Deciding to See

 

photo credit: Richard Quick

Recently, I’ve been noticing young women awakening to the beauty of their own being! It has been nice to see instances here and there, but this evening I opened up Facebook and saw three posts from young women wherein they claimed their joy — right now, not in the future when something changes, but right now! One of these is very close to my heart because she’s someone who felt incomplete because her biological father had not acknowledged her in the ways she had hoped. It took his death for her to realize she could claim her wholeness without him filling In the blanks for her. And she has! Another beautiful young friend has spent years plagued by insecurities. She has felt her family was disappointed in her, and she shared in their disappointment. She is beginning to glimpse that there is, as she put it, “beauty in imperfection”. I see her gaining in confidence and inner strength. The last of the three posts tonight was from a young, vibrant mother of three, whom I’ve known most of her life. She is a joy to watch glow in her daily activities, and she and her parents are very dear to my heart. She ended her post with these words: “I’m here. We ALLLLL are. So there’s NO one else to be except YOU. This world needs it desperately. Unapologetically you. My vulnerability lets me dance, speak, teach, love unattached to others judgements, my sensitivity lets me feel other people’s pains and problems, my passivity lets me see all sides to everything and not judge anyone or take on their experience. This took me years to learn! Your perceived ‘bad’ qualities… could they be your gift to this world? Your gift to you?” I treasure these women and will remember them as I notice everyone beginning to bloom!

“Your decision to see is all that vision requires. ²What you want is yours. ³Do not mistake the little effort that is asked of you for an indication that our goal is of little worth. ⁴Can the salvation of the world be a trivial purpose? ⁵And can the world be saved if you are not? ⁶God has one Son, and he is the resurrection and the life. ⁷His will is done because all power is given him in Heaven and on earth. ⁸In your determination to see is vision given you.” A Course in Miracles W-20.3:1-8

Spread Your Wings

art by J. Clement Wall

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The Journey - poem by Mary Oliver

"One day you finally knew

what you had to do, and began,

though the voices around you

kept shouting

their bad advice --

though the whole house

began to tremble

and you felt the old tug

at your ankles.

"Mend my life!"

each voice cried.

But you didn't stop.

You knew what you had to do,

though the wind pried

with its stiff fingers

at the very foundations,

though their melancholy

was terrible.

It was already late

enough, and a wild night,

and the road full of fallen

branches and stones.

But little by little,

as you left their voices behind,

the stars began to burn

through the sheets of clouds,

and there was a new voice

which you slowly

recognized as your own,

that kept you company

as you strode deeper and deeper

into the world,

determined to do

the only thing you could do --

determined to save

the only life you could save.”

― Mary Oliver

To Listen or Not to Hear

 Face-to-face duplicate bridge is happening again. Throughout the game there was a phone ringing in someone’s purse. After the game, my partner looked at me and asked, Doesn’t that phone ringing drive you crazy? I laughed and told her no, because I didn’t pay it any attention. She was surprised and more than a bit disbelieving as she asked me how that could be possible. Many platitudes (or maybe truisms) went through my thoughts. “If you don’t mind, it doesn’t matter”. And, “Don’t sweat the small stuff, and it’s all small stuff”. I told her I simply ignored it, to which she looked at me as though I might have sprouted wings! On the other side of this coin -- when I got home, a dear friend from California called and we had a long talk, solving most of the world’s messes in 30 minutes or so. As we hung up, I told him we had identified the problems, now it was time to implement change. While he agreed with me, I’m not sure he thinks it’s possible. Ignoring that phone ringing is the flip side of recognizing something is wrong, then translating my thoughts about it to facilitate change within myself. Then I’ll be prepared to listen, as affirmative action calls to me, and I hope I’ll be ready to Be The Change I Want To See!

“Mortal mind accepts the erroneous, material conception of life and joy, but the true idea is gained from the immortal side. Through toil, struggle, and sorrow, what do mortals attain? They give up their belief in perishable life and happiness; the mortal and material return to dust, and the immortal is reached.” Mary Baker Eddy - Science & Health Page 536:24

When Intuition Calls You

 

Intuition has been my focus today. I’ve pondered this spiritual quality quite a bit, so when my eldest son told me they are currently spending some time in Santa Fe, my thoughts went to a dear friend who followed her heart and studied for two years with a teacher in that area. Susan was visiting friends in Santa Fe and had been to the market to pick up supplies. On her way home, she had the radio on and suddenly a man speaking caught her interest. The station was fading in and out, and the man seemed to be using two or three different languages. She couldn’t understand him, but she told me it sounded like “flowers coming out of the radio”. When she got home, she called the station and found out who it was she had heard. His name was Martin Prechtel and he lived in Ojo Caliente, a small village between Taos and Santa Fe. She found out he was a teacher of accumulated knowledge from his childhood on a Pueblo reservation in New Mexico and adult life in Guatemala. Susan knew, intuitively, that she must study with this man. She left everything she knew well and moved into a tiny room in a house, living her life in the way she was called to do. I admire anyone who follows their dream, but especially those who don’t stop one step before fulfilling it!

