A Wonder-filled Happening

 

Little Dog Found

A wonderful thing happened today! A dear friend’s dog had disappeared from her country yard. It’s a densely wooded area, away from any main road, and the dog is elderly, so they didn’t think she would wander far. When she didn’t come home in a timely fashion, after they had searched the area, they started calling vets and shelters and posting to social media. No Murtie. Today when she was checking with their vet to see if they had heard anything, the receptionist said, Wait just a minute! Someone was bringing their sweet old dog into the office! Some out-of-towners had been walking on wooded trails close to the Passion Play when they found her. They took her to someone in charge and they were bringing her to the vet’s office exactly when Christine was calling them. Synchronicity, indeed! Perhaps a Christmas miracle? Whatever the case, my friend loves her dogs so much, and her family — one of which requires full-time care from her — well, the holidays wouldn’t feel very happy if she had not known the whereabouts of her beloved dog. Gratitude is flowing from so many of us today! Namaste…

“Here let a word be noticed which will be better understood hereafter,--chemicalization. By chemicalization I mean the process which mortal mind and body undergo in the change of belief from a material to a spiritual basis.” Mary Baker Eddy - Science & Health Page 168:30-2

What Brings You Joy?

 

joyous Eureka women

photo credit: Richard Quick

I’ve always had a difficult time keeping things tidy. Reading the book, The Life-Changing Manga (Magic) of Tidying Up, written by Marie Kondo, has helped me understand why. She suggests putting all your clothing in the middle of the room, then going through them, keeping only the things which bring you joy. Well, that concept is life-changing for sure! Keep what brings you joy — wow! I’m now listening to her follow-up book, Spark Joy, where she tells how some people throw away their vacuum cleaners because they don’t bring joy, only to find out they miss them terribly. So she asks us to express appreciation for those items — for instance, thank the iron for helping your clothing to be all that they can be. Another interesting aspect is that some people don’t know what sparks joy, and she must teach them what it means. This opened my eyes to a whole aspect of my fellow beings which I had not considered. How could anyone not know the feeling of joy? Is joy a learned behavior? Are we afraid to feel joy? When she teaches them what joy is, does she simple give them permission to feel what was already there? I’m loving this book!

"Unity of spirit gives new pinions to joy, or else joy's drooping wings trail in dust." Mary Baker Eddy, Science & Health Page 58

Silence First and Last

 

How we react to someone else is either peaceful or tumultuous, and we have that choice to make in every moment. When I was a child, I didn’t like to have conversations when I first awakened in the morning. My mother thought this was a flaw in my character and tried to change me. Looking at this now, I see that silence in the morning works best for many of us. If I start out the day with inane conversation, or news stories hand-picked to feed my fears, the timbre of the day has been set and it’s difficult to center myself in the calm needed to move happily through it. Similarly, when I don’t sleep well at night, it’s because I haven’t been able to shut down my thoughts. Although I am not a fan of ritual, morning and evening meditations work for me. We are all individuals, and through an examination of your feelings, habits, and demeanor, you can discover what works for you, too! 

"Peace to my mind. Let all my thoughts be still. Father, I come to You today to seek the peace that You alone can give. I come in silence. In the quiet of my heart, the deep recesses of my mind, I wait and listen for Your Voice. Speak to me today. I come to hear Your Voice in silence and in certainty and love, sure You will hear my call and answer me." A Course in Miracles Workbook Lesson #221

Honoring yourSelf

photo credit: Aaron Springston

For the last few days, images of past hurts and regrets have been flooding into my memory. This is unusual for me as I tend to let the past stay where it is, without rehashing whys and why-nots. So when I started waking up in the morning thinking about things I’d said or done to a loved one in the past, or hearing the hurtful words of a teacher from grade school, or remembering a harsh reaction I may have had in a relationship, I began to question myself. It even occurred to me that perhaps I don’t know what love is, or that I could be a mean person. Then I read these words Jim Young posted on his Facebook page today: “To betray yourSelf is to betray the world around you. Honoring Self is the remedy!” It suddenly seemed as though the remembrance of horrible things (at least in this case) could be the last step in totally releasing them! If I’m thinking of events and then repacking them into the hidden places in my mind, I’m not honoring Self. To face them and release them in complete forgiveness of myself and/or others, I am honoring the world around me. Thank you, Jim, once again, for opening my eyes to something which seems so simple. Namaste…

