Health

Health

It’s funny the things about our health
we take for granted.
Then one day something happens
and we realize how blessed we were.
Like the day I woke up unable to pee
or the day I lost the feeling in my leg
or the gradual decrease in my vision.
The list of things we take for granted
seems never ending
like how the blood flows,
or our senses,
or breathing
or sleeping
or waking up rested
or how each organ functions.
Why is it that we forget
until we are reminded?
Why is it we forget to
cultivate our health
and do what we can
to live out our lives
in the healthiest ways possible.
Today may we give thanks
for the health we have
and the gifts we have been given.

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Holy Ground

Holy Ground

“I am standing on Holy Ground
and I know that there are angels all around.”
Those lyrics remind me
that the ground I am on
is holy
the space my wheelchair sits on
is holy,
the place my body sleeps
is holy.
What happens to me may not be,
but even then, I am not always
aware of how I am being protected.
I did not die during situations
when other people did.
I have been spared a cancer diagnosis,
when my oncologist and I were fairly certain I did.
I may not always see the angels
but they are there to protect me
because they know I am
on holy ground.
Perhaps I need to remind myself
that where I am at every moment
whether I am
sitting,
standing,
or sleeping,
is holy ground.

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Crumbs

Crumbs

I stared at the plate
and all that was left
were the crumbs of
my grandmother’s cake.
Her cakes were one of those
that made you not want to miss
a single crumb.
I was a child,
but I remember her
taking the crumbs
and putting them in a container.
She never wasted a crumb.
She would then
take her collection of crumbs
and combine them with a few other ingredients
and they would become this crumb topping
on her amazing crumb cake.
Her crumb cake
reminds me that even that
which goes unused,
that which others consider useless,
are of great value.
Had those crumbs been eaten,
we would not have had her cake
and I would not have these memories
of crumbs.

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Revereance

Reverence

My Buddhist friends taught me
to press the palms of my hands together and bow
to show reverence.
They taught me to bow
for people,
places,
and things.
I am to bow
for the seen
and the unseen.
Sometimes I cannot physically bow
but I can still envision myself bowing
and showing reverence.
People may not see me bow,
but what is important
is that I take a moment
to show reverence
for those who have been sent into my life.
Each of you is worthy of
reverence.

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Everyday Transformations

Everyday Transformations

Transformations
are sometimes significant
and life changing.
Other times,
they occur in
everyday moments of life.
I see these moments in my
students posts in our online classes
as they have these aha moments
they share with everyone.
I see them in my own life
when I remember to not
take things personally and
use life as a chance to grow and evolve.
I thought about it as I ate
my udon noodles the other day
and was reminded of how
every strand’s movement
affected another strand,
transforming the entire plate.
I thought about it as I watched
my wife fill the gas tank
and how each day our lives are
filled with what we need
to keep us going and growing
in our lives.
There is nothing major
in any of these little
everyday transformations
but together
they each make a difference
in the bigger transformations
in life.

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Habits

Habits

How often do I just do what is routine?
Even my spiritual practices are routine.
I wake up
and then I begin by typing in my gratitude journal,
my inspiration journal,
my intention journal
and finally my joy journal.
Rarely do I write by hand anymore
but when I do
it is normally with my right hand,
after all I am right-handed.
Yet when I need guidance and wisdom
I often times pick up,
with my left hand,
 whatever writing utensil my spirit feels led to
and the writing flows.
it is never what I would write,
but always wisdom that comes
through me but not from me.
I am always amazed when I
step out of my own habits
and do something different,
how Spirit speaks to and through me
Sometimes I need to just move beyond
my habits and open myself up
to experiencing the presence of the Ultimate
which only happens
when I move beyond my habits
and open myself up to so much more.

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See the Blessings

See the Blessings

I love Bubby wisdom,
at least that is what I call it.
It is those pearls of wisdom,
left to me by my Bubby,
who passed over decades ago.
She would say Sara Bella,
my Hebrew name,
when you can see the good
in a bad situation,
then you know you will be ok.
She would remind me to always
look for the good
in all situations.
No matter what it was,
I was to look for the good.
So as I have lost so many people
from my life,
I have learned to remember
I have one more person
looking out for me from above.
The blessings are there,
in the midst of all situations.
Sometimes it is in the midst of them
that we find the blessings and goodness.
If it were not for injuring my back,
I would never have met so many people
who also use wheelchairs
and see me as someone who can relate to them.
If it weren’t for the storms,
I would not have the experience
of sailing through them.
It is not about the challenges
it is about how we journey through them.
I am grateful for the challenges in my life
they have helped me
grow, evolve, and transform.
They are what has helped me
to see the blessings
each and every day of my life.