“My angels are exalted thoughts, appearing at the door of some sepulchre, in which human belief has buried its fondest earthly hopes. With white fingers they point upward to a new and glorified trust, to higher ideals of life and its joys. Angels are God's representatives. These upward-soaring beings never lead towards self, sin, or materiality, but guide to the divine Principle of all good, whither every real individuality, image, or likeness of God, gathers. By giving earnest heed to these spiritual guides they tarry with us, and we entertain ‘angels unawares.’” Mary Baker Eddy - Science & Health Page 299: 7-17

A Series of Unfortunate Events

 

photo credit: Aaron Springston

Looking back at the series of unfortunate events of today, I could be tempted to say “I’ve had a bad day”. But I don’t care for that phrase, or even believe that such a thing is possible. Days are, after all, neither good nor bad (only thinking makes them so!). The act of living in the present makes all the difference, don’t you think? I won’t list the mishaps and oddities which have occurred around me today, but I have closely examined my thoughts and actions. I’m not one to chant affirmations, but rather attempt to live by intuition, which can be heard from listening instead of telling. You can’t push the river, you know! Usually, before going out the door, I quiet myself and ask for the wisdom to listen for what I should do and where I should be. I did not do that today. As I sit here pondering, I think of my dear, departed Kevin and a serious accident he was involved in almost 40 years ago. If he had been a few seconds later or sooner in his arrival at an intersection, he wouldn’t have been hit by a motorcycle going more than 100 miles per hour. That one moment affected everything he did from that day forward. What I have experienced today will remind me tomorrow to surrender to the inner guidance which is available to us all. I’ll revel in the sweetness of moments, rather than rushing through things I’d rather not do. I don’t care for the choices I made today, so tomorrow I shall choose again!

“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

A Quiet Mind

 

photo credit: Aaron Springston

Many of us feel we are exhibiting signs of attention deficit disorder. If you get right down to it, aren't we all? Doesn't it seem our thoughts want to flit about from one topic to another, gathering steam as we ​travel ​through all the avenues we are led into​,​ as one thought triggers yet another? The thing I find unfortunate is​ ​people think​ing​ they have no choice​ in these frantic ​thought processes. Like anything else, it takes practice to attain a quiet mind. I know I've said it before, but watch that first thought of the day. It can set the tone for everything which comes after it. Refusing to start the day with busy thoughts is key to choosing a quiet mind over a ​scattered one. And when we slip into worry and circular thoughts, just choose again! Before we know it, th​e​ choice of a moment extends to a way of life. Ah, peace…

“The ‘still, small voice’ of scientific thought reaches over continent and ocean to the globe's remotest bound.” Mary Baker Eddy - Science & Health Page 559:8-10

Unspeakable Revelation

 

An online writing seminar called out to me today. It was basically an advertisement for ​a company called ​The Author Incubator, but my time was well-spent as Marianne Williamson talked to us about bringing light to the world through ACIM-oriented life coaching and writing. Also, I went to a restaurant which I’d never before been to, which hasn’t happened in a long, long time! While at this restaurant, I saw a number of people I knew, plus one who invited me to a widow’s meeting which she attends. I know many of the people involved with this group and think it’s a wonderful thing, but I declined her invitation. These two happenings brought revelations in thought for me, and I am most grateful. When Diana mentioned the widow’s group, I quickly questioned why I was averse to attending, realizing it was because I felt no need to work through my sadness. And the reason is simple: I have lived on my own most of my life, so it was not an adjustment when Kevin passed on. Yes, it was a surprise and there was an overwhelming grief, but I now openly admit that there is more joy than sorrow. I even told my friend today that the big adjustment had been having him living with me, and now I only have gratitude for all he brought to my life. And the little seminar caused me to realize I have more than 3,000 blog entries from which to cull a book. Indeed, much food for thought was brought to me ​on ​this beautiful day!

“Revelation is intensely personal and cannot be meaningfully translated. That is why any attempt to describe it in words is impossible. Revelation induces only experience. Miracles, on the other hand, induce action. They are more useful now because of their interpersonal nature. In this phase of learning, working miracles is important because freedom from fear cannot be thrust upon you. Revelation is literally unspeakable because it is an experience of unspeakable love.” A Course in Miracles, T:1:II