A Ceentury Plant Blooms

The Century Plant is also named Agave. This picture is not of the blue agave used to make tequila (oh, darn). First of all, while it is entirely possible, that this particular plant has lived 100 years just to bloom, research can not confirm that this is why it is called Century. The name does, however correlate with the past hundred years of Earth's existence.

This spike in the middle of the plant shot up within a couple of days. Since I took this picture, it has grown another five feet, towering above the house.  None of us can see well enough to see if there are any blooms yet on the top of this Washington Monument of a spectacle in our village.

I imagine the Century plant as having lived just to become a symbol of the blooming of a new age, a new life force among us. A natural energy is present on this planet of our charge. It is becoming visible and everything is filled with new life as the old passes away - reluctantly, of course.

People are beginning to live more and more through the eyes of a global interdependent paradigm. People are beginning to understand their connectedness to life in other parts of the world.

I had the opportunity to be part of bringing awareness to this emerging paradigm for so many years. I have been a pioneer with so many others in aligning with its growth. Since the fifties, especially, our lives have been radically changing  - transforming into so much more than even visionaries ever imagined. Some changes I have personally experienced include:

An absolute image of being married and raising children with all variations from this mother/father/children image is being replaced with loving relationships.

Workplace roles in which men are in charge and women serve their needs is almost vanished in lieu of teams, each member with a role in production.

Civic policies are being challenged and change in every way possible. The struggle to let the old die is often a violent encounter.

International relationships still governed by gaining power over for economic gain are literally being laughed at. Capitalism philosophy itself has been eroded into greed.

Self-esteem which depends on the approval of others, is being replaced by awakening awareness of inner wisdom and validation.

New forms of coexistence are slowly but surely emerging, even in places on this Earth where it is no where close to visible.

Most obvious is our relationship to the radically changing environment. The climate is indeed changing, whether warming or freezing. We are all being called to free ourselves from maintaining the WAY IT WAS and move into the WAY IT IS as new forms emerge like spikes on the Century Plant and its elusive blooming right before our eyes.

I imagine how it was a hundred years ago. I have experienced radical change in my own being for my seventy years on earth, and I am aware that it is up to all of us to bless the emerging new realities rooted in what has been and one step into what is becoming more and more real each day.

The Age of Social Demonstration of what is possible has passed. When we stop resisting that which is bigger than both of us, as the comedian used to put it, and honoring that which is happening in our very beings, the real dialogue can begin.

So don't send me messages to ban this or that. Don't bother castigating me for believing in what I know is true. Show me the new way to function, operate, imagine, believe. I will live likewise.

Where are you seeing the new century emerging and blooming in ways that you never imagined would come to be?

Change is Everywhere - Stepping into the Unknown

I am drawn to shed that which no longer serves my goodness or the well being of this Earth.

I am drawn to consider the importance of the vastness of disharmony in the world.

The climate - geographically, environmentally, politically, economically, socially. and even spiritually is at odds with the general consensus.  Nothing that is happening computes with anything we all have experienced up to now in our life's time.

I find it incredible that in the center of all the turmoil, that things will work out to the benefit of all.

I say it is time for a huge protest movement - a new massive march for change - now.

But, then, where to begin?

What change will be the one that causes the collapse of the whole wall of patterns of past modus operandi and belief structures? Or what form does this organic evolution - not a revolution this time - take?

Wanting it to be simple, I am guessing that, just considering the many challenges, the answer is complex.

I  ask myself, "What is the one change in society I'm willing to pour my life into?"

I will just pick one -any one - and ask my heart how to proceed. I already know the time is now, that I work on a challenge which is standing right in front of me and also resides in my own being,  and my response is to alleviate suffering, to heal the wounds.

In my heart there is a council of wisdom to guide how to proceed.

 Finally, by stepping into the beyond the beyond, into the unknown,  and creating with  imagination, hands, and words does the vision of a changed world become real. Like Ronstrom, in Ancient of Days, who led the people beyond what already had been inhabited, to the place where no one had ever been, there are signs in the world that the Ronstrom dynamic is at work.

