May Peace Be With Me

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photo credit: Arthur Bruno

Although I know I can't force my way of thinking onto others, I would love to share peace with everyone, everywhere. It has taken quite a while to grasp the concept that the only thought I can change is my own. After spending years trying to change thoughts and actions of husbands and friends, I think it was my children who finally taught me the meaning of Oneness, as I would watch the mood of the household change with my emotions. This caused me to understand that holding onto peace within myself is the least and most I can do. Jumping on the bandwagon of resentment and other negative emotions always seemed impossible to avoid, but I don’t find it as difficult nowadays to simply witness things without becoming a part of them. While I can't change what anyone else is thinking or feeling or experiencing, I can adjust my own vision of reality. Every thought is important! We are all in this together, in every way, at every moment. Today I will make an effort to see everything through the eyes of Love!

“Spiritual living and blessedness are the only evidences by which we can recognize true existence and feel the unspeakable peace which comes from an all-absorbing spiritual love.” Mary Baker Eddy - Science & Health Page 264:24-27

The Worst Thing We Ever Did

photo credit: Aaron Springston

A Poem by Chelan Harkin from 'Susceptible to Light'

"The worst thing we ever did

was put God in the sky

out of reach

pulling the divinity

from the leaf,

sifting out the holy from our bones,

insisting God isn’t bursting dazzlement

through everything we’ve made

a hard commitment to see as ordinary,

stripping the sacred from everywhere

to put in a cloud man elsewhere,

prying closeness from your heart.

The worst thing we ever did

was take the dance and the song

out of prayer

made it sit up straight

and cross its legs

removed it of rejoicing

wiped clean its hip sway,

its questions,

its ecstatic yowl,

its tears.

The worst thing we ever did is pretend

God isn’t the easiest thing

in this Universe

available to every soul

in every breath."

~ Chelan Harkin from 'Susceptible to Light'

What Facilitates Change?

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"No Looking Back" - art of Sandy Starbird

I’m tempted to tell you about all the attack thoughts I've been having lately toward corporate polluters and political liars -- but I won't. I won't do that because feeding your attack thoughts does nothing to take mine away. This fertilizing of attack thoughts can be found everywhere, from coffee shops to churches, and it doesn't do a single thing to change the world. If the world we see is an effect, the only way to change this hallucination is to alter the cause: our thought. Some may ridicule this idea. But I ask: Have any of the material manipulations in all of history affected a change? Did our civil war free the slaves? It was a beginning, of course, but many people stayed in bondage long past when laws were enacted. It takes a change of thought. Let's free ourselves today -- and forever!

"Legally to abolish unpaid servitude in the United States was hard; but the abolition of mental slavery is a more difficult task. The despotic tendencies, inherent in mortal mind and always germinating in new forms of tyranny, must be rooted out through the action of the divine Mind." Mary Baker Eddy - Science & Health Page 225:22-28

“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.” A Course in Miracles Workbook Lesson #23

An Angel Entertained Unawares

 

Pueblo Angel - artist, Judy Griffith

Some painful memories want to stay with us. Throughout the years, certain events have re-played regularly in my mind. Although these reruns are mostly gone now, there are current events which seem to beg me to take offense. They jump up and down asking to be retold, wanting to hold me to them with emotions. To hold a grievance, you must live in the past. I remember a line from a little book by Alan Lightman called "Einstein's Dreams". He tells us that those who live in grievances past are condemned to live there alone. Habitually recounting what used to be, or wishing for what never was, or wanting what could have been, these thought processes are symptoms of holding on to the past. So today I will hold thought to a return to Love -- a figurative return, as I remember that I never left, and neither has anyone else. This Love replaces all grievances in my thought, and by this process I am safely and peacefully at One with God and all.

