The Seventh Day of Christmas

The Seventh Day of Christmas

December 31, 2012

Although the end of the year falls in the middle of Christmastide, it has no particular relationship to the Feast. In fact, January 1st has not always been observed in Christian countries as the first day of the new year. In ancient Rome, the year began on March 1st. Later, in many countries of Europe, the year began on March 25th, the Feast of the Annunciation. The change to January 1st was gradual. Scotland changed in 1600, and England changed when the Gregorian calendar was adopted there in 1752. While the beginning of the secular year has no direct connection to Christmas, it is, traditionally, a time of celebration and hospitality, themes which are familiar and entirely appropriate to the Twelve Days. The traditional English drink for this season was Wassail (from the Saxon Was haile, meaning "to your health"). When your friends and family come "wassailing," whether on New Year's Eve or New Year's Day, have a bowl of this traditional punch ready for them to drink to their health and yours. The website Catholic Culture provides two recipes: Wassail and Wassail Bowl.     Twelve Days

Christmas is for children

I look around at the decorations I have accumulated over the years. The green garland swagged along the ceiling's edge ( I do not put up a tree - with four cats, it would be rather stressful couple of weeks) is a reminder that life abounds in this world, at every level. The ornaments teach us the meaning of the celebration of the birth of Jehoshua, Jesus, the Messiah: The stars remind me of the star at Bethlehem which shone the way for the Magi. The angels remind me of the angelic hosts which announced his birth. The harps speak of the music of heaven, our true home. The beautifully crafted and sparkling orbs and shapes remind me of the riches the Magi brought to the child Jesus. Other ornaments: snowmen, teddy bears, fruit, and other sundry themes (I even have a lovely outhouse ornament) do not tell the story of Christmas, but have wedged their way into the story of the modern Christmas via clever marketing.

I have often heard said that Christmas is for children, meaning for the child of the family. This is a product of the capitalist agenda - to sell products.  This thought dilutes the true meaning of Christmas - to celebrate the memory and the life of a prophet and teacher whose message is true for every generation: If you seek happiness, joy and peace, learn to respect, to love, and to have compassion for one another (forgive as you want to be forgiven). We are all children of God - and if you do not become like a little child, you shall have difficulty entering into the kingdom of heaven, where the attitude of the moment is wonder and joy, thankfulness and praise.  So then, Christmas really IS for children - for us -  God's children. 

The Sixth Day of Christmas.....

The Sixth Day of Christmas - December 30th

The Sixth Day of Christmas is a quiet day in the calendar. If you have not already written your Christmas cards, this would be a good day to do that. Friends who receive a card sent today will be reminded that Christmas continues for twelve days. The next two days could be quite busy with lots of guests. Today would also be a good day to begin preparing some of the refreshments that will be needed on those days.       Twelve Days

In the high Christian sects, this is the Feast of the Holy Family. Of course, it refers to Mary, Joseph and Jesus. But it is also a celebration of family as we know it. Who is in YOUR family? We often think of our blood relatives as family, or those who are brought together by design to create a nuclear family and extended families.

Jesus teaches us to love one another, to treat one another as if we are all family, to go the extra mile, respect and help the stranger, give the extra shirt and feed the hungry, as if that person in front of you IS your family.  Our Father/Mother is God, and we are all brothers and sisters. We belong to a huge family, the family of man. Thank goodness I am not expected to buy Christmas gifts for ALL my family! But I do offer a gift of prayer for every soul, for an awakening of every soul to our true essence and purpose: I am a child of the living God, and I am here to experience the wonders of this dimension for the benefit of  all my family here and in every dimension of creation. Sela.

The Fifth Day of Christmas...

The Fifth Day of Christmas - December 29th

The Feast of St. Thomas Becket

The Martyrdom, site of the murder of St. Thomas

In 1170, on the Fifth Day of Christmas, four knights from the court of King Henry II burst into Canterbury Cathedral as the Archbishop was on his way to Vespers. Just inside the cloister door, they murdered Thomas Becket, whose defense of the rights of the Church had angered his onetime friend, the King. Within three years, Thomas was canonized, and the shrine of St. Thomas of Canterbury was set to become one of the most popular destinations for pilgrims from all over Europe. In his play, "Murder in the Cathedral," T.S. Eliot reconstructs from historical sources the Archbishop's final sermon, preached in the cathedral on Christmas Day. It is a remarkable meditation on the meaning of Christmas, martyrdom, and the true meaning of "peace on earth." The Fifth Day of Christmas, the anniversary of Becket's death and his feast day, is an opportunity to reflect on the broader meaning of Christmas by reading the Archbishop's sermon. You can also sing your reflection with this hymn for the martyr's feast. The Becket Panel at Wymondham Abbey offers a visual meditation on the life of the Archbishop. The red bill and legs of the chough are unique to this member of the crow family. In heraldry they are known as "beckits" and three choughs were found on the coat of arms of Archbishop Thomas. The chough was a popular symbol of his resistance to the King. In Britain today they are found only on the western side of the islands, but efforts are being made to restore them to Kent. An outdoor activity for this day might include ensuring that the bird feeder is full and spending some time watching the many varieties of birds that visit it.   Twelve Days

The Fourth Day of Christmas

The Fourth Day of Christmas - December 28th

The Feast of the Holy Innocents - "Childermass"

In some places, it was the custom on this day to beat children, in order to remind them of the sad and unjust end of the innocent children whom King Herod ordered to be slaughtered in his attempt to destroy Jesus. We seriously doubt the wisdom or the effectiveness of such a discipline today. There are other, more positive, traditions that we recommend. Holy Innocents' Day (another Prayer Book Holy Day on which attendance at the Eucharist is proper) is the traditional day for the installation of the Boy Bishop (learn more about this custom by clicking here). This is a day when children should have the preeminence in family life, leading the family prayers, making decisions about family activities for the day, having the place of honor at meals, and so forth. Households that do not have children might "adopt" a neighborhood family or two with their children and make a party at which the children are the guests of honor.

The story of the Holy Innocents is one of the most poignant stories in all of Scripture, "Rachel weeping for her children... because they are no more." It is a day to give thanks for the children in our lives, whether in our own families or in the larger family of the Church. And it is a good day to revive the ancient custom of parents blessing their children at the end of the day, as part of their nightly prayers.          Twelve Days

How can we not think of the tragedy in Newtown, CN, as well as other past horrors of mass killings of children? Pray for peace. Pray for healing -- of the souls passed, of the families left, of the broken souls who even contemplate such hatred and frustration. May they, too, find peace, and may the Love of God transform their hearts and minds.

The Third Day of Christmas....