Does this mean, I  quit walking in the morning with those whose signs of aging  radiate negative vibes from morning low blood sugar? Am I positive and charitable and empathetic within my own being?

Does this mean I leave the social organization of women with whom I have nothing in common?  Have I attempted to locate our common ground?

Does this mean I back out of a new organization intended to be a vehicle of social change in the community and instead is a forum for ego boosting? Do I have another group of people to work with and is my own ego unblemished?

Do I just ignore my family who seem to care less if I exist?  Am I giving the impression that I don't want them in my life and am judging their existence?

And taking on world wide change efforts is senseless to me when I can't even complete a conversation with a person sitting next to me who has an opposing perspective.

 Lots of meditation time yet to be. What will I create, given obvious limitations,  in response to Heart's wisdom?

Accepted or Rejected?

I am not sure of the source, but this time of year, every year, I am consumed with a sense of being a total outsider with a big "reject" stamped on my forehead.

This feeling is irrational, grounded in nothing. Nevertheless, I am bombarded with a series of memories to support this sense and it seems like people start stamping "reject' on my forehead to support this feeling.

Years ago, I would find my self singing, over and over in my head, that part of Handel's Messiah, "He was despis-ed, despis-ed and rejected...". This would bring me back to reality, relatively speaking, reminding me that this feeling is included in the human journey.

I am reminded of a course I and many others took on the twentieth century theological revolution. In this course there is a conversation around an excerpt of Paul Tillich's writings.The pedagogue goes around the room saying something unforgivable and asks, "Am I accepted?" The answer, no matter what the "sin", is YES.  Tillich's message is that we are accepted always, in spite of our rejection. He was among many theologians who were involved in reinterpreting scriptures in secular terms.

In that first course, the pedagogue got to me and said, "I gave a baby up for adoption, am I accepted?" and waited for my answer. Because I got what Tillich was pointing to, I said YES, but did not believe it in my heart. It took years to believe this ultimate truth.

Here, many years later, I am able to guide my meditation time into Heart Space, and  listen for the wisdom of a community of memories, lessons, role  models, and guides. I can ask this community to guide me once again to a heartfelt acceptance of my human condition. Wisdom, insight and meaning is always provided.

This year, I find that I need a way to be sustained as accepted and not fall into the cycle of validating my rejection. I need to feel one with this truth of acceptance in spite of rejection. I need it more than ever because I'm close to getting my groove on here on the other side of this life's time.

I am feeling that the engines are fired up and I am about to take off into a new phase of serving this world. So, during this time of year, with this recurring albatross of rejection, I am in perpetual mediation with the Divine.

The ability to be sustained and to get into the future is to love who I am, just as I am, and to love the stamp on my forehead which is rendered powerless by Love.

And so I Love. And if I say to you, I love you",  please know that I am not just saying, "Hello", or "Good-bye." I am simply honoring the reality that I am accepted and that you are accepted, and that acceptance is the way life is - always.

Am I accepted?  Are you?

Family Is So Important

This is the family of my niece, Leanne.God has really blessed Leanne more than most people who have lived on this earth.  First and foremost, Leanne's heart is pure love. It might not be obvious when her favorite football team (Roll Tide!!!) is losing, but this is only to confirm that she s perfectly human.
Brian, her husband is among the very rare finest of men. Each conversation I have ever had with him has been an encounter with a deeply sensitive, empathic and mighty down to earth spiritual presence. He is the type of person who learns not just lessons, but gains wisdom from each experience he has lived
.
Leanne is an architect and Brian is a building contractor.  They have two sons - David and Jonathan. David must be ten now. He is a well behaved very active and bright boy who is very loving like his mother and sensitive like his father. Jonathan is nearing one with the patience of a Zen master. Both sons closely resemble Brian, but also Leanne. This makes for the presentation of a closely bonded family.