“The circumstance, which your suffering sense deems wrathful and afflictive, Love can make an angel entertained unawares.” Mary Baker Eddy - Science & Health Page 574:27-30

“’Now’ has no meaning to the ego. The present merely reminds it of past hurts, and it reacts to the present as if it were the past. The ego cannot tolerate release from the past, and although the past is over, the ego tries to preserve its image by responding as if it were present. It dictates your reactions to those you meet in the present from a past reference point, obscuring their present reality.” ACIM Chapter 13:IV:5

The Powers of Nature

 

Aaron Hunting Deer

"When the powers of nature are the focus of your awareness and your thoughts, you come near to spirit, near to the source of all life. This is why most people love to walk in the woods or by the sea: they come close to the original source, and it is healing just to be in its presence. It cleanses you, brings peace of mind, touches your heart and brings you home to your soul." ~ Chris Luttichau

States and Stages of Consciousness

 

Imagine a world with no pain, no war, no lack. This is the world presented in a thought-providing movie called, "The Giver". This scenario seems Utopian on the surface, but no one sees colors, or feels love, or knows joy. This world of sameness is calculated to eliminate envy and greed, as these are feelings which lead to conflicts and war.  Jeff Bridges plays the giver of memories, and no one else knows the memories of past horrors or wonders. What do you think? Would it be worth it to have a perfectly comfortable and predictable world with no highs nor lows? Is this what we're trying to create for ourselves in giving drugs to anyone who steps outside of the so-called norm in society? What are we creating in our efforts to make everyone socially acceptable? I feel like I'm asking you questions in an Oprah book club or something similar! This movie asks us: Is all the pain worth the glimpses of love we may experience? I know many of us are willing to give up our belief in a hellish world of pain and reach within for heaven and harmony. I can see that many of us are finding bliss no matter what the outer circumstance, but a lot of people are frightened and resistant. We can't change anyone else, but we can change our own thoughts. If we really are One, this makes a difference!

“…the heavens and earth to one human consciousness, that consciousness which God bestows, are spiritual, while to another, the unillumined human mind, the vision is material. This shows unmistakably that what the human mind terms matter and spirit indicates states and stages of consciousness.” Mary Baker Eddy - Science & Health 573:6

Searching For The Wrong-Eyed Jesus

 

Eureka Springs, AR - PC: Dale Johnson

​I live in a town with a big Jesus on the hill. Today I saw an article about the cleaning of the huge Jesus in South America. They reminded me of a past writing of mine, which I repeat for you today. Happy Spring!

"Searching For the Wrong-Eyed Jesus" is a documentary on life in the South of the United States. This film takes us to small towns where people turn to drugs and/or religion when they've given up all hope of finding happiness. I watched in fascination, realizing for the first time what people find in so-called "holy-roller" churches. In their feverish love of God, they find the pleasure they crave. Others turn to mood-elevating drugs for the same reason. One person in the movie says that everyone is "lonely for God" in these desolate towns. Another line which struck me was this: "He was just a regular ol' Southern lunatic. In his quest for union, he ended up being more separate than ever." There is such truth to be found in their longing! I longed with them as they jumped up and down, speaking in tongues and dancing in odd jerky movements. There wasn't much difference in the drunken barroom scenes on Saturday night and the gyrations of the Sunday morning gatherings. They're all looking for the same thing: They want to fill the emptiness inside. They want excitement, fun, a way to pass time without feeling alone. I can't keep from thinking of how they would be set free with the knowledge of their true Being. The only way this can happen is if I realize it -- really realize it! --not just intellectually, but with my heart.

"The Science Jesus taught and lived must triumph over all material beliefs about life, substance, and intelligence, and the multitudinous errors growing from such beliefs. Love must triumph over hate." Mary Baker Eddy - Science & Health Page 43:27

Healing Effect of Truth

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Lake Leatherwood - Eureka Springs - PC: Gerry Toler

Many new-age thought systems try to find reasons for disease, then work to get rid of the "problem" which is causing you to be unwell. This is something which has no place in quantum thought.  When Mary Baker Eddy realized the nothingness of matter and the substance of Spirit, not many were willing to imagine the possibility until they saw physical proof. The healing which comes about through this understanding is not a manipulation of matter, but a yielding of erroneous belief to the Truth of creation by divine Mind. The Catch-22 is that if you are trying to heal something, you can't. But if you're knowing the Truth of existence, and that knowledge becomes more than just wishful thinking, the changeability of matter is shown in ways which we think of as healing. Knowing that there is nothing to be healed, that all is perfectly reflected as a creation of divine Mind, therein lies the healing. Going to the core of yourSelf and recognizing that your consciousness is One with Spirit, that is what brings an all-encompassing joy and peace which makes us happy to release false belief. Once that is gone, Truth shines forth in all Its magnificence!