The Third Day of Christmas - December 27th

The Feast of St. John

The Feast of St. John the Evangelist is the second of three Prayer Book Holy Days immediately following Christmas Day. The third and final Mass of Christmas, the "Mass of the Day", has as its Gospel the beginning of St. John's Gospel which proclaims the mystery of the Word made flesh. Today would be a particularly good day to spend some time reading and meditating on John 1: 1-14.

Tradition tells us that John was once given a cup of poisoned wine, but drank it with no ill effect. A chalice with a serpent signifying the powerless poison is one of his symbols. In spite of exile and attempts to kill him, John lived to a great old age. In his last years it is said that he had to be carried to the assembly of the Church and, when he was asked to speak, he would say, simply, "My dear children, love one another.

It is the custom to bless wine on St. John's day, and to drink a toast to the love of God and to the saint.

Chalice of St. John

Hans Memling

1430-1495 

The Blessing of Wine on St. John's Day

Lord Jesus Christ, Thou didst call Thyself the vine and Thy holy Apostles the branches; and out of all those who love Thee, Thou didst desire to make a good vineyard. Bless this wine and pour into it the might of Thy benediction. Grant that every one who drinks of it may, through the intercession of Thy beloved disciple the holy Apostle and Evangelist John, find courage and strength to pursue the Way, be renewed in the Truth of the Word made flesh, and at the last enter into Life everlasting, who livest and reignest with the Father and the Holy Spirit for ever and ever. Amen.

A glass of wine is then passed around the table. 

As it is passed, the giver says: Drink to the love of St. John.

And the recipient answers: For where love is, there is God.

I'll drink to that!                                                                       Twelve Days

On the Second Day of Christmas....

December 26^th   -The Feast of St. Stephen

This day has the additional title "Boxing Day", and it is a holiday in several countries.  There are various explanations for this name, but they all boil down to the idea that this is a day to be generous to those who are less fortunate than yourself.  The day celebrates the first person to give his life for the sake of Christ, St. Stephen, who was also one of the first deacons ordained to serve the poor.  Archbishop Thomas Becket has something to say about him which you can read today, or save for the 29th. Another saint who is closely associated with this day is St. Wenceslas of Bohemia whose charity to the poor is remembered in John Mason Neale's wonderful carol. The day after Christmas is a particularly good day to put the fabled "spirit of giving" into practice.  Take time today to perform an act of charity.  If you make end-of-the-year gifts to charities, write the checks  today.  Remembering  St.  Stephen, as well as our Lord's own sacrifice, this would be a good day to give blood, if the donation center is open.  Charity can take many forms.  Whatever form yours takes, make sure to sing or whistle "Good King Wenceslaus" while you are doing it!  St. Stephen's Day is a Prayer Book Holy Day, a day on which one should also participate in the celebration of the Holy Eucharist.  From:  Twelve Days

O Happy Day!

For to us a child is born,

to us a son is given, 

and the care of the nations 

will be on his shoulders. 

And he will be called 

Wonderful Counselor, 

Mighty God, 

Everlasting Father, 

Prince of Peace.

Isaiah 9:6

Merry Christmas!!

O Antiphon - Dec. 23

Veni, Veni, Emmanuel captivum solve Israel,
qui gemit in exsilio, privatus Dei Filio.

O Come, O Come, Emmanuel,
and ransom captive Israel,
that mourns in lonely exile here
until the Son of God appear.

We too often wait until someone ELSE comes to our rescue. But Jesus teaches us that the Kingdom of God is within us -- Be proactive!! The Love which is the Kingdom needs to be discovered and radiated from within each of us to be manifested. Make it so!

O Antiphon - Dec. 22

O Rex Gentium, et desideratus earum,
lapisque angularis, qui facis utraque unum:
veni, et salva hominem,
quem de limo formasti.

O King of all the nations, the only joy of every human heart;
O Keystone of the mighty arch of man:
Come and save the creature you fashioned from the dust.

I believe salvation has already been accomplished through Jesus of Bethlehem -- now it only takes a confirmation of belief to manifest it in the heart and mind of everyone, and to change this world to mirror the Kingdom, where Holy Love is the only law to live by.

O Antiphon - Dec .21

Oriens, splendor lucis aeternae et sol iustitiae:
veni et illumina sedentes in tenebris et umbra mortis.

O Radiant Dawn, splendor of eternal light, sun of justice:
come and shine on those who dwell in darkness
and in the shadow of death.

To know the Light of God,

one must disrobe the transitory ego 

and journey naked into the depths of the soul,

which is the Light of God --- 

where there is no darkness,

and death is an illusion.

O Antiphon - Dec. 20

O Key of David,
opening the gates of God's eternal Kingdom:
come and free the prisoners of darkness!

The key to the Kingdom (another dimension) is Love. That's it -- but love which perfect - totally self-sacrificing in the joy of bliss.  Wake up! Leave the darkness of your own mind and enter the sparkling, effulgent, light-filled mind of God.

O Antiphon - Dec. 19

O Root of Jesse’s stem,
sign of God's love for all his people:
come to save us without delay!

Jesus, sign of God's love for all souls -- has already come -- has already taught -- has already left a legacy for all generations - Love one another, as I have loved you.

O Antiphons - Dec. 18

O Come, O Come, Thou Lord of might,
who to thy tribes on Sinai's height
in ancient times didst give the law,
in cloud, and majesty, and awe.

Shma, Israel, Adonai Elohenu,

Adonai Echad

Hear, O Israel, the Lord is God,

the Lord is One.

When will the religions finally agree that there is only One God, known by many names and manifestations? Is it not our work here to realize that we share, at least on a subdimensional plane, the Oneness which we call God? God is All. Know this, and the games we play become easier.

O Antiphon - Dec. 17

O Wisdom of our God Most High,
guiding creation with power and love:
come to teach us the path of knowledge!

Wisdom - a rare commodity usurped by opinions, biases and judgments. Knowledge is Wisdom only when Understanding and Compassion are its guides.

Get the Message

Everything happening, great and small,
is a parable whereby Life speaks to us,
and the art of Life is to get the message.

Pray for the children and adults killed in CT, and pray for their families and all the children and teachers of that school... and pray for the perpetrators.

Follow the star

On a calendar day
made popular by talking heads
the Spacewalker
will be the first to know.

Kindred Souls

Real unity only exists in the hearts of all who see the truth and live in the Light. We are already One. In the real world it is possible, but in the material plane, not so much. We can only be grateful for meeting and communing with kindred souls on this plane. To do so is a blessing. And we should never besmirch the journey of anyone - we are each calibrated for a different notch on the cog. Celebrate the diversity - teach by example - love in truth.