Grandmother Pat came to take care of Jonathan so Leanne could return to work. I am so filled with happiness that Leanne's mother is welcome in her house. I am sure, as it is with all mothers and daughters that there is some tension there. I am also sure that their very strong and common faith has paved that way for them to be able to coexist as a dance of life.

There are other extended members of this family, including my brother Dick, who is incredibly understanding of Pat's decision to assist this beautiful family at this time. David and Jonathan's cousins are close and spend quality time together, all being close enough in age to play freely together. Leanne and her two brothers and all the family spends holidays together, a not so common event in family life these days.

They live by the ocean and spend time there creating memories that will last forever. They live by their faith in God's goodness and unconditional love. While they have been through several trials already, this may have shaken their foundations, but their foundation is stronger because of what is trivial compared to their belief that there is a positive purpose in every life event.

That's me in the picture, too. It is not a common experience for me to feel so welcome into a family as they have done. I have been truly blessed by their honoring me as Great Aunt Judi. This role was revered in my own parents' families. Never did I ever imagine this would be bestowed on me.

I know, in my own Heart, that I am loved. To have this family who welcomes me into their Heart, supports that I am loved.

What does this require of  me? Only that I believe and embrace this gift I have been given.

But, alas, there is always a call, a cry, a beckoning wrapped in every gift.

I am also a mother and grandmother and aunt. My family is as welcome in my home and Heart as am I in my niece's home and Heart. I can only maintain the belief that they welcome a relationship with me will be as valuable to them as is my relationship with my niece and her family.

Family relationships are difficult in today's world. People are spread across country and continent. Time has changed everything. Roles and relationships have been challenged and new ways to be community in all its forms  is being re-created.

Slowly, this hyper-isolated condition we have all experienced in our life's time is expanding to include some lost and now found basic family patterns. Rare, but real.

I look forward to being among those who pioneer these new patterns. Are you? 


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Highlights and Learnings of 2014

Full eclipse of the setting sun at Lake Stella, Crescent City, FL.

Sunrise on retreat in NC

Five candles for Advent, eight candles for Hanukkah, and seven candles for Kwanzaa.
Advent to anticipate the coming of the Word that sustains us.
Hanukkah to remember the miracle of sustained light.
Kwanzaa to celebrate the qualities which sustain humanness.
All within the same Solstice Season of the return of the sun - a festival of lights.
These have been holy days to anticipate new light, to be grateful for light, to honor  the light within us all.
This has been a most amazing year, ablaze with light throughout the days.

This has been a year of connecting with, caring for, and living on both firey hearth and serene mountain top  in the center of Being.

On retreat north of Toronto, Canada

Three retreats in the first part of the year - a meditation retreat with Larry and Peggy Ward, a Oneness retreat with Michael Miller, and a mountain top retreat with Hedi Weiler. In all three of these, I was reminded again and again, the power of meditation in physical, emotional, and spiritual well being if we are to be of service to a healthy future for this planet.

With Bob and Cynthia Vance in Savannah

With John and Lynda Cock in Greensboro

In that first part of the year, I also was able to spend rare and precious time with long time friends and family. I learned from these encounters, the importance of gentle conversation in experiencing life as profound and worthwhile.

Then the big event of the first half of the year! Open heart surgery and equally as profound - the recovery. With a new mitral valve, I feel stronger, happier, and filled with more energy than I have in years. In this whole ordeal, which really was more like a sojourn in a recovery mode, I have learned to slow down, breathe mindfully, and prioritize my engagement accordingly. Changing my life style has been a total blessing, providing time and space to actually experience every moment with all the perspectives - now very much including beauty and joy.

Grandson, Wilder, graduated from high school, an event I promised myself I would not miss. I had to choose between the heart surgery and recovering in time for a momentous occasion in September or to go to his graduation and then have the surgery. I learned that, in breaking a promise to oneself, life is nevertheless redeemable. I was able to send him, for college,  all the money I would have spent on the brief trip there. He had a wonderful graduation with his mother, father and half-brother and all his great group of friends.

Wilder's grandparents: Mr. and Mrs. Gaylor and I, with Uncle Dick.

