where it leads today!

"The calm, strong currents of true spirituality, the manifestations of which are health, purity, and self-immolation, must deepen human experience, until the beliefs of material existence are seen to be a bald imposition, and sin, disease, and death give everylasting place to the scientific demonstration of divine Spirit and to God's spiritual, perfect man." Mary Baker Eddy - Science & Health Page 99:23

Talking to Someone WIth Whom You Disagree

Photo Credit: Aaron Springston

A frequent topic of conversation centers around people who think differently about situations -- government, environment, education, et cetera. Specifically, we are concerned about this abyss which has appeared over the last few years, the one which keeps us from understanding each other, the one which we're afraid of falling into when certain topics are mentioned. Kevin and I were talking about this today and he had a great suggestion: when we are having a disagreement with someone about something, both of you list five life values you hold dear and see how the topic in question stands up to that litmus test. Without thinking about this deeply, I shall choose: truth, compassion/empathy, flexibility according to the situation, a trust in intuition (your gut feeling about something), and peace. So when I hear that my dear friend says she supports the current administration's policy concerning immigration, I shall ask her to think about her values and name five; then we will discuss this situation in light of what we hold to be important morally, spiritually, and intellectually. We desperately need honest communication, without blame, self-righteous judgment, and name calling. This is as good of a place to start as any! Enjoy the gift of this day, dear Ones. 

"Superstition and understanding can never combine. When the final physical and moral effects of Christian Science are fully apprehended, the conflict between truth and error, understanding and belief, Science and material sense, foreshadowed by the prophets and inaugurated by Jesus, will cease, and spiritual harmony reign." Mary Baker Eddy - Science & Health Page 288:9

Silent Knowledge of the Beyond

On Death - Kahlil Gibran 

     You would know the secret of death.
     But how shall you find it unless you seek it in the heart of life?
     The owl whose night-bound eyes are blind unto the day cannot unveil the mystery of light.
     If you would indeed behold the spirit of death, open your heart wide unto the body of life.
     For life and death are one, even as the river and the sea are one.

     In the depth of your hopes and desires lies your silent knowledge of the beyond;
     And like seeds dreaming beneath the snow your heart dreams of spring.
     Trust the dreams, for in them is hidden the gate to eternity.
     Your fear of death is but the trembling of the shepherd when he stands before the king whose hand is to be laid upon him in honour.
     Is the shepherd not joyful beneath his trembling, that he shall wear the mark of the king?
     Yet is he not more mindful of his trembling?

     For what is it to die but to stand naked in the wind and to melt into the sun?
     And what is it to cease breathing, but to free the breath from its restless tides, that it may rise and expand and seek God unencumbered?

     Only when you drink from the river of silence shall you indeed sing.
     And when you have reached the mountain top, then you shall begin to climb.
     And when the earth shall claim your limbs, then shall you truly dance. 

The Right to Vote

Women Working Toward Freedom 

In August of 1920, the 19th Amendment was ratified giving women the right to cast a vote in elections. We tend to think of this as something that “just happened”, with men suddenly deciding to let the little ladies have what they want. Not so. It took nearly 70 years of hard work to win the right to vote. It was not given; they took it. At the time, the country was slipping into an economic depression, a global pandemic had claimed 600,000 lives in the U.S., racial unrest was boiling up all over the country, the KKK had come out of hiding, immigration was a contentious issue, and a nasty presidential race was underway with one candidate having the divisive slogan, America First. Sound familiar?? That was 100 years ago, and against all odds the women persisted and won the vote. There is a lot more to this story, and it’s all fascinating! But for now, remember that it was not an easy fight with lovely ladies dressed in white sweetly asking to vote. It was a fight, it wasn’t an easy one, and they never backed down. The difference in then and now (as I see it), is that we have many more men on our side than they did then. Thank you...

“A feasible as well as rational means of improvement at present is the elevation of society in general and the achievement of a nobler race for legislation — a race having higher aims and motives.” Mary Baker Eddy - Science & Health Page 63:23

Braiding Sweetgrass

I'm reading a beautiful book: "Braiding Sweetgrass: Indigenous Wisdom, Scientific Knowledge and the Teachings of Plants" by Robin Wall Kimmerer. 

Here are a few quotes which I love.