Cycles

Someone was just born...
Someone just died...
When will it end?

In a comment on Larry Hagman's passing, Patrick Duffy said:
"He's just taking a break."

We come and go, and come back again, playing the drama we sometimes take all too seriously. Dimensions open and close, lives begin and end, names change, bodies change, new purposes are invented, relations intertwine like ripples from raindrops on a lake, and the dance of Life pulses on. Be kind to one another.

A True Guru

This comes from the heart of one Ramananda John E. Welshons, spiritual teacher -- wisdom worth heeding:

A True Guru:

 

* Teaches only Love, and asks for nothing in return

* Liberates you from suffering, rather than liberating you from your money

* Touches your Heart rather than touching your body

* Shows you how to find the wisdom in your own Being rather than trying to impress you with how much unique knowledge and power they possess

* Reminds you that happiness comes not from getting what you want, but from getting free of wanting

* Focuses more on compassion than on chakras; more on kindness than on kundalini, more on selflessness than on samadhi, more on Truth, trust, and tenderness than on tantra

* Teaches you – by example – how to love, serve, be kind, and be generous

* Helps you realize the long-term effects of words, deeds, and actions

* Helps you let go of your attachment to separateness – your body, your mind, and your personality – rather than magnifying the importance of these identities.

 

You will know a true Guru if:

 

* All they want from you is that you go to God

* They teach you to Love rather than teaching you to fear

* They focus on the Light of the Creator rather than the darkness of the world

* They lead by example and walk their talk

* They inspire a deep love and peace in you rather than a fascination with the energies they can arouse and manipulate

 

If all – or most – of these qualities are present, then you have probably found a teacher you can trust.

 

But if they drive up in a brand new Mercedes-Benz or a shiny Rolls-Royce . . . and tell you that your liberation will come through paying them lots of money to have the benefit of their uniquely wonderful teachings . . . my advice would be to put one hand over your wallet, the other hand over your heart . . . and gently back out of the room.

 

A true teacher teaches only Love . . . and asks for nothing in return.

 

May you be blessed to find the One True Guru . . . the One who resides eternally in your own Heart . . .

 

Namaste,

 

Ramananda

10.18.44 - Whatever

And another sun passes through Libra - and another year is added to Allen's stay on earth.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY, ALLEN!

I proclaim without reserve that today I celebrate the gift of LIFE!

Have a glass of wine with me!!

And here's a thought for today --

WHATEVER

Whatever I see --- I see God.
Whatever I hear --- I hear God.
Whatever I touch --- I touch God.

Whatever I smell --- I smell God.
Whatever I feel --- I feel God.
Whatever I think --- I think God.

Whatever I eat --- I eat God.
Whatever I drink --- I drink God.
Whatever I do --- God does in and through me.

              Therefore, I am.

                                                                        agd - summer - 2012

Living in God

Complaint is only possible

When living

in the suburbs of God.

                                           Hafiz

The more we deny the source of our being, the more we think of ourselves as "victims" of life. Through prayer and meditation, we sink ever more deeper into the Being we call God, the source of Life, and the power of Love. And Love, Spirit, teaches us all things - most importantly - to be thankful, and how to be channels of that Love in a world where so many live on the surface of Life - the "suburbs". Choose to live in Center City - that's where everything is provided for, everything is accessible, and that's where the real action is.  Dios es Amor.

Warriors of the Rainbow

Here is an article from a Cree (North American First Nation) seer:  http://www.birdclan.org/rainbow.htm

These are not new ideas - but they should help us to realize that living solely in the material world lacks depth and reality. We are spiritual beings living in material bodies. The material body's health depends on the venue in which it lives --- we need to care for it, allow it to grow by nature, not by our meddling in it's evolution. God, the Great Spirit, the Om in all, the Designer, knows well how to manage creation. Yes, we need to re-learn how to live WITH Nature, and not work at CONQUERING Nature. This plaintive cry for common sense is falling on the deaf ears of people and corporations only interested in making a buck. Love Nature, Respect the Earth and ALL its inhabitants, including other humans here to learn and grow in their own cultural provinces. Respect t the differences and learn from them. Selah.

Ask for the good of others

NT - Letter of James 4: 1-13

Pooh

I never read Winnie the Pooh, nor the many sequels and offshoots that it spawned. Recently I found "The Te of Piglet" (by the author of "The Tao of Pooh). It is a wonderful treatise on human behavior and our contemporary world. I am most impressed by the Eeyores, and how we are surrounded by their breed. The book is full of wonderful quotes, such as:
"Some people never learn anything because they understand everything too quickly." - a quote from Alexander Pope, of another era.
Or, "In the world there are only two tragedies. One is not getting what one wants and the other is getting it." - Oscar Wilde, of yet another era.
Wisdom drips from the clouds of any era, we just need to open our eyes and ears to it. Put down the umbrella and dance in the rain.

The Great Delusion

Life in this modern existence pays homage to a delusion we as human beings once knew in our hearts: We are NOT our bodies. The soul exists in another dimension, its true home, and is only attached to this body for a one-time journey. But the soul can be "attached", i.e., living, in a number of bodies over time. The soul does not change, but the individual identity does. Allen G. Dec will cease to exist when this body stops functioning. But the soul which animates it will return to its true home, and ready itself for another journey in the physical world, should it decide to do so. I say "it", because the soul is neither male or female, or better, is both male and female. The gender distinction happens when the body in which the soul lives is "built" in the womb and is born as male or female (or sometimes both). The advanced soul often has memories of both male and female existences in any one life, and can express itself in a gender-balanced way in either a male or female body. 

Sometimes the male memory or the female memory of a soul is stronger, and when a strong male memory is born into a female body, its urges and desires for intimacy can be for the female gender, because it remembers somewhere deep down that it identified with the male. The same goes for strong female memories in a male body. Human language calls these incarnations "homosexual", tending to be drawn to the same sex for intimacy. Thus, we have an amazingly diverse expression of human experience.

But again, we are not our bodies, and we pay much too much attention to this existent incarnation as if it were all that we are, trying to preserve it at all costs. Through prayer and meditation one can delve deeply into our soul memory to remember who we really are, and thus live a life that is full with understanding and wisdom. We are here to experience a limited life in the material world, but our life in the spirit is free and expansive. Remember who and what you are - focus on your real life as a child of the living God, and grow in wisdom and grace.

The Meaning of Life

Every person and every thing has a purpose is life which flows from their soul into the material dimension. Every person and every thing is busy with being and manifesting its purpose, whether we can understand it or not. Do not judge others....... love them, from the heart.