After spending my 70th birthday all by myself, with phone calls from folks and facebook messages, I was surprised that I was totally okay with this birthday - even though 70th birthdays are traditionally occasions for big bashes.  I learned that karma had paid a a visit on this birthday and blessed me with the awareness that I am accepted and whole and perfect, and that I am sustained by this from within my own heart. This was a perfect present for becoming 70.

The whole clan at Caroline's 50th in Little Compton, RI

Then on September 6th, there was an especially spectacular celebration of my daughter Caroline's 50th  birthday. Hosted by her adoptive parents, also present were her adoptive siblings and her own children, two of my three sons, her natural father and his son, other relatives and friends. In an informal sunny afternoon gathering, a good time was had by all. In my reflections, I have realized that an intent of a trusting nature has almost all to do with everything that led to this grand celebration of a  reality that had been hidden for so many years.  Now, all the dust has settled and I have learned to digest this whole story, with joy and gratitude, just as it has been so graciously given .

Dick has struggled with some physical problems this year and has been caring for his aunt who is increasingly showing signs of dementia. He  seems to have them under control for the time being. I really learned to appreciate his loving kindness as he cared for me through my recovery and his. I believe the experience  brought us to a new level of relationship. We might even buy a king sized bed together. One never knows!!

(Almost) the whole of Gail and Henry's clan in Cleveland, TX

We took two trips together this year. We flew to Dallas, rented a car and drove to southeastern TX where his sister's whole family gathered to greet him. He was beside himself with joy that they all would make that effort!!! We drove west to San Antonio where I met Rob's in-laws for the very first time ever after some twenty-five years.. We drove to Dallas to the Bush library and museum and then to northeastern OK for a blues festival in Rentiesville. Finally, we drove to southwestern OK to spend a few days with my son Randy, Stephanie and Chris and Maddie.

with Maddie and Chris in Lawton, OK

We both learned that, in spite of our common new found energy, it is possible to bite off more than is comfortable, even though living with a new story about going big and not staying home before the end of life on this earth. Upon landing in Orlando, we drove home in a dark moon. Neither one of us can see well enough to drive comfortably in the dark.

In November we took a road trip up through Georgia to northern NC. We

Diane and Bob on their hearth

visited the mother of his best friend in Georgia then after a night in Augusta, we drove to Columbus and up a mountain to visit an old time work friend and his wife, Diane and Bob Wallace. The GPS said 2.8 miles - 45 minutes and indeed it was hairpin turn after hairpin turn. The house with its decks built over seemingly nothing, overlooked the vastness of the valley. A waterfall, which began just above their home as a creek, fell straight down. It was once the longest waterfall in the Appalachian chain. All very breathtaking, I wouldn't have missed it for the world.

 Nor would I have missed the trip across the state to the ocean to visit with my niece and her family. They have a new little one, Jonathan and my sister-in-

Leanne, Brian, David, Jonathan, and Gramma Nelson

law is there full time taking care of things so my niece could go back to work.  That we had such a real family time together, again was a blessing that the years which have gone by already has made possible.

 Dick just had cataract surgery on both eyes so we should be good to go, if we ever opt for another road trip.

The holidays were unusually social this year.Dick and I drove to Tampa for Thanksgiving with brother Pete and his family.

Nephew Lee and his son, Jacob (and Sara in the photo)

. Instead of 12 for brunch on Christmas Day, we had about 30 for dinner.

The hors d'oeuvres table

 I also hosted my sorority before Christmas for a really fun luncheon.

Beta Sigma Phi sisters

We went to a party down the street with people we knew and met for the first time as we shared the best appetizers I ever ate and listened to the jazz combo while sipping on our cocktails.

The neighbors home at the other end of Lake Street

We went to dinner with two other couples on New Years Eve and I went to bed and did not wake at midnight for the first time in I do believe Ever. 

With the Marshalls and the Russells.

 Then another party on New Years Day with more delicious food.
In fact, in this second half of the year, there have been many gatherings with friends and family which makes for an unusual and delightfully new kind of year.