“Strawberries first shaped my view of a world full of gifts simply scattered at your feet. A gift comes to you through no action of your own, free, having moved toward you without your beckoning. It is not a reward; you cannot earn it, or call it to you, or even deserve it. And yet it appears. Your only role is to be open-eyed and present.”

“The Honorable Harvest asks us to give back, in reciprocity, for what we have been given. Reciprocity helps resolve the moral tension of taking a life by giving in return something of value that sustains the ones who sustain us. One of our responsibilities as human people is to find ways to enter into reciprocity with the more-than-human world. We can do it through gratitude, through ceremony, through land stewardship, science, art, and in everyday acts of practical reverence.”

“until we can grieve for our planet we cannot love it—grieving is a sign of spiritual health. But it is not enough to weep for our lost landscapes; we have to put our hands in the earth to make ourselves whole again. Even a wounded world is feeding us. Even a wounded world holds us, giving us moments of wonder and joy. I choose joy over despair. Not because I have my head in the sand, but because joy is what the earth gives me daily and I must return the gift.”

“We perpetrate the illusion that the things we consume have just fallen off the back of Santa’s sleigh, not been ripped from the earth. The illusion enables us to imagine that the only choices we have are between brands.”

“In a garden, food arises from partnership. If I don't pick rocks and pull weeds, I'm not fulfilling my end of the bargain. I can do these thing with my handy opposable thumb and capacity to use tools, to shovel manure. But I can no more create a tomato or embroider a trellis in beans than I can turn lead into gold. That is the plants' responsibility and their gift: animating the inanimate. Now there is a gift.”

“There are some aches witchhazel can’t assuage. For those, we need each other.”

The World in Our Backyard

quote from Auguries of Innocence
by William Blake

Most of the world is familiar with Rick Steves, because he has been everywhere and taken us with him, via his travel show. With the restrictions going places, he has had to rethink his life’s purpose, and he’s come up with some wisdom we can all take to heart. He has an article in the latest Atlantic, where he talks about discovering his own backyard. He is visiting places close to home, noticing small things he’s never paid attention to, and found a world he knew nothing about in cooking! I hope we’re discovering things about ourselves and our world. Sitting and watching insects, birds, the stars — it’s magical! Sometimes I feel like Horton [who] Hears a Who, being absolutely certain there’s a whole world on a speck of dust. Life is good...

https://www.theatlantic.com/ideas/archive/2020/08/how-we-travel-when-we-cant/614800/

The Same -- Here, There, and Everywhere

Stock photo - Shangri-La Resort, Pakistan

Bob Woodruff is a journalist who was a war correspondent. During that time, he was severely injured while covering the conflict in Iraq. He and his son now have a show called “Rogue Trip”. They travel to war-torn areas and show us the beauty and wonder of those lands. We watched one about Pakistan tonight and were totally blown away by the people and beauty of the land. They were welcomed by residents who are peaceful and loving, wanting to show everyone that they are not warlike and terroristic. One of the places they visited was the inspiration for the fictional Shangri-la. And it seems most of the people in the mountains of Pakistan are healthy and happy, living simply and abundantly. I was once again reminded of how similar we are, no matter where we live. While we hear about turmoil, right next door is beauty and peace. I am holding to the fact that the majority of people are honest, kind, and compassionate. Let’s notice goodness today and acknowledge it in others whenever possible!

"Unselfish ambition, noble life-motives, and purity -- these constituents of thought, mingling, constitute individually and collectively true happiness, strength, and permanence." Mary Baker Eddy - Science & Health Page 58

Jai Guru Deva, om

A beautiful song for a beautiful Sunday :)

https://youtu.be/jLfIkb9cpAg

The Threshold of Your Own Mind

“No man can reveal to you aught but that which already lies half asleep in the dawning of your knowledge.
The teacher who walks in the shadow of the temple, among his followers, gives not of his wisdom but rather of his faith and his lovingness.
If he is indeed wise he does not bid you enter the house of his wisdom, but rather leads you to the threshold of your own mind.”
― Khalil Gibran, The Prophet

Do Better

The last of the Four Agreements is: Do Your Best. For years, I was comforted by thinking that everyone was doing the best that they could. This "best" may not have been what I thought was best, but it was the best they could do at their stage of development. I managed to think that even someone like Hitler thought he was doing a good thing. I truly believed that everyone was working towards being the best that they could be, truly wanting to better humanity and their environment, and they were simply ignorant of how to do those things. Now I've come to think that is not so. Many people are willfully ignorant and seem to revel in it. They witness pain and suffering and find selfish ways to blame the sufferer. They turn their back on animals in pain, giving shadowy excuses for their behavior. Is this the best that they can do? If I could find some reason for their lack of empathy, perhaps I'd still think they were doing the best that they can. But it seems too many people are ruled by a love of money and power; wanting no more than fame and flattery. My heart has been broken by everyone from Bill Clinton to Bill Cosby. We're all just tired. But we must continue to strive to do better. Namaste...