Imagine

Imagine there's no heaven....
no hell below us ......
Imagine there's no countries,
nothing to kill or die for,
and no religion, too.
Imagine all the people living for today...
living life in peace....
A brotherhood of man

John Lennon was a mystic who was not afraid to speak out. What he imagined was to make THIS world more like the dimension of life WE ALL COME FROM and to which we will all return. Jesus taught the same -- The Kingdom of God is within you (our true home), where there is only peace, harmony, respect, compassion and where Love is practiced in its purity - which is not a Polyanna attitude, but again, one of respect and compassion, where challenges are offered and discussed with the wisdom of experience. This perfect world of the spirit is in opposition to this world of matter, where it is not peace which rules, but war.
That's right. This material world is a world of warring. It's all around us - it's endemic to our human history. It comes from the fact that this is a world of duality (Greeks), and everything exists here somewhere on the scale from minimum to extreme, black to white, compassion and apathy, love and hate, cold and hot, male and female, peace and war. What for? It is what it is.
We choose to enter into this world, even if we cannot "remember" that we made the choice or why. This is a place of lessons, a place of challenges and risks, hopefully for our own good and for the benefit of others, but that often doesn't always pan out as we might plan. We are here to learn how to balance the two extremes, to work through the challenges, to take the risks which bring greater personal fulfillment, and which often can be beneficial to others. The soul who risks everything for others is the soul who has learned the greatest lesson of all - we exist not for ourselves, but for others.
And yes, this is a World of Wars, and when we acknowledge THAT, we can work at bringing about a BALANCE in which we can truly live in peace. Imagine that.

Hierarchy of Souls

I am more and more amazed that Christianity has, for so many centuries, twisted the understanding of the Afterlife and created a fear of death and a fear of the afterlife in its adherents. Why is that? It is truly an example of man creating God in a human image, and not understanding the heart of God. Jesus taught us to love God, and that God is Love. And we "say" (but do we believe) that Jesus conquered death - not just for himself, but for all, teaching us not to fear death, a necessary part of human, material life. So what's to fear? Fear is a part of material life, judgement is a part of material life, of human ways, not of God's ways. In this beautiful but limited world, humans have created an hierarchy of life which has been handed down for thousands of generations. There are leaders and there are followers - there are the responsible (righteous) and the irresponsible (criminals) - and we judge in each culture what the parameters of acceptable behavior are, and what the appropriate action should be taken to right the wrongs, or to praise the righteous.
Aggh - this is getting too wordy!! The skinny ---  The hierarchy of human life functions through authority and power created in each culture on earth. Acceptable behavior is lauded; unacceptable behavior is punished.  And we fear the judgement of our actions.
The Hierarchy of the Afterlife is  quite different -- It is not an hierarchy of power and authority, but an hierarchy of Wisdom, Understanding and Compassion. Sure, we have to acknowledge our errors and review our life and the choices we made, both good and bad, but there is NO ONE there to condemn us for our mistakes. We have guides and soulmates who help us to look honestly at our previous life and to glean what we can for our own growth and fulfillment. Fear and shame give way to understanding and responsibility for our actions, and the karma we have created can be molded into a new life and experience in the earth.

This is it!

What more do you need to know?? And this was known way before organized religion took control!

Come Home!

If you sometimes think about the real nature of life and ask, "What's it all about, Alfie?", you are not alone. Do you want the skinny on your place in the universe? Do you want to know if God really exists, or what happens when we cross over from this life to "heaven"? Are you curious about what "heaven" is like? Then you should read Michael Newton, Ph.D.'s book, "Journey of Souls." All through my life I have been led to several books which relate in content and each book affirms the truth in the other books. Lately, the books I am reading are deeply profound and nourishing. Dr. Newton has done extensive research through hypnotherapy to reveal truths about reality which many of us have only intuited, and of which religion has tried to teach. I LOVE this guy!! His work is monumental, and reveals so much about our relationship to God and to each other. 

Spiritual teachers like Jesus and Buddha tried to teach the truth about ourselves and God, but because their disciples were caught up in religious trappings, much of their insights were not honestly conveyed. Dr. Newton, and other contemporary souls, like Eckhart Tolle and Concetta Bertoldi, put into contemporary and understandable terms what reality is like. Our generation needs to read their words and take to heart their understanding of our "Life". It will challenge your religious understanding, but will deepen and strengthen your Faith.

By the way, if you look at the word "LIFE" as an anagram of Love, Intelligence, Faith and Energy, and remove the "F" for faith, you wind up with "LIE". Life without Faith is a lie. It is only with the eyes of Faith that we can see and understand ANYthing about Life.

Read "Journey of Souls"!

Dios esta en el aire que respiro

"On the Other Side, love is the constant state, the air we breathe."  Concetta Bertoldi.  "Inside The Other Side"
When I was ministering to the Spanish-speaking community in Hendersonville, NC, I came across a hymn, which I put in the title of this post. It translates to: God is in the very air that I breathe. I fell in love with the hymn because of its message - it is the insight of a mystic, of an old soul who has learned to see God in everyTHING and in everyONE. And here, Concetta uses the same concept - serendipity.

A clear understanding

"God has given each and every one of us gifts; He has given us all we need to love and be loved, to be happy and succeed both in spiritual terms and in earthly terms. We might resist believing this because on this side of the veil everything we do meets opposition. Expressing our love can be scary; using our gifts and getting to that happiness can require tough decisions and actions from us. In heaven [the Other Side-dimension] we have complete fulfillment, but here we need to work with[in] the constraints of the physical world. We have things to push against and overcome. Be we can do or be anything that is within our nature, and our guardian angels [and advanced souls], as emissaries of God, will be there to help us with our endeavors."

from "Inside The Other Side" by Concetta Bertoldi
Note: [ ] = my additions

The Perfect Attitude

"The end and sum total of all mysticism, philosophy, and meditation, of everything one learns and develops, is to be a better servant to humanity."
"If there were two people before me, one with great power of wonder-working, who could perform miracles, and another humble and kind and gentle and willing to do anything he could for his fellow men, I would prefer the last. ...The first is wonderful, but the other is a sage."
Hazrat Inayat Khan, The Art of Being and Becoming.

On the seashore of endless worlds, children play...