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Kaleidoscope

Kaleidoscope

As a child,
I always thought these were magical.
As an adult,
I find them therapeutic.
They are an ongoing reminder of
how many different ways there are
to see a situation
or to understand a person
or to experience life.
when I change the lens
through which I look at life,
I see things in a whole new way.
What if we tried to recognize
that humanity is like a
kaleidoscope.
We may all be in the same world,
but we experience it all differently.
Each seeing an arrangement
unique to who they are
and the lens they are looking through
at that moment.
With one turn of the kaleidoscope,
everything changes,
new truths are revealed,
new understandings seen.
May we remember
to be open to
experiencing the kaleidoscope
that is life.

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It's Raining

It’s Raining

I still remember the day
I got caught in the rain without an umbrella.
It wasn’t a physical rain,
but an emotional, mental and spiritual one.
It was the day I learned I might have cancer.
it was the day I felt as if I was caught in the heaviest of rain
without an umbrella.
The only one who could be my umbrella was me.
I had to look within me and
find the strength which would see me through.
I had to reach out to the Ultimate as if
it was the umbrella I could open up
to stay dry.
It did, but not in a physical sense.
It kept me focused on the future,
the possibilities,
the strength,
and the endurance to go through.
It is what I still tap on today
when I need to remember
I am an overcomer.
My rain reminded me of
my strength,
my faith,
and all the storms
I have walked through.
It reminded me of the peace
I have had while it is raining
harder then ever
and harder then I can imagine.
It may be raining
and pouring,
but in the midst of it all,
I am the umbrella
and the one who will keep me dry.

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Peace Be Still

Peace Be Still

I remember reading the story
of Jesus and the disciples,
where in the midst of the storm
he looks at the storm and says
peace be still.
There are times in my life
when I am in the midst of a storm,
some worse then others,
and I can fill the shift in energy,
as if there is a source within me that is saying
peace be still.
Other times I can see the storms all around me
but the energy surrounding my life
is peaceful and calm.
it is like there is a protective force around me
which has said peace be still.
It makes me wonder how many times
have I felt peace in my life
and not been aware of the storms
I have been protected from.
How differently might I move
through life if I was conscious
of the force in my life which constantly whispered
peace be still
and thus there was peace.

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Wisdom

Wisdom

As I look back on my life,
I realize it is filled with teachers.
Teachers who have blessed me with wisdom.
They have blessed with a precious gift
wisdom.
They have taught me to have reverence
for my life
and for the life of all of creation.
Some of those teachers
have been people,
others have been situations,
experiences, and illnesses.
Wisdom has come during my
seasons of health and illness,
times of grieving and of celebration, and
every moment of our lives.
As I move through each day,
I am mindful of the teachers
that have filled and continue to fill
my life with wisdom

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Freeing

Freeing

I was once taught
I needed to forget
to free myself and grow.
if I live my life as if everything is now,
with a beginner’s mind,
then everything is new,
freeing,
and open to possibilities.
If I forget that I am supposed to be afraid,
then I free myself from anxiety and fear.
If I forget what I expect others to do
or how I expect a situation to be,
then I free myself from the disappointments
and suffering from when they are not met.
If I forget what I understand
then I open myself to new understandings.
If I forget what an experience was like,
then I free myself from the positive and negative
that shape my willingness to experience life and people.
So today I am working on
freeing myself
and experience all
with a beginner’s mind.

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We Care

We Care

It’s the end of a long day
and I was sitting at my computer exhausted
after another 16 hour day
when the surprise came.
An unexpected message from someone
asking me how I was.
It dawned on me
how authentic her message sounded.
It wasn’t like the how are you
that you hear as somebody walks past you
before you can even answer.
It was an authentic how are you
followed by this level of awareness.
I know this is a stressful and hectic time for you
I noticed you are still up
which means you are probably still working
so I wanted to see how you were
and let you know you are in my prayers.
There is something powerful
when you know that people care
and that they really want to know
how you are.
It’s that real and powerful
how are you,
not the one that
feels like you are asking
to be polite
but don’t have the time
or the intention to really listen.
During these times,
which are stressful for all,
may we remember to let people know that
we care.

