Untold Stories

Today the nation mourns the loss of an American giant: Maya Angelou. Her story carried us into the past and from there rebounded us into the future. As a nation, we were buoyed by her words, touched in the deepest parts of our beings, exposed to our laughter and our tears. She showed us how to exult in our everyday lives. We are grateful for her guidance and will miss her joy-filled face and incredible voice.


I love so many of the words Maya Angelou pieced together into the phrases and stories she shared with the world. This quote especially touches me. It inspires me to continue to write. When my story goes untold, I feel the angst and grief of leaving it buried in my heart.

Sometimes it's not easy to encourage or release my own creativity. Sometimes I struggle with getting the words out, with taking the time to feel them, to get them down on paper or in my blog. What does my story consist of? Who does it include? Is it okay if every once in awhile I focus on a story that is not mine, on words that inspire me, on showing up as much as writing? I often feel as though the exercise of regularly 'showing up' to write is as vital, if not more so, as the actual writing.

In honor of the wonderful poet laureate, I will continue to 'show up' and write. I will make sure my stories are told. I will learn from her creative spirit by keeping mine free.

How do you 'show up'? What do you do to encourage your own creativity? What are the stories you are here to tell?

First Seeing

To look at everything always as though you were seeing it either for the first or last time: Thus is your time on earth filled with glory.
~Betty Smith, A Tree Grows in Brooklyn







I have probably hundreds of pictures of the full moon. Every month, I'm out on my front porch taking more. I've wondered why the full moon attracts me so. Why every time I see it, I pause to look up into the sky with a grin on my face and a gentle "Thank you" on my lips.

For me, the moon represents that whole experience of seeing something anew ~ as though it's the very first time. The moon shifts through phases, just as I do, and in each phase, it's renewed and glorious.

I set my heart on seeing each day with a newness. Every moment fresh with wonder. I know I fall quite short of that desire, yet keeping desire itself in front of me or even beside me or in my pocket, provides the basis for gratitude and seeing as though for the very first time.

When I let it happen, each day, each moment becomes the very first moment.  Each flower, each blade of grass, each cloud reminds me of the grace and beauty of all of Creation. Yet it's not only the beautiful and wonderful that brings me closer to glory. It's the messiness. The scraped knee, the cat's vomit, the lost girl. All the things that afford a different way of connecting with glory ~ that open me up to love and caring.

What keeps you aware of glory? What represents your connection to renewal? How do you keep those moments in front of you?

Different as Drops of Rain

They say that every snowflake is different ~ a slightly different configuration of frozen water. Looking at this leaf, I see that every drop of rain is different as well. Every rain-drenched spot on the leaf bears a slightly different shape. And every one reflects the beauty of those differences.

On my four-hour drive home from a trip this weekend, I had plenty of time to ponder how those differences I see around me affect me.

I called a friend I hadn't seen in a few months. Over the 30 years of our friendship, we have traveled together several times. She used her wheelchair and/or her walker, depending which provided the most accessibility for her. On one trip, we stopped at the 'accessible' Devil's Tower National Park... which turned out to be a wild variety of accessible. The ramp leading to the trail around the tower may be at the ADA-approved angle, but it is a long gravel path that seems to go on forever. Two gentlemen assisted us from the half-way point heading up, around the Tower, and down again. I was incredibly grateful. The 'difference' with these two gentlemen was that they were obviously partners.

That's one incident with one person. I have been blessed with so very, very many more. Some people talk about the importance of treating everyone the same. I cannot always do that. Everyone isn't the same. Some people are kind, others need kindness extended to them. Some people are loud, others speak rarely. Some people need glasses, others need wheelchairs. Some people worship in a temple, others in a forest. My heart longs to meet people where they are. When I do, their differences, whether openly acknowledged or not, touches me and changes me. I hope and pray that continues.

How do differences affect you? What do you see? What's important for you? How do you treat people you meet? people you know?