Have you spent any time listening to or reading Deepak Chopra? I hope you have. He is an avatar for our generation. His books are inspiring, his insights are enlightening, his words are clear and full of wisdom. Deepak has begun a new project -- Choprawell on YouTube. But here is a link to get you started -- https://www.deepakchopra.com/
The video clips are short and to the point - so one can log in and listen to a short exposition of a variety of subjects. On one video he speaks of sexual and spiritual energy - are they different or the same? Over the years I have reflected on the same subject. I agree with Chopra, they are the same. Their source is the same - All energy is from One source to begin with - the Source of Being! Most people equate sexuality with the physical, and so it is. But the experience of sexual orgasm is much more, if you can recall ;). It is an experience which is timeless, exquisite, joyful, intimate, an experience of ecstasy which mirrors the ecstasy of saints and mystics, though THEIR ecstasy does not involve the genitals per se. That experience can be had even without the physical effort of sex. Why? Because it springs from the same source. Bliss is bliss. How? Meditation on a daily basis opens the heart and mind to the reality of the soul, pure energy, which flows into our being from the Source of all Being. Another term for ecstasy is "spiritual orgasm."
On Deepak's website, you can learn to meditate, and even follow videos for short trips into the inner dimensions of the spirit.
Check out Deepak.

Truth in Advertising?

I LOVE Toyota's commercial with the song: "Life is all about the ride."  FABULOUS! Life IS all about the ride - it is all about experience - experiencing material life through all the senses, whether they are acute or not, fully active or damaged. Life IS all about the ride!! Take in everything you look at, everything you listen to, everything you taste, everything you touch, everything you feel. Go where your heart draws you - experience as much as you can - find joy in everything you do, because Life is all about the ride!! 
What a waste of life is war and hatred, prejudice, intolerance and apathy. How much of Life is missed because of negativity. Every life is a life of God - should we not encourage one another to trip the light fantastic - for the glory of God? Every moment is a moment of joy in the heart of the Beloved. Reach deeply into the well of Life, and drink deeply of the Spirit which energizes all that is.

Holy Quotes!

"We should not try to become a flower in order to feel superior to a thorn, but only for the benefit of others. ....It is easy to say, 'You have hurt me, insulted me, disturbed me, troubled me.' ...one does better to ask oneself if one has not harmed or disturbed someone else."

"...vanity is the power which can lead man either to good or bad. It is the living spark of the ego: the soberness of the ego is divine vanity,* and the intoxication of the ego is the conceit of man."

"Worrying comes from self-pity and fear, and fear is made of the clouds of ignorance; the light will dissolve it. Humor is the sign of light: when the light from above touches the mind it tickles the mind, and it is the tickling of the mind which produces humor."

Hazrat Inayat Khan, "The Art of Being and Becoming"

* divine vanity: God's satisfaction in the manifestation created = the joy of accomplishment.

Afterlife

You are not your body. The material entity you think of as your SELF, is a temporary vehicle  through which you experience this material world. Your REAL SELF is really anchored in another dimension, from which you came into material life, to which you are still connected while in the body, and to which you will return when the body no longer functions (death-material). No one dies - you are energy (spirit), and even a scientist will tell you that energy cannot be destroyed.
How many times has any one soul come back into material life?  Only the real self knows.

Afterlife Forums

All righty then --- check THIS out:

http://afterlifeforums.com/content.php/121-other-useful-afterlife-sites

The Death of Death? It's about time!!

It is exciting to see and hear that the subject of death and the afterlife are being discussed in the general media. Barbara Walters' special on Heaven, and this radio program on the Afterlife, are just the beginning of a real discussion and ultimate discovery of  the reality of death and interdimensional life. I believe the "places" of heaven (St. Paul counts seven heavens, other cultures count more) and "hell" are, in modern parlance, other dimensions. Science is exploring the "possibilities" of dimensions, but I would rather postulate they are attempting to validate the idea of multiple dimensions. It would be a concrete confirmation of beliefs which have been taught in religious texts in all cultures for thousands of years - only the terminology will change. "Heaven" is a dimension of life, and we are told there are many "heavens" or dimensions.

For those who do not need scientific confirmation, such a validation would still be terribly comforting. The less we fear, the more we live. When we are no longer fearful of the death of the body (which Jesus tried to teach us to be), we can join the English bard with surety -- O, death, where is thy sting? A Christian fearful of death has not embraced the full teaching of Jesus - Love one another as I have loved you - Compassion, Trust in God, Believing Jesus' act of sacrifice truly teaches us not to dwell on our mistakes (sins) against one another, but to trust that God loves us as we are, and will help us to overcome our inadequacies by instilling in us Divine Love, of which we are made. By His wounds we are healed. Let it go, and let God.

Reach deeply into your heart and soul, and drink from the Spring of Life within you - All that is is there - All that is is you. 

Catch Radiolab on the radio. This week: After Life

http://www.radiolab.org/

A 2012 Perspective

We must take commentary from all sides in order to learn the truth of what is.  It is only by taking every thought of every being in every quadrant of the universe that we can know the whole truth. We are only at a tiny -.% of understanding it at all.


Article: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/richard-schiffman/will-the-world-end-in-2012_b_1172297.html

Deo Gratias

Well then -- there is no real answer for why bad things happen to good people - but first - what we judge "bad" could sometimes be an op for learning and personal growth. What we judge "good" isn't always the best. We take things too personally in this material life - we are not VICTIMS of life -  every "happening" is an op for learning "SOMEthing", which helps the entire universe to grow. Jesus told us: "Judge not." 

We can only do so much to "control" our little world of influence - the rest is a crapshoot. And the best we can do is respond: "OK, now what can I do with THIS?" (That's why I love those emails re: Redneck inventions!!)

The future first question when two people meet will be: "What's your DNA?"  It used to be "What's your sign? "  The next will be - what's your family history? If we try to "figure out" why things happen, if we try to understand and control the WHOLE process of our lives, we will miss experiencing the beauty all around us. That's the purpose of Life - to experience........ and ain't it amazing!? There is SO MUCH happening at any given moment!! I tear up just thinking about the complexity of Life, the myriad forms of material life. Then I get a kind of feeling like a belly laugh - if God had a face, it would be laughing, the kind of laugh that contains wonder, joy, compassion and understanding - whew!! It's enough to make one faint with joy!!

Can we "understand" the whys of life? Perhaps a little bit here to some extent, perhaps a bit more in the next dimension. Sometimes the best we can do is to be grateful for the NOW. My mom always murmured: "Thank you, God" every so often.  She had no easy life, and her body was not always in the best of health. But still, she could say, "Thank you, God." That taught me everything I need to know to be a success in life.

Bloody

My feet are green with the blood of grass.

Look UP!

Sorrow looks back,

Worry looks around,

But faith looks up!

Live simply,

love generously,

care deeply,

speak kindly, and

trust in our Creator,

who loves us.   