"The best sermon ever preached is Truth practiced and demonstrated..." Mary Baker Eddy - Science & Health Page 201-1

Don't Make Assumptions

Don’t make assumptions is the 3rd point in The Four Agreements. In today’s world, we seem to have a huge problem when it comes to communicating with each other. I’ve noticed things which keep me from hearing what is really being said. It’s easy to be thinking about what my response will be, rather than listening to someone's actual words. Have you ever thought you knew where someone was going in a conversation, only to discover you were wrong? Hence, if we’re formulating a response to someone rather than hearing what they are saying, we have just given up any hope of having an honest communication with them. Or maybe we misinterpret someone’s actions, thinking they mean harm, when the opposite is true. Today I’ll practice hearing what people are saying to me, without assuming I know what they mean. May those in power do the same...

“The wrong done another reacts most heavily against one’s self. Right adjusts the balance sooner or later.” Mary Baker Eddy - Science & Health Page 449:7

Don't Take Anything Personally

Yesterday I began talking about the Four Agreements, by Don Miguel Ruiz. The second agreement seems difficult for us to understand and put into practice, yet I feel it holds an important key to happiness and peace. Do Not Take Anything Personally. Maybe we've believed something about ourselves all our lives because a person in authority told us, when we were very young, that it was so. I remember a teacher chastising me in 2nd grade about using the colors purple and pink together in a drawing. I thought I had no sense of style for years because of that. It wasn't about me at all, but about her. Perhaps someone laughed at you when you said or did something, and you still cringe when you say or do it. Maybe you were told you weren't athletic because you couldn't perform some feat in childhood, and so now you don't try to dance or bowl. I'm pretty certain each and every one reading this can think of something they have been told which has stuck with them, which they may have come to believe about themselves, some limiting belief they wish they didn't have. Good news! You CAN let it go! As my good friend, Jim Young, says: It's none of my business what anyone thinks of me. So whether you think you don't look good in green, or any other thing, just remember that when someone throws words at you, they probably feel that way themselves. And as the Four Agreements reminds us, "It's not your problem, it's theirs!" Keep on looking up, dear Friends...

"Mortal error will vanish in a moral chemicalization. The mental fermentation has begun, and will continue until all errors of belief yield to understanding. Belief is changeable, but spiritual understanding is changeless." 

Be Impeccable With Your Word

One of the most important books of our age is The Four Agreements, by Don Miguel Ruiz. Today I've been thinking about the first agreement: Be Impeccable With Your Word. What a wonderful world we would have if everyone did this one simple thing. When we hear something which sounds too awful to be true, it may very well be a lie. For example: Hillary Clinton is running a prostitution ring out of Pizza Hut. If you hear something so ridiculous, wonder why you're hearing it. If a friend tells you something derogatory about a mutual friend, don't tell anyone else. Remember the Mark Twain statement: “A lie can travel halfway around the world before the truth can get its boots on.” If you tell someone you're going to do something, do it. But if you cannot, for whatever reason, be honest with them; don't make up an excuse or pretend you never said it.  If you promise your dog a walk every day, by golly you'd better do it, because you can't lie to a dog. (the same goes for any promise) If you're writing something similar to this, practice what you preach. It's easy to know what to do, but sometimes difficult to live in truth and love. Do it anyway. And finally, if someone says something you think to be incredibly foolish, be gentle in your correction. This one is tough for me, so I saved it for last. Go forward with joy, sowing good will and compassion! Namaste...

"Love will finally mark the hour of harmony, and spiritualization will follow, for Love is Spirit. Before error is wholly destroyed, there will be interruptions of the general material routine. Earth will become dreary and desolate, but summer and winter, seedtime and harvest (though in changed forms), will continue unto the end, -- until the final spiritualization of all things. 'The darkest hour precedes the dawn.'" Mary Baker Eddy - Science & Health Page 96:4-11