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Shadows

Shadows

So often we think about shadows
as haunting,
dark,
scary,
and
causing us to doubt.
Shadows remind me of
how I move through fear.
I Face
Everything
And
Rise.
Shadows can be
gifts from the Ultimate.
They can be
stepping stones to
healing,
transformation,
and emancipation.
When we learn to face them,
learn from them,
grow with them,
and evolve,
then they provide us
with love,
light,
and positive energy.
Shadows are something we all have
in our lives.
It is not about having them,
but what you do with them.

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Do Something

Do Something

I wake up and give thanks for all I have.
I look at my things to do list
and give thanks the Ultimate knows what my life is like.
Sometimes I feel overwhelmed
as I look at what is before me
because I am just one person
and there are only 24 hours in a day.
Then I remember
I am one amazing human being
created by the Ultimate
who know what I must do
and will help me overcome
all the challenges.
I am not asked to do it all
or to do it all at one time.
I am simply asked to do something,
to take one baby step at a time,
and know that if I work
at my piles everyday
in time will all get done.
I just have to keep doing something.

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I DON'T KNOW

I Don’t Know

Growing up there were magical words
like Abracadabra or someone other word
that made everything transform
in some magical way.
Today the words I use
when I don’t have an answer or solution
are simply
I don’t know.
There is nothing wrong with saying
I don’t know
because sometimes
I just don’t.
Not only are these worlds
magical for me,
but they are magical for others.
When I give myself permission
to say I don’t know,
I am also giving permission to others
to do the same.
None of us has to have all the answers
or all the solutions
and feel shamed when we don’t,
because the magic words now are
I don’t know.
It’s not saying I won’t know,
but that I don’t know now
and then we have the time and space
to know.
thus we begin the journey to learn and grow
which begins when we say
I don’t know.

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Alone Time

Alone Time

I have always enjoyed my alone time,
but in all honesty
I was not alone.
My alone time
is really about me
hanging out with the Ultimate
and just being
in each other’s presence.
Usually my alone time
is in mini blocks of time
but yesterday I spent
the whole day alone.
I experienced what it was like
to have Sabbath
to have a major block of
alone time
where we were together.
It doesn’t mean we are talking,
we are just being present.
Being alone with the Ultimate
allowed me to travel to a space
of peace, rest, clarity and rejuvenation.
It was a time of enjoyment,
laughter,
and dreams.
Alone time
can be any place,
any time,
for any length.
it is just about being alone
with the one you know
created you,
sustains you and
transforms you.

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Just a Piece

Just A Piece

Each day, we are given the opportunity
to build bridges that connect us
or walls that separate us.
We can think about life in a way
that makes the world smaller
or larger.
We can see ourselves as the puzzle
or a piece of the puzzle.
When we strive to control,
we fail to see the wonder and mystery of life.
When we remember
we are just a piece of the puzzle,
we can marvel at how
all the pieces come together
to create and form something
which enables us to celebrate
the mystery and the wonder
of which we are a part.

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Fred and Ginger

Fred and Ginger

I have always been amazed as I watched people
like Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers
and other dance couples perform.
It seems like they are all about
making the other look amazing.
Watching them dance has reminded me
that in my dance with my spouse,
I need to practice the moves
which maker her look good
on the dance floor of life.
We each are the Fred Astaire
to each other’s Ginger Rogers.
My newest question is to think about
what can I do to make her look amazing today.
How can I turn  her,
dip her,
and move her around
on the dance floor of life
in a way that makes us
look seamless and breathtaking.
Thinking about this brought me back
to when she was in school
and how I would make her look amazing
by editing her papers and projects.
Now it is the little things like
preparing meals that are healthier for her
encouraging her to release stress and tension
and celebrate the beauty of each day.
She makes me look awesome by
giving me love,
support and
believing in my dreams.
What if we all practiced our dance moves
with the ones we love?

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Bridges

Bridges

For most of my life,
I have learned to be a bridge.
Growing up black and white,
it was never about one side or the other,
it was about both.
It was about me celebrating all
of whom I was created to be
and seeing the awesome in everyone.
It was about building bridges, not walls.
It was about celebrating the God
I came to know in the Black Baptist church
and the God
I came to know in the Jewish temple.
It was about learning that God
is greater then any single way of thinking or believing.
It was about celebrating everything
I learned as a greater diversity of people
joined me at my table.
It was about the bridges we crossed with each other
as we broke breads,
shared meals,
traditions,
stories,
beliefs,
and testimonies.
Communities form through
the building of bridges.
This is why we build bridges,
not walls.

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