-- Anonymous

Forgiveness

Memories may be unforgiving,
    but forgiveness heals all memories.
                                                        a.g.dec

Dancing in the Rain

Life is not about waiting for the storms to pass.  It's about learning to dance in the rain.

-Vivian Greene

Red Bud

From sylvan green peers
Red Bud, lavender Red Bud,
healing rite of Spring.

Life

Material life must end, Love cannot.

Truth

When we die, our souls are free to see the truth.

Love

Love is not something you think about or "decide" to do.
It is a state of being in which to dwell and from which to act.

3 Jewels of the Tao

The Three Jewels of the Tao:

Compassion leads to courage,
Moderation leads to generosity,
Humility leads to leadership.

Heart 2 Heart

We may not see eye to eye,
   But we can try to see heart to heart.

I belong to God

"Many belong to the Church who don't belong to God, but many belong to God who don't belong to the Church."   ---- St. Augustine

Resurrection

Easter - the solemn remembrance of the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead. What a thought! We experience a resurrection of sorts every single day - we wake up to a new day. We pray in the Apostles' Creed that "we believe in...... the resurrection of the body....  This has been misunderstood for centuries. Our bodies are to be brought back to life? Really? I think not. The remains of billions of humans are in a constant state of decay - some have disappeared completely, their atoms "reused" to create other human bodies and other parts of this wonderfully created world.

We should rather be praying that we believe in resurrection - period. Yes, Jesus transformed his mortal body into pure spirit, and is able to traverse all the heavens/dimensions/universes --- whatever you want to call them. He conquered the one thing that most people fear - death. Yet, death is a part of life which we must embrace (St. Francis called it "Sister Death"). The fear we feel is part of our built-in organic instinct - survival at any cost. But death is only a moment of transition. The soul (filled with the Spirit of God), detaches from the organic body and is awakened to another reality, another dimension, a heaven, if you will (or a hell), of our own choosing. It's like being submerged in the ocean and taking a lungful of water and surviving - functioning in a new environment which hitherto was considered unattainable. 

What we find difficult to believe is that the dimension we are "resurrected" into after bodily death is actually our home, the world we came FROM when we were born into this material realm. We Christians even call ourselves "pilgrims" in this world, trustingly awaiting our "resurrection" through the act of death. 

But we never "leave" our spiritual home. Our souls exist in our "home" dimension even while we are connected to the material body. That is why Jesus can say -- "The Kingdom of God is within you." When death detaches us from the material body, our spiritual senses are opened once more to the dimension we had always been a part of, but from which we were blinded, because we learn to believe more in the physical senses than the spiritual. 

I believe in the resurrection -- the Resurrection of Jesus, and the resurrection into another dimension of every soul who experiences the death of the material body.

Divine Laughter

"God is a comedian playing to an audience that is afraid to laugh."
                                                                                               Voltaire

We are forgiven

Surely he has borne our infirmities and carried our diseases;
yet we accounted him stricken,
struck down by God, and afflicted.
But he was wounded for our transgressions,
crushed for our iniquities;
upon him was the punishment that made us whole,
and by his bruises we are healed.

All we like sheep have gone astray;
we have all turned to our own way,
and the Lord has laid on him
the iniquity of us all.

He was oppressed, and he was afflicted,
yet he did not open his mouth;
like a lamb that is led to the slaughter,
and like a sheep that before its shearers is silent,
so he did not open his mouth.

By a perversion of justice he was taken away,.
Who could have imagined his future?
For he was cut off from the land of the living,
stricken for the transgressions of my people.
They made his grave with the wicked
and his tomb with the rich,
although he had done no violence,
and there was no deceit in his mouth.
                                                              Isaiah 52-53

Through the heart of it all

May the heart of earth
flow to the heart of heaven
              through my heart
and through all hearts together.

And may our hearts be
the heart of every being
in all the starry sky.

And may the heart of the heavens
flow to the heart of the earth,
              through my heart
and through all our hearts together.

And may our hearts be
the heart of every earthly creature.
                                            Chichicastenango, Mayan Elder, Guatemala

"Life is 90% maintenance."
                                           ("Taken" - TV series)

Look & Listen

From the flower'd yaw
streams the light,
golden, merciful -- enlightening all.

Can you see it?
Look with your heart.
Listen with your breath.
                                     agd

Say: "The fault is mine."

I am a drop in the ocean,
but I am also the ocean.
How I act, how I change,
so also is the ocean affected.

Apply the above to any situation, e.g.:

The more I heal and become whole,
so also does my family, my community,
my species, my America becomes healed,
becomes whole.

My very thoughts ripple out from me
like a stone dropped into a mirrored pool.
This is why Jesus can say that even our thoughts
can be "sin" (e.g. - sin is an act of selfishness which
affects other persons adversely). Mat 5:22

Thus, our very thoughts are like radio waves which
ripple out from us - they can affect others for good
or for ill. How often have you "felt" the negativity of
another person? ... or the joy of another person?

So purify your thoughts, pray for everyone you pass by,
whether in the mall, in the park, or on the highway.
Your thoughts change the world and the people around you.

Scary, isn't it?

But it is the challenge Jesus gives us
if we want to transform this world.
"Do unto others..."
"... and love your neighbor as yourself."
"Love your enemies...."
"...give him your coat as well..."
"..forgive from your heart.." (the most important admonition)

How do YOU want to transform this world?

During this Holy Week, 2012, let us all ponder the state of our thoughts, and let us promise ourselves to work diligently to purify our thoughts and intentions. The future of humanity depends upon each of us to "make a difference." It is not up to the other person to change. God speaks to ME to give up old ways of "instinct" and "popular", "learned" reaction, and to think and act as the child of God that I am. Let e-go.

Inspiration

Religion must be transformed into spirituality --- that is --- into a search for the meaning of existence itself, at the heart of all reality.
                                                         -- Swami Kriyananda

The Wedding Dress

   "It's starting to rain again," Miriam thought. Looking around, she was, at the moment, alone in the quiet of the ICU Waiting Room.  It was a comfortable room, nice chairs.  The volunteer at the desk was very helpful.

   Joshua was brought in earlier in the day.  Getting up from the breakfast table, Joshua teetered, turned to look at her, and uttered "Miriam", then, collapsed to the floor, unconscious.  She grabbed the cell phone and called 911.  The EMTs were very prompt in their response. The Fire House is only 4 blocks away. "He looks so pale," she thought. They offered to have her ride in the ambulance, which she did. Now, she's been waiting, waiting to be able to look into Joshua's loving eyes again.