Our Contract to Be Here

"A Contract is your overall relationship with your personal power and your spiritual power. It is how you work with your energy and whom you give it to. It is also how much you are willing to surrender to divine guidance. ... Your life is composed of many facets that shimmer and reflect both your physical and your internal energy. ... Just as each fragment of a hologram contains the entire image, your mission is reflected, although maybe from a slightly different angle, within each of these many individual energy rays."

~ Caroline Myss

Imagine yourself as a hologram. Every fragment, every atom of you containing your Contract, the reason and purpose for your being in the world. You are light and reflect the Essence that created you, that named you, that made you whole. What do you do next?

I love this thought, this image of who and what I am as a program in every particle of my very being. I have choice to move on one path or another. Yet within my very DNA is my Contract ~ no matter which way I turn, no matter how often I attempt to deny it, that Contract courses through my heart, my mind, my soul. Essence ~ God, Goddess, Allah, the Universe, whatever name I use ~ continues to remind me of the purpose of my life. As long as I surrender to Its guidance. As long as I let go and re-member the meaning of my connection. Gratitude abounds.

Can you imagine yourself as a hologram? How do you feel about your Contract? Do you believe that it lives within each cell of your body? What do you want to do?

Experience the Mystery

"The most beautiful experience we can have is the mysterious. It is the fundamental emotion that stands at the cradle of true art and true science.
I am satisfied with the mystery of life's eternity and with a knowledge, a sense, of the marvelous structure of existence - as well as the humble attempt to understand even a tiny portion of the Reason that manifests itself in nature."

~ Albert Einstein

This beautiful double rainbow graced one of my recent visits to the coast. The sun was bright and the rain was soft. The expanse of the double rainbow ranged across the ocean. My camera couldn't capture it all and do it justice. In reality, the colors ~ narrow washed out bands in this image ~ pulsed with life and vibrancy. Although I have heard and read scientific explanations about the cause of rainbows, and even double rainbows, what I felt in the moment was awe. Knowledge trumped by Mystery.

My life progresses as a series of these kinds of moments. Perhaps not contiguous moments, yet ones that, if and when I allow myself to notice, spark life into each day. From the first light glimmering through my window in the morning to the flowers blossoming in the yard to the redtail hawk soaring overhead to the glow of the moon in a night-dark sky. From the purring of my cat to the beat of the music as I drive to the sounds of laughter to the burble of the fountain to the heartfelt 'thank you' from a co-worker. I could go on and on and on. When I notice, when I take the blinders from my own eyes, when I stop planning and remembering and pondering, I am blessed by the love of Mystery.

When do you feel awe? What do you notice that brings you joy? How do those feelings express themselves in your life?

Follow Your Heart

Follow your heart.
Sit in stillness.
Seek answers to your questions.
Listen quietly.
Feel the answer.
Trust your heart.




So often lately, my heart seems to be in the midst of darkness, like a warm glowing ember in a tenebrous empty room. I strain toward the light, toward clarity and understanding, yet my pulsing heart remains hidden. Much of what I crave lingers just beyond my grasp.

Even so. The glow from my heart light steers me in the right direction. I begin again to trust my intuition. The unnamed region where I find myself slowly takes on form. Much fear and anxiety live within the confines of that dark space. My heart pulls me forward toward the answer to my yet unspoken question. I know it's the right path.

Where does your heart lead you? How do you decide when to trust in the dark? What do you trust?

Renewal

Freshness of dew drops in morning air,
wisps of earth fragrance dancing on my tongue.
Like peoples of ancient times,
I honor the glowing orb renewing my world.








Every morning feels new. Light filters stealthily through my open window. My eyes gently blink open to a room awash in the dawn. How I long to never take this moment for granted.

Morning light creates a new palette of color each day. Barely visible steel-blues on rainy mornings. Radiant white slashes across the wall on cloudless mornings. Warm yolk-yellows and pale oranges on early waking morns. Each new day begins with color.

I walk outside on these mornings, viewing the renewal of the earth in the sweep of light awake and aware of the beauty infused in the day. Dawn is one of my favorite times of day!

How do you greet the new day? What time of day is your favorite? What do you notice around at that time of day? Why is it your favorite?