Brush & Canvas

Brush & Canvas

I love watching artists at work.
They appear to begin with a blank canvas
then with each stroke of the brush
they create a vision
which becomes visible
with each stroke
until it is done
and they have achieved
the work of art they set out to complete.
This is how I see
my relationship with the Ultimate.
I am the canvas
and my creator who stretched my canvas
and prepared it for painting,
begins the process of
bringing the journey and vision
had for me to life.
With each brush of the Ultimate’s stroke,
my journey becomes visible
and comes to life.
I am just the canvas,
what I become
and transform into
happens with each brush stroke.
this process will continue
until my journey here on earth
is complete.
I can only hope that, as a work in progress,
I touch the hearts and minds
of those with whom I interact.
Until I am on display in the gallery
of the Ultimate,
I will be open to evolving
with each stroke on my canvas.

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Wisdom

Wisdom

We all have those places
we go to seeking guidance and wisdom.
They may be a person, a place or a thing.
However, the world is filled with wisdom.
Sometimes we find it in
holy writings,
other times we find it in
the everyday
like the poetry or prose of others,
in emails,
in text messages
or during a meeting.
Other times we find it
in what we see,
like the waving of the branches,
the patterns of the birds,
the resiliency of the plants
and other teachings of the world.
Wisdom can come to us through
all of our senses,
it might come from the warmth of
a  cup of hot cocoa on a cold day
or the sound which lifts one’s spirit
or the feelings which arise when we gaze at a sunset
When we learn to look for the wisdom
in everyday moments
we will grow in our understanding
and appreciation
of the one who sent it to us in the first place.

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THIS IS ME

This Is Me

There has not and
never will be
anyone exactly like me.
I am grateful for who I am
and who I am becoming.
I am grateful for the way the Ultimate
has molded,
shaped,
guided, and
transformed me.
Without my spiritual director,
the Ultimate Conciousness,
I would not be able to accept
the award for being the
best me I can be.
I know we are not going through
this movie called life.
Each day, I need to remember
what an awesome job I am doing
at being the best me I can be.
I hope you accept the award for being
the best you that you can be

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Can't Touch This

Can’t Touch This

I am a big gurl.
In some respects this is important
because if I were a target
it would be easier to hurt me
then it would my thinner friends.
My physical size is one thing,
however, it is not my mental,
emotional,
or spiritual size.
My life has taught me
that while my physical size
may make me look easy to hurt,
my spiritual strength
makes it harder to hurt me.
Others aim at the physical size
but miss me
because they cannot see
my shield of not taking things personally,
my refusal to internalize the toxins of others
and my faith which keeps
others from hitting me
with even their best shot.
I don’t have to sing the words can’t touch this,
for people to learn that
there is a spirit that surrounds me
and keeps me safe.
Even when people
hit me with their best shot,
they can’t touch this.

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FROM THE ASHES

From the Ashes

Have you ever been through a challenging time in your life.
You know one of those times
when you felt like your life was
burning down around you
and you were surrounded by ashes.
Then, like the phoenix rising,
out of the ashes
emerges a blessing,
a gift that comes not from the best of times,
but from the worst of times.
I have been finding the embers of blessing,
in the midst of my own personal ashes
as I work to restore my health
and find strengths and gifts
I did not know I had
and the depth of friendships
that have wrapped me in love
and blankets of acceptance.
It is those gifts that I discover and receive
which bring me through the challenges,
the storms
and even the fires.

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Strangers

Strangers

Growing up, my mom would say
Don’t talk to strangers.
While I understand the lesson even now,
I have outgrown that lesson.
Now I embrace strangers.
I am a stranger to someone
and I am no stranger then anyone else.
I may be strange in my own ways,
but so are we all.
We all have those qualities that make us unique.
There is not nor ever has been
anyone exactly like us.
At one point my wife was a stranger,
my best friend was a stranger,
so many who are in my inner circle
were strangers.
Today I give thanks for the strangers that surround me.
They represent
the blessings that may enrich my life.
They are only strangers
until we say hello.

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Pondering

Pondering

I woke up this morning
humming “what’s it all about Alfie?”
That is the only line I know and
the only one I heard,
but it got me pondering
what is my life all about.
Then the alarm went off
and my phone started beeping
and my cat started crying
and there was no space to just
ponder.
I shut off the alarm,
fed the cat, and
shut off my phone
and then sat and
pondered
I pondered questions
like what is my life about,
why am I living and
what do I really want out of my life?
I have to silence the world around me
so I can hear the whispers of the world
and the symphonies of the silence.
It is in the quiet which blankets me
that I gain clarity, insight and understanding.
It is in this silence
that I can do a simple thing, like
ponder.

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Staying Happy

Staying Happy

Are you ever not happy?
That is what I was recently asked.
It is not that I am never unhappy,
but I work on making it a commercial,
and not a state of permanent residence.
I do that because
I do not like who I become
when I am unhappy.
Being unhappy tends to
bring out the worst in me.
Staying happy
makes it easier for the best of me
to shine and radiate to others.
When I am happy,
it is easier for me to radiate that
love and energy to others
and raise the vibrational frequency of this planet.
So I spend energy each day
staying happy.
You?

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Seeing

Seeing

We never know when
we are making a difference.
it doesn’t take much.
sometimes we just have to be present
and let people know they are seen.
It can be as simple as the |
offering of a smile,
a compliment,
an affirmation,
or anything,
which makes people feel
you acknowledge them
and their value.
It is about seeing folks
and honoring their humanity.
It takes very little
to make most folks feel special.
We all want to know
we are seen
and appreciated
for who we are.