"If I am not feeling peaceful, it is important for me to remember that I have made a judgment on my own. If I am not peaceful, I have not listened to the Holy Spirit. The way I return to peace is to once again open my mind to the healing perceptions of my inner Comforter, the One Who straightens my mind. My one vocation now becomes that of stepping back and following the lead of my inner Teacher, the One Who can return me to my true Identity." A Course in Miracles - Workbook Lesson #352

You Can't Bully a Wave

 

“Have you ever tried to bully a wave in the ocean?” This is the question a 104-year-old Buddhist nun asks her great-granddaughter in a beautiful novel titled, A Tale For the Time Being, by Ruth Ozeki. The two went into a store to get food for a picnic on the beach. A group of gangster girls were hanging around outside the store and harassed them as they went in. When they came out, the old woman bowed deeply to the group of young women before walking away. After they got onto the train to go to their destination, the older woman wondered aloud if it was a holiday of some sort, mentioning that the girls were all dressed so brightly and seemed so happy. The granddaughter tried to explain that they were gang colors, and that they were being derisive in their words and laughter. The grandmother didn’t see it that way and asked her young charge if she had ever tried to bully a wave, explaining that no matter how much you hit at it or yell into it, it stays what it is. That is its function, and that is our function. I love that!

“Can we gather peaches from a pine-tree, or learn from discord the concord of being? Yet quite as rational are some of the leading illusions along the path which Science must tread in its reformatory mission among mortals. The very name, illusion, points to nothingness.”  Mary Baker Eddy Science & Health Page 129:24-29

Happiness, Not the Sport of Circumstance

 

As sage words tell us: There is no way to happiness; happiness is the way. We often witness people sabotage their own happiness in a myriad of ways. And, alternatively, we see people who insist on happiness even in the face of the most harsh experiences.  Many times a day we may be tempted to lose a peaceful, happy feeling because of the habit of thinking in unhappy ways. A friend told me a story of a state trooper, somewhere in the panhandle of Texas, wielding his authority in a petty and foolish way. When I hear things like this, I silently affirm the Truth of the situation: that this person is also a child of God. In this affirmation, it's implied what he is not: that is, the material illusion of tyranny he is putting forth. On the other hand, I could entertain thoughts of what is wrong with this policeman. But this would rob me of happiness! I could say, "I hate it when people do that." And that leaves me hating certain actions, rather than seeing the situation through spiritual sense. I would give away my happiness for unnecessary finger pointing. For every action which quashes happiness, there are multitudes which affirm its ever-presence. It feels good to find them!

"Upon this stage of existence goes on the dance of mortal mind. Mortal thoughts chase one another like snowflakes, and drift to the ground. Science reveals Life as not being at the mercy of death, nor will Science admit that happiness is ever the sport of circumstance." Mary Baker Eddy - Science & Health Page 250:28-1

Remember to Breathe

 

photo credit: Blake Lasater

What a difference a day makes! I've been encouraging a dear friend who has been going through tough times, feeling suicidal, hopeless, deeply sad. Something shifted in her attitude yesterday and today she's almost happy again! I encourage everyone who is feeling depressed, or desperate, to know there is an end to it. Plant some flowers, even if you have no energy. Take a walk, even if you want to stay in bed. Get some sunshine, even if you'd rather stay in a deeply-curtained room. Talk to friends, when you'd rather be alone. Watch a funny movie, even if you want to cry. But don't be afraid to cry, and savor every moment of the grief. It, too, is life. Feel everything to its ultimate end. Be grateful for all these things, and remember to breathe.

"Love propagates anew the higher joys of Spirit, which have no taint of earth. Each successive stage of experience unfolds new views of divine goodness and love." Mary Baker Eddy