Aghast at Nothingness

photo credit: Aaron Springston

In between feelings of contentment and peace, I am sometimes blindsided with questions about people's behaviors and reactions. When you see beautiful instances of people exhibiting their highest good, then see the opposite in the next instance -- well, it gives pause. In this world where we want to analyze everything and find answers to questions we don't even know how to ask, it's tempting to become angry in the face of divisive behavior, bullying actions, and accusations from those who should know better. But let's not, okay? I'm terribly tired after three days of an online nationwide duplicate bridge tournament. It was wonderful to lose myself in the world of cards, with nothing to think about but the coziness of something I know so well. I was reminded of a favorite book, The Solitaire Mystery. A man is alone on an island with a deck of cards, and he plays solitaire all the time -- until his cards disintegrate from use. So he begins to imagine the deck. And then one day they come marching over a rise and he's meeting his friends face to face. I always loved that book for its questioning of reality and blending of possibilities. Have a good week, Friends...

"We may well be perplexed at human fear, and still more astounded at hatred, which lifts its hydra head, showing its horns in the many inventions of evil. But why should we stand aghast at nothingness?" Mary Baker Eddy - Science & Health Page 563:4

Be A Lamp

Today I have had many people concerned about me, and I thank you for caring. Rest assured, I am fine -- better than fine! I played 72 hands of bridge today in four sessions in a nation-wide tournament. It was great! So have a beautiful Sunday, enjoy your loved ones, and keep wearing your masks!

Wear Your Mask

art of J. Clement Wall
judyclementwall.com

I now personally know someone who has this virus which is causing us to change the way we think of everyday activities. The 28-year-old man who woke up with symptoms three days ago is a dear friend whom I work with in the three congregations where I play the organ on Saturday and Sunday. He got it from his sister late last week, and neither of them knew until after he had been recording a service to be aired on Sunday, and had been the cantor for services at two branches of another local church. I was with him at all three of these services, and he picked me up in his car for the early morning Sunday service where he sang in the balcony and I played organ. Thankfully he was trying out a new singers' mask, which would be used at a school where he teaches choir. The main thing I am realizing about this disease is the guilt and shame felt by people who get it, knowing they may have passed on something which could kill someone -- or in this case, many someones. I immediately drove to a neighboring metropolis and was tested, and the results were negative. The whole process has been eye-opening for me, but let me say that I am impressed with the clinics which are doing the testing; also, the health department in our state, which has done a thorough and timely follow-up to all this. Let us not forget to love our neighbors, remember those who die alone in their hospital beds because their family cannot be there with them, and cherish our friends who have been affected in any way by the events of this year. Namaste, dear Friends...

"Stand porter at the door of thought. Admitting only such conclusions as you wish realized in bodily results, you will control yourself harmoniously. When the condition is present which you say induces disease, whether it be air, exercise, heredity, contagion, or accident, then perform your office as porter and shut out these unhealthy thoughts and fears. Exclude from mortal mind the offending errors, then the body cannot suffer from them." Mary Baker Eddy - Science & Health Page 392:24

Heal the World - Cook Dinner!

Some businesses are so good that I buy their products even if I don't need them! Penzey Spices is one of those rare and beautiful companies which not only do business in a responsible manner, but are not afraid to speak out about injustice. This is why today I simply copy their newsletter. I hope you love it as much as I did!

"Someone wrote to say that you would be singing a different tune if it was your store being looted. I’m by no means perfect but seriously no, I wouldn’t. Human life means everything; stuff, not so much.

Hearing that the NBA Milwaukee Bucks, in response to yet another police shooting of a Black man, this time just south of Milwaukee in Kenosha, Wisconsin, chose in unison to walk away from yesterday’s playoff game and were willing to take the loss, for me brought such a sense of hope and that the tide will no longer stay unturned.

I agree with them. To me today just feels a lot like April 4, 2018, the fiftieth anniversary of Dr. King's assassination. That day we paid our people and kept things shut because that was not a day for commerce. After some early inquiries about doing the same today it became clear that we were able to do that because we planned ahead and because it was a time before the Coronavirus. To do that today would mean calling to reschedule all of today’s touchless pickup orders. As parents of young kids entering the back to school phase with all the extra hoops the virus demands, I get that now is not the time to add extra burdens. So no shut down today.

But what to do? My mind went to that idea that we would feel differently if it was our store that was looted. When I asked around: “What if we looted our own store?” What if we took a snapshot of our Kenosha store’s inventory tonight and simply gave away exactly that amount of inventory in the coming weeks? Unlike the Minneapolis Uptown store that was in the center of things, our Kenosha location is out by the highway and does not have much chance of looting itself. What if we just gave our spices and seasonings to food pantries and gift boxes to organizations trying to raise money to fund change?