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Visioning

Visioning

I  have a vision,
or at least I am spending time
envisioning a world filled with
peace,
compassion,
and wholeness.
A world where people genuinely care
about each other,
other inhabitants
and the environment.
I have to be that example
that I want to see
reflected back to me.
So each day I do what I can
to be the change I want to see
in this world.
I try to move through this world
and offer peace to each other.
I work on being compassionate
with others and with myself
during those challenging times.
I practice being the bridge
between groups so
we may live in a world
which celebrates diversity
and restructures so we
experience equity.
Maybe a vision is a dream,
but this is mine
and what I am working
to make happen in my life.

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The Blame Game

The Blame Game

It seems like so often
we play the blame game.
It’s when we blame someone else
for outcomes,
rather then take responsibility
for ourselves and our own actions.
Like when my students want to blame me
because they did not do their homework
or engage in our discussions.
Or when I want to blame others
because I did not work my business
to the capacity I should have.
When I hear myself wanting
to blame others,
I stop and own my actions
or inactions and take responsibility.
The buck stops with me
as the saying goes.
I am the one responsible
for what I choose to do
or not do with my life.
The blame game has
no more room in my life.

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My Boldness

My Boldness

There is one thing I know for sure.
The Ultimate loves me,
even when I do not love myself.
Even in my darkest of moments,
the Ultimate loves me unconditionally.
I cannot think of a moment,
and do not want to,
when I have felt abandoned
or forsaken by the Ultimate.
There may be moments when
I want to kick myself to the curb,
but God, the Ultimate One,
finds a way to let me know
I am not alone.
In those moments,
I am like the woman who
touched Jesus’ robe.
I reach out in an act of boldness
and allow myself to experience
the unconditional love and acceptance
of the Ultimate One.
Even when I am struggling,
I reach out in faith,
knowing this is where
my strength and wisdom comes from.

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Listening

Listening

The last 18 months have been
a challenge for so many.
Many of those I know
hold opposing views to me.
I love them for who they are,
but it has been a challenge
to listen to them.
We seem to live in a time of
extremely opposing views
where we each feel we hold
the truth and thus we don’t
really listen to each other.
What if we did?
What if we practiced listening to each other?
What if we realized we have all been exposed
to dis and mis information.
What if we realized none of us possesses
the whole truth?
What if rather then turn our backs
on each other,
we loved each other unconditionally
and carried our truth to each other
remembering we each have something
to learn from each other.
If nothing else,
we learn to practice
listening

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Bring It

Bring It

Bring it in with you.
My Bubby would say.
Bring it with you
wherever you go.
Bring it with you
whoever you visit.
Bring it with you
and share it with others.
Bring it
The it is the Divine.
it is the Sacred within us.
It is the greatest gift we can share.
What if we each bought
the goodness of the Divine
wherever we went.
May we all
bring it in with us.

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Thinking First

Thinking First

My Bubby would always teach me
to think before you speak.
In these days and times,
it should also be think before you type.
I lost a friend once
because I typed before thinking
and even though I apologized,
knowing I was wrong,
she has yet to forgive me.
I work on being mindful
and think before I speak or type,
ensuring my words
spoken or typed,
are heartfelt, loving, honest, and necessary.
I have found if I think
before typing or talking
that my words are healing and not harming.
So I tell my son,
think before talking or typing.
Always think first.

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Silence

Silence

Silence is
Showering
Immersing
Listening
Embracing
Nurturing
Cleansing
Evolving.

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Making a Difference

Making A Difference

I haven’t had a television for a while,
but I still remember HGTV saying
change starts at home.
Each day I think about how I can
make a difference
in my own life,
in my home,
in my neighborhood,
in my county,
in my state,
in my country, and
in the world.
I remember that change
has a trickle down effect and
everything I do
makes a difference.
When I focus on being a better person,
I am making a difference
in the world,
by raising the vibrational frequency,
by radiating love, light, and positive energy,
and serving the Ultimate
in ways which transcend measurement.
It is not the magnitude,
but that each day I strive to
make a difference
and do something to make it
on earth as it is heaven.

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My First Hour

My First Hour

Recently I was asked how do you get everything done.
I am not sure how you do it all.
That question brings me back to Dr Martin Luther King, Jr.
who when asked a similar question said
“I give my first hour to God and
God gives me the rest.”
I can’t accomplish anything without
the love and support of the Ultimate.
So I begin each day with my own disciplines
and know that it is my time with the Ultimate
which enables me to do everything else.

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AFTER YOU

After You

Each day I try to focus on
my spiritual practices and
how they help me evolve.
I strive to treat others with courtesy.
I try to put the needs of others
before my own.
It is those little moments
when I remember
to let others go through the door
before me and say after you.
It is when I remember to treat others
with compassion and remember
their needs are as, if not more,
important then mine.
I try to think after you, not after me.
I try to put the needs of others,
before my own.
What if we treated others with
courtesy,
compassion,
and selflessness.
What if we remembered
to say after you?

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My Armor

My Armor

Having watched too many reruns
of the insurrection on our Capitol building
I am overwhelmed with images of
the violence and the armor
and the battle of ideologies
being fought out before me.
Then I sat and realized that I too must
clothe myself in my own armor daily.
My armor, however, is compassion and understanding.
Every day I too fight. 
I do not fight against people.
Rather I fight negative ideas
which try to invade my spirit.
I fight against any desire to invade the lives and destinies of others
by disrespecting them and telling them what to do.
I fight the desire to dominate
even if it is a conversation.
I fight the desire to forget, even if it is just for one moment,
that we have all been exposed to mistruths.
We have all been exposed to big lies,
even if those lies are different.
May I remember to dress myself each day,
in my armor which enables me to be
compassionate and understanding
of myself and of humanity.

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