   Miriam learned to live in the moment, and this moment was a very long one. No word after an hour. They were doing tests. "Joshua hated medical tests," she thought, "I hope I can see him soon." Two of her daughters joined her just as the doors to the ICU Unit swung open.   A nurse walked through and into the waiting room.  "Mrs. Burton?" "Yes?," Miriam answered, yanked from her reverie. The nurse sat down next to her and began to explain what they done for her husband.  The nurse ended with a soulful "I'm so sorry."

   Sixty-two years of marriage.  Not just a legal bond, but truly wedded bliss.  Now half of her being was torn from her in body, but in spirit, she felt the love of Joshua embracing her soul, and Miriam was comforted.

   She shed some tears when she was told the news, almost forgetting that Maggie and Jan were there with her in the ICU waiting room.  They seemed to take it harder than she.  She felt for them.  They could not know the spiritual bond she and Joshua shared throughout their life together.

    Now, all four children were downstairs, waiting for her. "What to wear?"  she sighed.  "Not black," she thought.  She pulled out an old box, and carefully lifted the dress out.  Miriam donned the dress, looked in the mirror and thought, "Perfect.  I don't want to be thought of as a bereaving widow.  I want this moment to be a moment of joy," she thought.  What greater joy was there to remember than the day she and Joshua committed their lives to one another?  It was a time of pure bliss, and that blissful union is still a part of Miriam's "moment."  

   As she descended the stairs, her children and families stared at her with incredulity.  On the way to the funeral chapel, her progeny chattered with gasps and chuckles and tears.  Miriam only smiled, remembering how blessed she and Joshua were to have brought into the world four souls. When they arrived, Miriam gathered her strength and made her way up the aisle. Her friends and family were already seated.  When they turned to see who walked in, they were awestruck.  Miriam walked up the aisle, smiling with a smile that would befit a bride.  All that was missing was the processional music. She was wearing her wedding dress!

   After the service, Miriam got up, walked over to the casket, and stretching her arms over it, caressed it as if she were embracing Joshua himself.  A long moment ensued, and as if watching a slow motion movie, Miriam slid to the floor, a glowing smile on her face, a grateful prayer in her heart and the name "Joshua" whispering through her last breath.  

   As they were united in body through life, Miriam and Joshua were united in spirit, through death.

                                                                                     by Allen G. Dec

No Papal Bull needed here

The teaching is simple - no need for commentary:

Sunset in a Trailer Park

Above the dull grey roof,
  a golden light ebbs.
Bro. Wind roars thru
  the trees' bones -
A rogue golden-edged puff of white
  flees the setting sun,
as winged fliers twitter
  their evensong.
                                                 agd 2012

The Omnipresence of God

It is said that God fills in the cracks of our knowledge....

and the cracks are getting smaller.

Quoted from an episode of "Through the Wormhole"

God's eyes

Camille's colours blend
My eyes are the eyes of God --
And so God is pleased.

2012 Predictions

Here's a website that you might find interesting (at least).

http://www.shiftoftheages.com/

EMPATHY - taught or learned?

This was posted to the Yahoo Harp List by a very erudite member.

1a.

Re: Therapy

Posted by: "Jon Murphy" Jon@Murphsays.com   jwm5357

Sun Jan 29, 2012 4:42 am (PST)

Thanks Susan, and I reply all only to add a comment or so.

We often confuse learning and teaching, they are two different things.
At my 54th reunion last spring I said to a small group I was chatting
with that I was taught nothing at Princeton. One of them looked shocked,
as we had been speaking of our love of our college. I said to him "I
learned, I wasn't taught - if I parroted a professor's views in an exam,
or a discussion, I'd have gotten a poor grade". He then understood, we
were taught to learn by being presented with varying views. A well
written paper that took an opposite view to the professor would be
graded well, if it were well reasoned. A badly written paper that
supported the professor would be graded badly.

Empathy cannot be taught, in the above sense. It can be learned. The
ABCs and the "times tables" are taught, the understanding and use of
them is learned. And this is an objection I have to current elementary
education, the attempts to teach such things as sensitivity - to the
detriment of the teaching of the "three Rs". There is more empathy, and
understanding, to be learned in literature than can ever be taught in
the classroom. Rules of conduct are not laws to be enforced, they are
attitudes to be learned by example. Again I'll get personal, I was
bullied on the playground when I got back to elementary school from my
polio - I won't detail what Eddie Dederer did to me regularly to get a
laugh from his buddies - but it involved grabbing a sensitive location
from behind and lifting, then flipping me over. The upshot was a greater
desire to gain strength, and more work. It also resulted in an attitude
that stood me in good stead, within a few years I was putting myself
between bullies and the weaker. I wasn't strong enough to beat the
bullies, they would have whipped my butt if they'd taken me up on the
challenge. What I had learned was that the bullies were cowards. It has
been over 60 years since then, and that rule still applies. One must be
willing to stand up, and risk the beating - they will usually stand down
if you stand up - but if they don't then you retain your integrity, even
if suffering some bruises.

And this brings up the new thrust for "anti-bullying legislation", and
the various "zero tolerance" regulations. The learning process is
complex, and involves reversals. The attempt to "teach" social behavior"
will always fail with some people. I have a college friend, the
administrator of our Classmate Fund that anonymously assists those
classmates in need. Shep was a neighbor, across a patch of woods, when I
had polio. His family had money, and on our first meeting he paid a
couple of other kids in the neighborhood five bucks apiece to beat me up
(a lot of money in 1945 for an 11 year old, but he had a big allowance).
Shep went off to Lawrenceville, a boarding school. When we were about 13
he sat on his lawn and shot at my buddy and me as we played in the
woods, it was a pellet gun rather than a rifle. We came together again
when we were both in a country day school for our last two years of high
school (Lawrenceville had kicked him out). He was a bully at Pingry. At
PU he was barely there, his grandfather had given a lot of money and he
lived off campus with his first wife - totally against the rules.

OK, a bully and a bad guy. I next met him ten years out of college, now
married to a wife he still has. We smiled, shook hands, and became
friends. We had both grown. Is there a point to this, I'm not sure.
Would he have grown had his bullying been controlled by regulations? Or
would his resentments just have seethed and become more vicious? I have
no idea. But I can tell you that this is now a man who devotes much of
his effort to helping others. He learned, he wasn't taught. I have no
idea how he learned, but he did.

