Thank you!

Thank You

Thank you.
Those are the words I woke up to this morning.
One of my summer students
thanked me for all the work I had put in.
There was something about reading those words,
something about someone unexpectedly
taking just a moment to notice
and then to say thank you
that felt like a cold glass of water on a hot day.
Thank you.
It is something we should all practice saying
as it grounds us in the love that surrounds us,
removes the stress,
which overwhelms us
and connects us with our Higher Power.
Thank you
is as powerful to say
as it is to hear.
Thank you
is something we can say
to others,
human and not
to ourselves,
and to the Ultimate.
it is not about how, whom or when.
it is just about taking a moment to stop and say
Thank You!

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It just takes a moment

It just takes a moment

Not everyone can be kind and caring,
not all of us can afford it.”
They said to me and then began ghosting me.
It doesn’t cost anything to be enriched,
or to enrich others.
Each day is filled with the opportunities
to enrich and be enriched.
The simple act of offering
costs nothing
and enriches all.
It just takes a moment to be compassionate,
and in that moment our compassion enriches
and enriches us.
Compassion enables us to
release our ego
and have empathy for others.
I don’t have to go through your pain,
but I can empathize with it
and be compassionate.
It just takes a moment to smile.
Smiling is not only contagious for others,
but enriches us as well,
filling our bodies with hormones
that make us happier
and it costs nothing to smile.
Loving words cost nothing,
but for some it can be like cold water on a hot summer day.
It can be as simple as paying a compliment,
or encouraging them and telling them
they can make it through
it just takes a moment to praise them
and tell them what you love about them.
It doesn't cost anything to offer help.
to say can I do this for you,
or can I do something to lighten your load.
Doing something simple like taking out the trash,
or listening to them and
allowing them to feel heard
enriches everyone.
it doesn’t cost anything to share your heart,
offer them time to listen,
to offer them a seat,
or to simply hold their hand.
None of this costs anything,
but offering of ourselves
enriches us and them
and all of it can happen
in just a moment.

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Holy Hindsight

Holy Hindsight

Hindsight is 20/20.
it reminds me how much easier it can be
to see things we have lived through,
then it is in the present.
Our wisdom of the past
is much then our wisdom of the present.
Not only do we see our own lives with clarity,
we see the guidance of the Ultimate
in ways we could not see it before,
We have holy hindsight.
There is something about having this hindsight
that is comforting and peaceful
and makes us more resilient.
I journal daily because
it helps me have holy hindsight.
it helps me see all the moments
the Ultimate has winked at me
and said I just did a new thing in your life,
did you see it.
Each day is filled with memories,
of how the Ultimate is working in our lives.
We may not see it in this moment,
but we will in holy hindsight.
We will see it if not now,
then later in the world of memories
we have yet to make.
While we are making them,
may we remember to note the God moments,
the ones that happen while we are making them,
while we are living them,
while we are residing in them,
and may we experience the holiest of hindsight
as we seek to remember them.

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Sitting and Remembering

Sitting and Remembering

Have you found that when you stop
and just sit quietly,
you listen in ways you can’t
when you forget to sit and remember.
Listening to the Ultimate,
to ourselves
and others
is a skill we all need.
Listening is not always easy,
but when we stop and sit
we seem to remember
to be mindful,
to be open, and
to be accepting.
There is this magic that happens
when we sit
and allow ourselves to remember.
We cultivate a way of being
within us that is loving and kind.
Our words are loving
and others can tell
we have been listening
to them
and for them.
We sit and remember
how to bring joy and happiness
to ourselves
and to others and
in doing so
we relieve the suffering of others.
So sit and remember
to be quiet and listen
and make this world a better place.

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Befriending

Befriending

Not all friends are the same.
There are some people
We are friendly with,
but they are not a friend.
regardless of what Facebook calls them.
There are those we hang with
and play with,
but they are primarily for fun.
Then there are the good friends,
the ones we like to hang out with
and always leave us feeling better.
Then there are our spiritual friends,
the ones that go beyond casual socializing,
the ones who love and support us
and our growth,
They are the one’s who know us,
love us,
help us stay anchored,
really listen
and are with us in good times and bad.
These are the ones we have truly befriended.
Then there is us.
When we befriend ourselves,
we love all of who we are,
we love our flaws and fears
with a desire to more fully understand
and learn from and about.
We befriend ourselves
and let go of perfection.
Befriending ourselves is about
opening our hearts,
to all of who we are,
the devastated parts,
the prostituted parts,
the homeless parts,
the parts we have been running from,
and give all of who we are refuge,
the parts we love and welcome,
and those we do not.
How can we befriend others,
if we have not learned how to befriend ourselves?