“That mortal mind claims to govern every organ of the mortal body, we have overwhelming proof. But this so-called mind is a myth, and must by its own consent yield to Truth. It would wield the scepter of a monarch, but it is powerless. The immortal divine Mind takes away all its supposed sovereignty, and saves mortal mind from itself. The author has endeavored to make this book the Aesculapius of mind as well as of body, that it may give hope to the sick and heal them, although they know not how the work is done. Truth has a healing effect, even when not fully understood.” Mary Baker Eddy - Science & Health Page 151:31-8

Miracles: Natural Expressions of Love

 

photo credit: Aaron Springston

Material vision is dimmed by any number of events and circumstances which may cause us to believe that darkness is as real as light. I'm sure you can think of circumstances which you think of as wonderful and someone else does not. Maybe you loved a musical performance and your spouse slept through it. And we all know people who find fault with everything no matter what. Then there are those of us who are accused of having a Pollyanna attitude because we insist on seeing the good in situations. Albert Einstein described this well: "There are only two ways to live your life. One is as though nothing is a miracle. The other is as though everything is a miracle." The inspirations of Love set us in the ideal stead to enjoy every moment in its spiritual perfection. So I say, Pollyannas unite! Let's go forth and scatter Light!

“Miracles occur naturally as expressions of love. The real miracle is the love that inspires them. In this sense everything that comes from love is a miracle.” A Course in Miracles

"The miracle introduces no disorder, but unfolds the primal order, establishing the Science of God's unchangeable law." Mary Baker Eddy - Science & Health Page 135:6-8

Falling Off the Edge of the Earth?

 

photo credit: Arthur Bruno

​We are in the midst of a great shift in consciousness, which also means a good deal of holding on to the past and a fear of the future. My daily work toward recognizing and living Love is called into practice often in this time of political drama. Let's all be grateful that we are one with Love, while knowing that our only mind is divine. By doing so, the fear of change will banish as quickly as the fear of falling off the edge of the earth did centuries ago!

“Identity is the reflection of Spirit, the reflection in multifarious forms of the living Principle, Love.” Mary Baker Eddy - Science & Health Page 477:20-22

A New View

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Snow in Spring - PC: Richard Quick

Acknowledging that everything and everyone we look upon is the face of divine Love takes our perception to another level! With this sight, we do not need to see race or nationalities nor gender. There are no political parties for which to wave flags, and no enemies to fight against nor allies to side with. I see beautiful things happening in our world. Long-held beliefs are being released in favor of an open-hearted acceptance of everyone as they are, not as we want them to be. Change can seem difficult, but our new perceptions of Life are a conscious choice by which we break free of habits and old thought patterns which have held us in bondage for far too long. Let’s celebrate our new-found sight today!

“Right motives give pinions to thought, and strength and freedom to speech and action. Love is priestess at the altar of Truth. Wait patiently for divine Love to move upon the waters of mortal mind, and form the perfect concept.” Mary Baker Eddy - Science & Health Page 454: 20-23

We're Doing The Best We Can

 

Marsha, Aaron, Kailey at Ukulele Jam in Longmont, CO

​Everyone is doing the best they can. For years, I would remind myself of this while going through the day. When tempted to judge something as less than satisfactory, I would tell myself that everyone was doing the best that they could. I haven’t been using this mantra much this year, and it’s starting to show in my attitude. I’ve found myself being irritated with politicians, friends, neighbors, relatives — well, I guess anyone who is not doing things the way I would do them! So, in this reminder I shall include myself. I’m doing the best I can, with the exception being: now that I know better, I’ll do better. And when I’m tempted to get on my high horse and think someone isn’t living up to my expectations, I’ll translate that into a loving response rather than a critical one. Namaste...

“Advancing spiritual steps in the teeming universe of Mind lead on to spiritual spheres and exalted beings. To material sense, this divine universe is dim and distant, gray in the somber hues of twilight; but anon the veil is lifted, and the scene shifts into light.” Mary Baker Eddy- Science & Health Page 513:6

"Sit quietly and look upon the world you see, and tell yourself: 'The real world is not like this.'" A Course in Miracles T-13.VII1

This is the Moment...