 Rob and Russ were here for Christmas Eve and Christmas Day and in and out after that. Celebrating the holidays with friends was great fun, but most precious of all was the time with family. I would give anything to have just one holiday with all my children and grandchildren in one place at the same time. Just once.  Nevertheless, celebrating the holidays is celebrating life as it is - and it was really good - especially the food and the hearty laughter.

So, to wind down a lengthy tale of a year which began as a solitary journey and evolved into a grand finale together in community with others, celebrating the Light  and the joy we experience as Light shines on each event.

While the greatest learning of all this year has been developing the practice of slowing down in mindful anticipation of the present moment, now the time is coming to focus the Light on the form of service to the Divine in local community.

How will I respond to what I know as human suffering in the world today? How will you respond? How will you take care of yourself so you can creatively respond with your life's work?

The cascading waterfall on the mountain in Columbus, NC.
An image for 2015.

A Tale of a Solstice Matryoshka

I have had my eye on this group of antique Matryoshka, or babushka nesting dolls, which has been for sale at Bag Ladies up on the main drag.

Having committed myself to no more purchases of this kind - ever, I was nevertheless drawn to this particular set. In fact, I dreamed of it one night which is what led me to reconsider my new decision.

 Stopping in the store the other day, just to pass the time before a yoga class, - of course, lo and behold, the set was on sale, in an affordable range, so I went home for some money, returned and purchased this dreamed of object.

I had inspected it in previous visits and it was in good shape. However, when I got it home and un-nested each doll, one of the dolls was stuck in the other. After googling a remedy,  I followed through what I found and the stuck doll detached easily, none the worse for wear.

 It had, however grown too large to replace, even after two days of drying.  So, I put the nine other dolls into their nests and left out the one which did not fit in  anymore. I could have made the set into two sets, but followed my intuition and sat her next to the other.

 Then, I spent what must have been a half hour or so contemplating the quality of this disidentified doll.  Was it a misfit, a lone wolf, damaged property, malformed, a black swan, a rebel, renegade, an egomaniac - or was she an evolutionary warp in the established norm?

Settling on the later, I began to wonder what she was becoming that is new and uniquely a metamorphosis, the process catalyzed by the present environment.

 Of course, that was it! This particular doll was setting out on her own path into the future anticipating that what might be considered a damaged doll was instead a pioneering venture into the mode of fitting into the times in which we live.

Then I began to wonder about the other nine dolls. The tiniest of the Matryoshka is a wee baby, with no designs painted on her. What is her design and destiny in today's world  as we are coming to know it and increasingly experiencing ourselves as not fitting into its ebb and flow? What is the purpose of the other Matryoshka in this nest?

Finally, I took the baby out of the nest of nine, and placed it inside this evolutionary metamorphosis of a Matryoshka fractal!!! A most "fitting" metaphor of becoming today.

what is different about today than the way we were - even yesterday?

On this Winter Solstice 2014, as we are celebrating the return of the sun from its place which creates healing darkness in the world, may we all be blessed with its brightNEW light shining on the promise of a sunlit year to come.

Grateful for Beating Heart

Coming down the mountain in Columbus,NC

Ever since I had my mitral valve replaced with a mechanical valve, I have had the privilege of listening to the beat of my heart, especially when I am in even a slightly prone position,

Miracle, my cat, and Jonathan, my four month old grand nephew both love to fall asleep to its beat.

Since surgery at the end of May, his heartbeat has taken a journey from being extremely irregular, erratic, and unpredictable to a normal steady pace without even the life-long skip beat I was probably born with.

I have abused my heart with physical and emotional stress and patterns of negative thinking. Needless to say, my heart on many occasions, most noticeably in recent years, let me know that it was having to work too hard to keep up with me and was plain worn out.

Even though I am well trained and accustomed to listening to my body and responding as I intuit fit, I continued at the same pace in stressful situations in which I found little if any enjoyment. In other words, I refused to stop the way I was living my life to slow down, change what I was doing, and explore  doing what I love,

I am also really good at mindful breathing, healthy eating, energy exercise and inner healing. I practiced them, and still do,  religiously. If you ever think you can be healthy by doing all this and avoiding the heart of the matter, let me be a witness to how it is just putting off the inevitable.