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Celebrations

Celebrations

Growing up I struggled with celebrations
because days like birthdays made me sad
and reminded me of the parents I would never know
and who would never know me.
Then my mother and father passed away
and I led the celebration of their lives.
That is when I came to realize
celebrations are when we lift each other up,
in good times and in sad,
sharing and connecting with each other.
Celebrations are not just about
barbecues, picnics, or festive gatherings.
They are a chance to give thanks for
all who make a difference in our lives.
They are a chance to make our bond with other
visible, affirming and filled with love.
They are a chance to affirm more than the people,
but to make concrete the traditions.
They are a chance to give thanks
for all we are grateful for,
all we have been blessed with,
and all we have been spared.
Celebrations
are more than the laughter we share,
they are about the love,
the life,
and memories
we build, cement and hold in our hearts.

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Smiling

Smiling

Smiling
it’s such a simple thing.
It’s more than what one see’s.
When I see someone smiling,
I see their peace,
their compassion,
their joy,
and their connection to the Divine.
It is hard to smile on the outside,
when one is not smiling on the inside.
Maybe that is why so many
spiritual teachers smiled.
Smiling is a tool for growth
it brings us joy
and brings us to joy.
Smiling is relaxing
and releasing.
Smiling is a starting point
that opens the heart,
cultivating compassion for others.
In the hardest of times,
smiling can help us and others
catch a glimpse of heavenly peace.
Smiling is so much more than what it seems
it is an exercise and spiritual practice,
like yoga for one’s mouth.
It helps us look better,
less tired,
and less stressed.
Smiling is more then a smile,
it is a way of ministering to each other
and helping to spread the joy.

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God’s Gallery

God’s Gallery

My mentor, friend, and former professor,
introduced me to God, the artist,
the potter,
the one who created us as a work of art,
the one who was, is, and always will be the Ultimate craftsperson.
The one who curated this incredible collection,
of humanity,
who invites us to gaze upon each other
as we would a piece of art in a gallery
because that is what we are,
masterpieces in God’s gallery.
But do we know how to gaze,
how to really see each other
and the artistry embedded in each of us.
What if we slow looked at each other,
observing each other,
focusing on the intricate details,
being drawn into the inexplicable,
in each and every one of us,
rather then rushing through,
never really seeing or appreciating
the mysteries and artistry surrounding us.
What if we stood closer to each other
like a painting,
so we can see the brushwork,
but also stepping back
so we can see the whole creation.
When we slow look at each other,
we see the newness in each of us,
and the ever deepening of the mystery.
God’s gallery
as we move through it with the artist,
helps us do one thing,
deepen our tolerance
for the inexplicable
and our need to continue to come back
and slow look
at all the pieces
in God’s gallery.

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Purple Pain

Purple Pain

Purple pain, purple pain,
not it is not a typo
and it will probably never be written as a hit song,
but sometimes our pain is about more then what we feel,
it is a call to find peace,
to seek spiritual guidance,
to seek redemption
and go through a time of transformation
that brings us to a place of calm and healing.
it is about the purposeful rain which comes down on us
to help us realign and release
from the purple pain
waking us up and signaling us
to heal and explore
as we look at our inner core,
ask what we are repressing,
what do we need to wake up,
so we walk with more ease
towards and in our true purpose.
The Ultimate never means to cause us any sorrow,
they just want to see us laughing and joyful.
Sometimes we need to feel something so intensely,
that we cannot avoid it
and must address and overcome it
and then give thanks
for the purple pain.

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Being Receptive

Being Receptive

Be open,
be receptive
to the spiritual wealth
God has to give you.
Being receptive
is a choice.
It’s about being open and patient,
deliberately sitting and waiting
for the blessings to flow to and through us.
It’s not always easy.
Being, and staying, receptive
requires us to stay
balanced and centered.
It’s about releasing fear and doubt,
and being receptive to remembering,
it’s all about the journey.
It’s all about being receptive
to the spiritual wealth coming our way
and remembering the best is yet to come.