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I was looking out the front door at the rain and noticed the reflections coming back at me from my home. I took this photo. Almost immediately afterwards, I saw this Thich Nhat Hanh quote. It all seemed so perfect, I wanted to share it with you all. Happy Saturday!

"You may wonder if the most wonderful moments of your life are already behind you. Or you may think the happiest moment of your life is still to come. But this is the moment we have been waiting for." - Thich Nhat Hanh

Cause of Anger: Facts or Interpretation?

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"The Earth is My Sister" - Sandy Wythawai Starbird

A few years ago, a woman I’ve known all my life said some mean things to me about someone I love. Although I wasn't actively disliking her, and I certainly never would have spoken badly of her, I would have been fine never seeing her or speaking with her again. When our paths finally crossed, it was in the market and she was a few dollars short when it came time to pay for her groceries. I gladly offered her money and she gratefully accepted. By this simple meeting and interaction, any animosity I was harboring toward her disappeared. Just like that, it was gone! This felt so good, I am hoping to find other twinges of ill-will within myself, so as to confront them and watch the consequent resolution! Life is good!

“Perhaps it will be helpful to remember that no one can be angry at a fact. It is always an interpretation that gives rise to negative emotions, regardless of their seeming justification by what appears as facts. Regardless, too, of the intensity of the anger that is aroused. It may be merely slight irritation, perhaps too mild to be even clearly recognized. Or it may also take the form of intense rage, accompanied by thoughts of violence, fantasized or apparently acted out. It does not matter. All of these reactions are the same. They obscure the truth, and this can never be a matter of degree. Either truth is apparent, or it is not. It cannot be partially recognized. Who is unaware of truth must look upon illusions.” A Course in Miracles - Manual for Teachers

Lonely or Alone?

Sandy Starbird Art - "I am Protennoia, the Thought that dwells in the Light. the All, she in whom the All takes its stand, the first-born among those who came to be, she who exists before the All. She (Protennoia) is called by three names, although she dwells alone, since she is perfect. I am invisible within the Thought of the Invisible" http://www.gnosis.org/naghamm/trimorph.html

I’ve been talking to someone about loneliness and the many forms in which it appears. The years I spent in bars wasn’t for the alcohol, but for the people, the easy connection found in those bottles. I’ve known folks who belong to enough clubs and groups to keep themselves busy all their waking hours. Many people can’t abide silence and constantly have a radio or other device playing, often simply for the company they feel it brings to them. Then there are those who marry to keep from being alone, many times not realizing the most lonely of individuals are often not by themselves. To sit quietly by yourself, happy, realizing there is a deeper connection than the busy-ness often used as a substitution for it — this is the open secret to happiness, the key to contentment, the welcoming element of eternal Love. “I am in you, and you in me, mutual in divine Love.” William Blake

“Wilderness: Loneliness; doubt; darkness. [or] Spontaneity of thought and idea; the vestibule in which a material sense of things disappears, and spiritual sense unfolds the great facts of existence.” Mary Baker Eddy - Science & Health Page 597:16-19

“God Goes With Me Wherever I Go: Today's idea will eventually overcome completely the sense of loneliness and abandonment all the separated ones experience. Depression is an inevitable consequence of separation. So are anxiety, worry, a deep sense of helplessness, misery, suffering and intense fear of loss.” A Course in Miracles - Workbook Lesson #41 - 

Ushering in a New Era

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photo credit: Richard Quick

Writers, artists, musicians, all of us who are willing to live from intuition rather than by-rote behavior, heart instead of head, each and every one of us are ushering in a new era. We're shifting consciousness to reality rather than the illusion of such. Every thought is important! Compassionate action is replacing fearful hibernation; honesty trumps lies. Let's all hold tight to each other and go forward with joy!

“The calm and exalted thought or spiritual apprehension is at peace.Thus the dawn of ideas goes on, forming each successive stage of progress.” Mary Baker Eddy - Science & Health Page 506:12-14

There Is No Death ...