Life and learning are both easy and complex. The infant cannot be
taught, but is wide open to learning. We have a history of civilization
to teach now - but think of our early ancestors. The infants learned,
the young were taught some specifics that had been passed on. Which
plants are poisonous, how to use a bow and arrow, etc. The delayed
development, in contrast to the animals, was a time for learning - and
teaching. The Hobbesian dictat of life being brutal and short was a bit
off. It was short, but there was empathy. Grave sites from over 50,000
years ago, long before complex language and written rules of society,
show burials of people with disabling injuries that have healed. Broken
bones that healed in a way that would be disabling - but the healing
indicates that the family, or the larger community, supported them
despite their lack of ability to contribute to the food supply by
hunting or gathering.

And that brings me to my old comment - the arts are either parasitic or
symbiotic, depending on the circumstance. I suggest that these injured
primitive people may have been our first artists. The community
supported them as family, and for their previous contributions to the
"economic" process. In their disability/immobility they yet wanted to
contribute. They drew cave paintings of the hunts they had been on, they
made the sounds of the hunt on primitive instruments. The oldest
instrument yet found is a whistle/flute from about 50,000 years ago - we
can't know if there were stringed instruments then, perhaps hunting
bows, they would have deteriorated by now.

Empathy is a part of our genetic structure, as it is in much of the
animal kingdom. Elephants have been recorded on film visiting the bones
of their family. The issue is the extent to which the empathy extends.
The chimp has an extended family, one might call it a clan - but the
empathy doesn't extend beyond it. Mankind has progressed from family to
clan to tribe to nation - but unevenly. The noble academic, or cleric,
speaks of the worldwide family of man - I agree with them, as an ideal.
But the population of the earth is at varying levels of development (and
I mean as to tribe/clan/nation, not economic). Is not empathy just that
fellow feeling that all have for family? It is a natural thing. The
problem is extending it to those who are not family, and that is an
issue in social structures that are artificial, i.e. imposed rather than
evolved. I am not religious, but the parable of the good Samaritan
applies. The thrust of the parable was that the Samaritan was not of the
family of the victim, but yet saw him in the family of man. That is a
goal, but not one that can be taught or legislated.

Tolerance and understanding are the keys, but there are many cultures
yet today that see their "nation" as primal. Remember that a country and
a "nation" are different. The US is a country comprised of many
nationalities, a nation is a genetic thing - the wider group that
follows the sequence of family/clan/tribe/nation. The word is often
mis-used.

Enough, any objections to the details will be answered - off list if
appropriate, on list if appropriate.

Best, Jon
PS for Susan. The therapist didn't do me a favor, he was honest. I
didn't expect that he had a cure, but contacted him out of curiousity in
case he knew something I didn't. I offered him my time to speak to his
patients, and give my history of come back and also of the current
deterioration and how I view it, the offer is open and perhaps I'll
remind him of it. Depression is the worst disease, it saps the soul. I
knew people in iron lungs, and almost made it to one myself, most of
them found an interest, and one was elected judge in the municipal
court. Life in the mind is as valuable as life on one's feet - witness
Steven Hawkings. Do not feel sorry for my continuing loss of mobility
from post polio syndrome - I glory in the fact that I'm here to deal
with it, and have adjusted my interests to match my physical abilities.
And that is the key to life - if you can't do one thing do another. As
long as you can think you are alive and of value both to yourself and
the community. jwm

I'm still looking for that perfect dress..... I guess!

I posted this some time ago, but it strikes my heart to sound it again!!

Here is a poem by Hafiz, a Persian poet whose prose can only lift your spirit and inflame your heart!


Look! I Am a Whale!


We live on the Sun's playground.
Here, everyone gets what they want.

Sometimes the body of a beautiful woman,
Sometimes the body of a beautiful man,
Sometimes the body of both in one.

We used to play that kind of tag
In the animal world, too.
Now a mouse, now a tiger,
Look! I am a whale -- I got tired of the land,
Went back to the ocean for a while.

What power is it in our sinew and mind
That will not die,
That keeps us shopping for the perfect dress?

We have all heard the Flute Player
And keep dancing toward Him.

Hafiz, you have seen the Flute Player
and cannot help but whirl.

Two big quakes in New Zealand, today. 2012 is going to be an exciting, surprising year. Don't be afraid, be prepared. Our lives are physical AND spiritual. The physical will pass away, but the spiritual, though existing in tandem with the physical, will continue on. Even science is recognizing that there are likely many dimensions of life, and perhaps multiple universes. How exciting is THAT?!!

Men are born soft and supple;
dead, they are stiff and hard.
Plants are born tender and pliant;
dead they are brittle and dry.

Thus whoever is stiff and inflexible
is a disciple of death.
Whoever is soft and yielding
is a disciple of life.

The hard and stiff will be broken.
The soft and supple will prevail.
                                              Tao Te Ching (trans. Stephen Mitchell)

What season is this, anyway???

Sunday,Jan. 23, Washington, DC - I was fortunate enough to attend a performance of "La Cage Aux Folles" w/ George Hamilton and Chris Seiber. WONderful show!! The surprise of the day was to see the ornamental cherry trees at the Kennedy Center IN BLOOM!! Also saw forsythia beginning to bloom. What season is this, anyway?? What's in store for the rest of this year? Time will tell.

 The real Love I always keep a secret.
 All my words are sung outside Her window,

For when She lets me in
I take a thousand oaths of silence.

 But then she says,
O, then GOD says,
"What the hell, Hafiz,
Why not give the whole world
My address.
                                               by Hafiz, Sufi Master

How the lack of compassion destroys life.

This poem was published in a N.Y. state newspaper.
Read with caution.
Take it to heart.
Practice compassion daily.

Everyone is looking for a gimmick, something to wow others in order to make a few bucks. That's a worldly spirit. Gimmicks come and  go, and even though a very small percentage of them become economically successful, most of them fall by the wayside, fading into anonymity rather quickly.

But with faith, God does not use gimmicks. God is present at all times, is in our face at every moment. It is for us to remove the cataracts of ego and materiality in order to see Her Light blazing through every atom of creation --- in every word, in every sound, in every thing we look at. And most importantly, She is present in the eyes of our neighbor, lover, friend -- radiating the love which draws us to Love, to Light, to Bliss.

Be still, and know that I am.

Pic of sunrise on a bayou - 

A Rumi New Year

From the heart of the poet, Rumi:

Let the beauty we love be what we do. There are hundreds of ways to kneel
and kiss the ground.

Your task is not to seek for love, but merely to seek and find all the
barriers within yourself that you have built against it.

If you are irritated by every rub, how will your mirror be polished?

You were born with wings, why prefer to crawl through life?

When you do things from your soul, you feel a river moving in you, a joy.

Don't grieve.  Anything you lose comes round in another form.

The wound is the place where the light enters you.

Where there is ruin, there is hope for a treasure.

Be grateful for whoever comes, because each has been sent as a guide from
beyond.