Turning Life Sacred

http://www.louierochonphotography.com/

She's turning her life into something sacred: Each breath a new birth. Each moment, a new chance. She bows her head, gathers her dreams from a pure, deep stream and stretches her arms towards the sky.

~ Monique Duvall

It's time for me to once again focus my breath on fashioning the sacred moment into my life. In the eyes of some of the people around me, it's past time. In the opinion of some others, the sacred has never been out of focus. I know I've traveled the path between focus and fog when it comes to the holy and the sacredness of my path.

I am positive the Sacred has always had a hand on my life, irregardless the convergence of my vision or dream. It's a retreat to that internal gyroscope I mentioned several months past. I weave and wander, yet ever return to the Holy One who remains at the core of my being.

My dreams gather from every shore, from each pinpoint of starlight, from the core of the world. As they gather, I remember ~ truly putting my pieces together again ~ and breath in the pure, wild essence of them. I recognize that what I do for a living, how I am perceived by others, whether or not I am appreciated, matters little as I face the light exploding through those dreams. I want to let go the mundane ~ even as work begins anew ~ and let creativity soar. Perhaps I can do that. Perhaps not. I will be valiant and true in the attempt!

What do  you do with your dreams? How do you interact with the sacred? How will you move into your future?

Grief and Gathering Strength

"Sunset" by Louie Rochon (used by permission)

When it's over, I want to say all my life
I was a bride married to amazement.
I was the bridegroom, taking the world into my arms.
When it's over, I don't want to wonder
if I have made of my life something particular
and real.
I don't want to find myself sighing and
frightened,
or full of argument.
I don't want to end up simply having visited this world.

~ Mary Oliver, When Death Comes

Yesterday a dear sister left this world. She lived her life with gusto, aplomb and originality, much as Mary Oliver's poem suggests. Many people, many women, continue to post their memories and good-byes on Facebook. Sassy Songbird certainly left a mark in her world.

Those messages are an acknowledgement of the grief being felt, the sense of loss. That's as it should be. We live in a culture that too often tells us to 'buck up' ~ in whatever terminology used ~ and not let death get to us. We focus in terms of 'seeing the person again'  and 's/he's in a better place' and 'God must have wanted another angel.' Although each of those belief systems holds validity, we have a right, and a responsibility to ourselves and those we love, to allow the tears, to feel the sadness, to experience whatever emotions arise ~ anger, fear, melancholy, bafflement, peace, joy, any emotion ~ and to express those emotions. Not to take them out on others, but to allow our hearts and souls to feel them.

Each emotion we feel carries us on the waves of healing. Our feelings help us to gather strength from within as well as from those around us. We become more of a community when we acknowledge our feelings to each other. It bonds us together even if those feelings are different. Sharing creates the bonds of strength. It also creates our internal strength. We allow room for others. We recognize our vulnerability. We grow.

Louie Rochon's image shows that sort of strength in the beauty of nature. One petal alone would not stand. Together, even though not tightly bound, the petals are strong and beautiful. As we are, when we allow the connections, the touching.

How does grief affect you? How do you express those feelings? and with whom? How do you gather strength from your connections with others?

Acceptance

"Acceptance" by Louie Rochon (used with permission)

When I saw this image posted on Facebook, I was awe-struck. The title of the piece is "Acceptance" and in an instant I felt overcome by an extraordinary sense of it. The snags remind me of the dark 'creatures' that occasionally ~ and often suddenly ~ rise up in the midst of a beautiful, peaceful moment to catch me unawares. From the shadow, I see the reflected beauty and peace and wonder at where it has gone and why it's been disrupted. These snags, these creatures, call me to remember them. Remember what they once were, their strength and beauty, their majestic stance at one point in my life. Now they are a darkness because even though I have gone away from them, I hold them in that dark sharp place. It is time to accept what they have given me, to thank them for their presence, to thank Spirit for their gift, and to release them to be part of the beauty that is my life.

What do you see in this image? What does the word acceptance mean to you? What dark 'creatures' snag you, attempting to hold you fast? How do you handle them?