 

Grotto Spring - Eureka Springs - Aaron Springston PC

What do you think of when you hear the words, "There is no death"? You may think of someone living on in your idea of heaven, continuing in much the same way as we knew them. We find it comforting to think we will see them again, continuing our lives as before they left us. I, personally, think of the change we call death as a grand adventure. Who knows for sure what this change will bring? Some even have an idea that the afterlife is whatever you think it is: if you believe in a traditional heaven and hell, so it is; if you see everything as eternal energy, so be it. You probably have some ideas and intuitive feelings about this, too. I’ve been examining these concepts lately, and I'm comfortable with what I’m feeling.

“When your body and your ego and your dreams are gone, you will know that you will last forever. Perhaps you think this is accomplished through death, but nothing is accomplished through death, because death is nothing. Everything is accomplished through life, and life is of the mind and in the mind. The body neither lives nor dies, because it cannot contain you who are life. A Course in Miracles - The Lessons of Love

“If the belief in death were obliterated, and the understanding obtained that there is no death, this would be a ‘tree of life,’ known by its fruits. Man should renew his energies and endeavors, and see the folly of hypocrisy, while also learning the necessity of working out his own salvation.” Mary Baker Eddy - Science & Health Page 426:12-16

Compassion in Emptiness

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photo credit: Aaron Springston

The Dalai Lama has profound and beautiful messages for us! He speaks of peace and love, reminding us of our true identity in such an unassuming and pure manner. His gleeful words never leave me where they found me, and for this I am most grateful. I remember a DVD of his entitled "Compassion in Emptiness". He speaks to the importance of relationships based on honesty and trust. The joyfulness born of these interactions is essential to our liberation from fearful illusions. The trust and honesty he speaks of isn't limited to those who have "earned" it. It isn't limited in any way. As we go through our daily activities, let's remember to treat everyone with the loving respect and courtesy with which we would afford a dearly beloved parent or child. May kindness and joy spread to every person you come into contact with today, and everyday. And if you happen to forget what that feels like, look up a video of the Dalai Lama and let him remind you!

“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.” Mary Baker Eddy - Science & Health Page 9:11-14

You Brave and Glorious Thing!

 

[Image of Elen Jordano by Philippe Vogelenzang]

​

"How many years of beauty do I have left?

she asks me.

How many more do you want?

Here. Here is 34. Here is 50.

When you are 80 years old

and your beauty rises in ways

your cells cannot even imagine now

and your wild bones grow luminous and

ripe, having carried the weight

of a passionate life.

When your hair is aflame

with winter

and you have decades of

learning and leaving and loving

sewn into

the corners of your eyes

and your children come home

to find their own history

in your face.

When you know what it feels like to fail

ferociously

and have gained the

capacity

to rise and rise and rise again.

When you can make your tea

on a quiet and ridiculously lonely afternoon

and still have a song in your heart

Queen owl wings beating

beneath the cotton of your sweater.

Because your beauty began there

beneath the sweater and the skin,

remember?

This is when I will take you

into my arms and coo

YOU BRAVE AND GLORIOUS THING

you've come so far.

I see you.

Your beauty is breathtaking."

~ Jeannette Encinias: https://www.jeannetteencinias.com/

Getting Better All The Time

 

Dogwood Close Up - photo credit: Arthur Bruno

A friend from California called to tell me his exciting news: At the age of 74, the last two yearly visits to the optometrist have shown his eyesight to be improving. He also told of discontinuing cholesterol  medication a few years back because of side effects consisting of back pain and confusion. He was surprised to find out his numbers were going down, rather than the increase his doctor had predicted. He wanted my opinion on why this was happening. I laughed and told him what I’ve noticed about him in the last five years is that he is a much more laid-back guy now, happier, less worried than when I met him. He also is gaining an understanding of metaphysics and quantum thought. I told him he needn’t worry about why, but to be grateful and continue his walk on the road of realized consciousness, being aware and joyful each step of the way. I loved hearing his story!

“Truth is affirmative, and confers harmony. All metaphysical logic is inspired by this simple rule of Truth, which governs all reality.” Mary Baker Eddy - Science & Health, Page 418:20-22