Everyone here was like yes, let’s do that. Even my mom at dinner last night cheered on the idea. And as much as we could just look online for worthy recipients, with so many customers in the Kenosha area I would like to start with asking for your suggestions of where things should go. If you are connected to a good organization in the area please let us know about it at editor@penzeys.com.

And please learn the difference between those who simply say law and order over and over again and those who do the hard work of actually achieving it. Until we have a president that respects the laws of this country we won’t have order; it’s that simple.

And once again, hats off to the Milwaukee Bucks. So much of America’s future comes down to voter turnout in the city of Milwaukee. That the members of the Bucks are time and again working to earn the moral authority to ask for that Vote is something big. That their voices reach out to our suburbs and beyond is honest cause for hope. Well done.

And please send your thoughts to those living through the horrors of Hurricane Laura right now. They will need our compassion.


Thanks for healing the world.

Bill"

Marsha Havens

28 Linwood Avenue
Eureka Springs, Arkansas 72632
479.253.8104

http://www.DivineMetaphysics.blogspot.com

"There are two ways to be fooled. One is to believe what isn't true; the other is to refuse to believe what is true." Soren Kierkegaard 

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If You're Happy And You Know It ...

photo credit: Aaron Springston

A friend who lives on the west coast insists he's never known happiness. He also says he doesn't have any idea what love feels like, yet he has a twinkle in his eye and is usually smiling. I'm pretty sure he's happy, but just doesn't recognize what that means, perhaps grasping for something he thinks is always just out of reach. I would guess he feels love, too, but thinks it's supposed to bring on an epiphany of some sort. Personally, I feel intense rushes of love from something as purely beautiful as seeing the first flock of butterflies in the spring. A group of swallowtails frolicking in my flower bed is more than enough to break open my heart and leave me feeling giddy. Remembering my friend’s lament over the lack of love in his life, remembering the butterflies' grace which flows to me, I will think twice before I pass by any divine Idea without drinking in its happiness. Love and happiness are our heritage as the expression of Divine Love. Let's open our hearts without fear!

“Soul has infinite resources with which to bless mankind, and happiness would be more readily attained and would be more secure in our keeping, if sought in Soul. Higher enjoyments alone can satisfy the cravings of immortal man.” Mary Baker Eddy - Science & Health Page 60:28-1

This Imbroglio

unknown origin

Everyone has heard the tale about blind people touching different parts of an elephant, and their interpretations of what they were feeling. It seems to me that's where we are in this political imbroglio. Some people see Democrats as the devil's spawn; others see Republicans as uninformed automatons. Where does it end? An election won't stop the disagreements, any more than a civilized debate will resolve our differences. For years I've looked for common ground on which to stand with one another. You would think love, peace, health, and happiness would be desired by everyone, but it seems people interpret these values in different ways. This is one of the reasons I love A Course in Miracles. We are taught to release any preconceived notions concerning what things mean. Look at a table and see it for what it is; not what you think about it and what it brings up in memories. As we practice doing this with things and situations, something shifts within us, allowing truth to be known and belief to be released. We don't automatically become all-knowing beings, but we learn to recognize the fallacy of our interpretations. So next time you think you're touching a snake, remember it just might be an elephant's trunk! 

"Science shows that material, conflicting mortal opinions and beliefs emit the effects of error at all times, but this atmosphere of mortal mind cannot be destructive to morals and health where it is opposed promptly and persistently by Christian Science. Truth and Love antidote this mental miasma, and thus invigorate and sustain existence." Mary Baker Eddy - Science & Health Page 273:29

Thank You, Fact Checkers

photo credit: Jim Young

Gratitude is flowing today for the diligent people who do fact checking for reputable organizations. They are much needed at this time, and probably always -- at least until everyone decides to tell the truth, huh? During the Democratic Party's convention last week, there was a comprehensive fact-checking article every day from The Atlantic. It's wonderful to have knowledge at the click of a mouse, is it not? My friend, Jim Young, used to tell me how he enjoys listening to many different spiritual ideas, in order to check his understanding and to bring up questions about what he thinks he knows. I'm sure he feels the same way when reading fact checks about political speeches and outright propaganda, too. We always have a "gut feeling" about the veracity of words being put forth as truth, and I love seeing how my intuition matches up with the information people spend their lives amassing. Thank you greatly, each and every person who dedicates his or her life to bringing us truth -- about everything!! Namaste...

"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