As I laid in bed this morning, shortly after awakening, I was listening to my heart beat, slowly and steadily, and quite suddenly was feeling overwhelmed with gratitude for the loyalty of my heart for its seventy years of unconditional service. I was in heart's space and was experiencing "my heart" as "Heart"

Heart is nurtured and sustained by continual presencing of the love of the Divine, from within and around.

Heart needs to be living out this time on earth as a gentle flowing dance. This maintains Heart's purpose for beating.

Apparently, I am finally learning the flowing rhythm of this dance and I will continue to let Heart lead the way.

Like the yearly cycle of a mountain tree, buds to vibrant green, to brilliant color and its harvest,  to barren branches, the cycle continues when dancing with this flow is the choice of Heart.

Have you been paying attention  to your Heart's desire?

The Fathomless Abyss

This year has been an incredibly full year in so many ways.
Events in the world, in my community, in the lives of people I know, and in my life have been way beyond ordinary. Each event has been an amazing never before told story already told or waiting to be told.

 Nothing has been plain and simple. So many unexpected results, breakthroughs, completed cycles, new life, abundance of transitions, realization of long held dreams, travels among breathtaking vistas, tender connections to loved ones, puzzling turns of the tides, radical individual decisions - have filled the air with wonder - "aha" wonder and "what the hell is happening?" wonder, as well.

As a peoples inhabiting this living organism called Planet Earth, we are being shaken to the core of existence by the accumulating impact of our vast creative and destructive potential and our accompanying awareness of our fragility, temporality AND increasing resolve to be alive and thrive.

I find myself drawn to storytelling.  What is the story that is the strong and durable net that holds us over this vast abyss of unknown wonder that seems to be prevailing in the mundane daily routines which are anything but ordinary today?

Stories from a place of deep resolve of  positive alternatives to a  Planet in danger in so many ways?
Stories from heart space of connecting in a greater depth in relationships?
Stories of realizing dreams held for what seems like forever?

So much is happening that is either obviously a blessing or deep within its meaning a blessing is still a seed.  I am so aware of the abyss which separates me from life in the past and life today. Gone forever, not forgotten, everything is a story ready to be written in stone, only to some day become the vast abyss once again.

Has this not been your experience in these extra ordinary times n which we live?  What is your take on it all? 

Does Mercury have to retrograde?

Well, so far this month, in spite of my best intentions, many things have happened that cost me money and time to fix.
My trusty 2000 Buick got new bearings and steering wheel fluid (an ongoing repair).
The transparent tape I purchased had no lip to cut the tape.
My eyesight seemed to get worse, requiring an eye exam.
Golf cart got its almost new batteries watered because it didn't stay charged for long.
Miracle hunted down a mole and dragged its bloody carcass all over the almost new ground level cement job.
My grandson's band fund raiser order arrived short of a couple of items.
Chopper I purchased from Pamered Chef cracked while chopping blueberries.
Phone company didn't get my payment. Sent a new payment. Now have paid twice.
Enamel cracked on a forty year old four tooth bridge - in my mouth!
Miracle knocked Kindle on the floor because I didn't get up and let her out immediately upon request. Camera snaps crooked pics now.
Smart phone is acting up - screen becoming insensitive to touch - or I might be dead already - who knows where the time goes?!

Many other mishaps during the month were directly of my own making. Therefore, I won't mention them lest you think I am more self-depreciating than I am.

There is a blessing in each small catastrophe, however - somewhere!!

This month while Mercury was in retrograde, I was reminded of how much I have come to depend on "things" and desire for it all to last forever.

When I first returned from Kenya, I continued to wash my clothes in a tub of water by hand for the longest time and boiled water and cooked an egg in the same kettle for tea at the same time. I did not have a car - or a chopper of my own to break and don't recall that cell phones existed yet.