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Meditations of My Heart

Meditations of My Heart

How many times have I said or heard the phrase
the meditations of my heart.
it’s more than our thoughts and words
be pleasing to God.
For me, it has come to mean more
than just words and thoughts.
It is about the literal meditations
There is this communication that occurs
when you allow yourself to feel your heartbeat.
When you feel it and listen to it,
you develop a connection
to the frequency of the Divine.
You build a connection between your heart
and the heart of the world.
At times, I feel this quivering
as I connect to the suffering in the world.
What I feel is more than I can think.
It is about the deep feeling,
the true compassion,
the understanding that there is not a me and a they,
there is just an us.
There is a movement away
from selfishness to selflessness.
With each beat of my heart
I feel myself engaging with the pain of others,
and refusing to retreat from it
as I have the privilege to do.
The meditations of my heart
say these are your neighbours,
your brothers and sisters,
give unto them
as you would have them give unto you.
Share with them,
support them,
walk with them,
and know that together
we are working against
 the hardening of all our hearts.
The future of our world
is not just about the meditation of my heart,
it is also about the meditation of yours.

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Finding the Purpose!

Finding the Purpose!

Have you ever had a conversation
or an argument
that never goes away?
Maybe it was one you regretted having
and then it comes back
haunting you in your sleep.
Sometimes I have to step back
and go with the flow
and learn the lesson it carries.
My Bubby would always remind me
to look for the blessings
in all circumstances.
So in the midst of the storms,
I look for the lessons,
the gifts, and
the guidance
that will help me
fulfill my Higher Purpose
in a way I could not before.
If it won’t leave me,
then I know it will stay until
I wrestle with it
and find the blessings
and the path
leading me to my Higher Purpose.

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Be An Artist

Be An Artist

Have you ever struggled to see yourself
as an artist?
I didn’t, until I remembered to think about
God as an artist
and if I was created in their image,
then I too am an artist.
I paint with my words,
your medium may be something else,
but what we create is a bridge
between what is in our heart and soul
and the creation we offer to the world.
It is through our art
that we find time with the Ultimate
to heal and to grow
to explore and transform.
It is how we become
 the artist we were created to be.
We learn how to stay open.
We learn how to meditate,
to sit,
to be patient,
to observe.
We plant seeds and allow seeds
to be planted within us
out of which the most amazing gardens grow.
We jump, when we want to leave.
We say yes, when we are not sure.
We open ourselves,
and allow ourselves to
create
just as the Ultimate created us
and continues to be the master artist
who is
and always will be the one
helping us to become the artist
we were created to be.

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If Loving Me Is Wrong

If Loving Me Is Wrong

If loving me is wrong
I don’t want to be right.
Loving ourselves is not wrong.
It is about loving one’s self unconditionally.
It is about acceptance and
nurturing of one’s inner being.
It is about recognizing and celebrating
the manifestation within us
of our Higher Power.
If connecting with and recognizing the Divine
within ourselves is wrong
then I do not want to be right.
I want to honor and affirm all of myself
and that includes my flaws and weaknesses
as well as my strengths
I want to nurture all of who I am,
the spiritual
the emotional and
the physical
I want to love all of me,
the part that needs to forgive
and the parts that need forgiving.
I want to love and celebrate me
just as I am and
if you think loving me is wrong,
think that,
because in that case
I do not want to be right.

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things

Things

I laugh as I listen to Julie Andrews
singing my favorite things
I love how she gives thanks
for a few of her favorite things
when she is struggling.
There is something about giving thanks
not just for the big things,
As I sit here at my desk
feeling tense and frustrated after a meeting,
I look around and give thanks
for some of my favorite things
Ganesha,
who has been my spiritual guide,
even before I knew who they were.
The tree of life,
which always makes me smile.
My yarn bowl
which is filled with my spiritual practice tiles
My elephants
who remind me to be strong
and patient and kind.
My coaster
which reminds me
it is all about the journey.
They are so much more then things,
They are reminders
to give thanks
to be grateful for all I have
and to remember the joy
each thing brings into my life
and how much each mean to me

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Short , Snappy, and Spiritual

Short , Snappy, and Spiritual

I love external inspiration
like the day I was asked
are you ever short, snappy and oh yeah spiritual.
laughing out loud,
normally not,
but I am up to the challenge,
so what do you most need right now
I want to feel grounded,
uplifted,
and empowered.
So it went like this
Trust your inner compass.
Live in the present.
Trust the process.
Grow from the inside out
Be the light you wish to see
Let it be.
Believe you can.
And it was for them
and for me
as I realized that in this moment
I had trusted,
lived,
grown,
been and
believed.
All because of a few
short, snappy and spiritual phrases.

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If God was an Artist

If God was an Artist

One day I am going to write a book about
God as an artist,
my professor would say.
I wonder if she ever did.
She taught me to see the playful and creative nature
of the one we so often take so seriously.
Artists do more then paint,
and sculpt
and draw
and create art that is visual,
but the world is filled with visual displays
of God’s creativity and artistry.
Have you ever thought about yourself
as a sculpture,
constantly being molded and perfected?
God did not stop working on us
after the initial design.
We are a line of our own,
constantly being revised,
renewed,
refashioned, and
reaccessorized.
Creating art is not always easy
or clean
or neat,
sometimes it is hard
and time consuming
and quite messy,
but there are pieces I have seen,
people I have met,
writings I have read,
songs I have heard,
things I have felt,
aromas I have smelled,
scents that have found their way to me
that have let me know the artist
is still working
and still designing
and redesigning
and challenging us to see the beauty
in the mess
and when I am left feeling overwhelmed
and not sure what to do
I hear God looking at me like Tim Gunn
and saying make it work,
I gave it to you my artist,
now make it work.

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How Do You Love the World?

How Do You Love the World?
You seem to love the world,
how do you do it?
how do you love the world?
one of my students asked me.
How I do is simple and not,
but what fuels me is my why.
In every spiritual path I have encountered
is a lesson to love one another.
The words may vary,
but the message is the same
love one another.
How I do it,
if I indeed do,
starts with me
and being loving with and showing love to myself.
Michael Jackson said
to start with the person in the mirror.
HGTV said to start at home.
So one way I show love to the world
is by loving myself
and that is not always easy.
Loving the world
is about nurturing relationships.
seeing beauty,
and showing grace,
even when we do not want to do that.
It starts with us.
With us giving thanks
for all we have and all we have not.
Focusing on the blessings
reduces our anxiety and frustration.
Being kind to others,
smiling at someone,
letting them know they are enough,
sending a thoughtful message,
any random act of kindness,
sends love into the world.
Every time we give
of our heart,
our minds,
our souls,
we are pouring love into the world.
Believing in others,
searching out the good in them
and helping them see it in themselves.
it is so easy to put others down,
and there are so many who will and do do that.
So be the one who helps others
see the light within them.
As my Bubby once said,
hold people as if they are a newborn.
Be patient, gentle and kind
as the Ultimate has always been with you.
See the beauty in all of creation,
in nature,
animals,
the colors,
the scents,
the textures,
the tastes,
and give thanks.
See loving the world is not hard.
it’s about being mindful
and serving others,
and sharing with others the love
we receive so freely
from the Ultimate
who asks us to love one another
because together we are the world
and when we love each other
we love the world.
This is how I do it.
This is how I love the world.

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Ordinary Rituals

Ordinary Rituals

Rituals
they are things I do on the outside
to honor and celebrate
my relationship with the Ultimate
which is the most intimate I have.
My rituals,
may seem ordinary to some,
but to me they are transformative.
The moments I spend
writing in my journals
is about creating a sacred space where
I honor and memorialize moments that
to me are not ordinary.
My rituals,
which are honoring what I am grateful for,
what inspires me,
what my intentions are,
and what brings me joy,
just reaffirm my faith
and keep me connected to the Ultimate.
These ordinary rituals
keep me in a state of peace,
because I cannot be anxious
when I am with the Ultimate.
When I share with others,
I build community
through the feeding of
myself and others.
Whether it is what I write in my journals,
or the prayers I offer,
or the time I spend listening,
comforting,
cleansing,
helping people transition,
writing a poem,
or pouring libations,
they are Divinely ordinary and not.
They are more then the time I spend
they become more than ordinary
because of the intention behind them.
These ordinary acts
keep me connected
and growing with the one
who has taught me
to see and sense the extraordinary
in the ordinary.

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More Than a Kiss

More Than a Kiss

Growing up,
I was raised on fairy tales
about how a kiss
could wake someone up,
could break a curse,
could transform how someone looked.
My father told me
he had no interest
in my mother,
until she kissed him
and then everything changed.
These kisses were supposed to be
about living happily ever after.
Life, is not a fairy tale.
One kiss does not transform the world.
but they can transform our perspective.
Being kissed by the Ultimate,
can help us transition from death to life,
from beast to human,
all through the unconditional love
and grace kissed on us
by our Higher Power.
Kissing
is about returning people
to wholeness.
It is about finding healing
in the mystery of love
It can be a kiss of awakening,
a raising of one’s consciousness
and an offering of a new perspective on life.
It can a kiss of transformation
that give us autonomy over our lives
while at the same time sharing our lives
with the one we call our Higher Power,
the one we turn to,
confide in,
heal, grow and wake with,
and allow to kiss us
in a way only Spirit can.

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