All my "things" have been robbed from me at least three times in my adult life.
I have been humbled many times over, as well.

For the next year, the money I am able to accumulate will go for fixing things instead of traveling.

I have seriously been thinking about having a pre-death estate sale, and maybe even selling my house to be free and clear when my time for transition actually comes. There would be lots less things to fix, too. Yes, I would much prefer to be able to spend the whole of my time connecting with others, especially my family and in service to this community.

Why does it all have to be so difficult?

I am sensing the time has arrived to retreat for awhile to delve into the wisdom of the Higher Self. A serious dialogue is in order now. A new cycle is hoping to begin.

I tend to believe that these two eclipses we just had have catalyzed this need to transform in a good many of of us.  Has this been the case for you? Tell me about it. I Would love to hear from you.

G

The Moment And Its Many Perspectives

We go through life missing so much in each moment because we tend to live in such a narrow range of what is there to experience.
Some of us remember some of the facts - seen, heard, smelled, tasted, touched.
Some of us remember how we were feeling more than anything else.
 Some of us immediately judge the experiences blocking that which does not fit the paradigm.
Some of us stand outside the moment, experiencing it as an outsider, detached from being present, or caught up in a convenient distraction.

Sometimes the immediate response depends on the nature of the experience, which may or may not be different from one's usual patterns of response. Obvious, but for instance, in the case of an extremely traumatic encounter, The first response is probably emotional. If the encounter is a totally new experience, perhaps the response would be to step back and observe what is happening.

 Most of us have learned or are learning to take in the moment with increasing consciousness of what's happening from multi-perspectives.We have learned to reflect deeply and widely and to relate our experiences to that of others.

The experience I find the most extensive to appropriate is when I encounter the gap between what "could-have-been-should-have-been- or might-have- been" and REALITY. LIFE, after all is about Plan B one way or the other most of the time, so this "gap" experience is fairly common, 

However, there are moments when the gap is like being sucked into the center of a hurricane. You are aware that you are contained beyond your ability to control what is happening. Yet, there in that center, the calm brings you into the moment with profound awareness of being there in that place, suspended.

Such has been my experience in reuniting with my daughter, her family, her biological father and his family. Such has been my experience also in encountering high school colleagues after fifty years. Such has been my experience also in connecting with professional colleagues of yore.

Each has required of me, extensive reflection from many perspectives. (Note: I do not use the word "levels" because of the societal connotations or value placed on" levels".). Sometimes I rehearse the series of events and the people involved and my emotional responses over and over, enchanted by the mere occurrence of what i always experience as a delightful miracle -a blessing of which I am not worthy.

Eventually I reflect on the memories the encounter has triggered. Some memories are worth remembering, some are better off releasing. All are worth experiencing again. 

Inspiring meaning from being in the moment always is in retrospect, always after a long walk through critical thinking and depth insight. I keep at it until the "aha" reveals itself like a kitten which finally settles down to purr graciously.

I just cannot live on the surface, playing with the moment and its  unfathomable first encounter. I wish I could sometimes. I wish I could be happy in a coffee clutch chattering away mindlessly. I just can't brush it all off as if it didn't matter in the course of human existence.

That is not me. I am I. 

How about you? What is your course of reflection on the moment by moment encounter with that which is real?

Convergence of Families

On the occasion of my daughter's 50th birthday, both biological and adoptive families and friends congregated to celebrate this milestone in her life.

But wait, there's more! This is the first time that both had gathered in one place period. Some of the members of this clan had never met, nor had they ever dreamed that this might be happening one day.

My daughter's adoptive parents hosted the event. Her two brothers and sister were there, two with their spouses. An uncle was there. Biological father was there with his son. My daughter's son and daughter were there, too.  I was there with two of  my sons. My daughter's childhood best friend was there, her coworkers and friends..

 Everyone got to be who they really were and were able to reach out to these strangers who shared a common connection through my daughter's history in this life's time.

When the party was over, all of the biological family present headed for the ocean up the road.  Biological family members shared conversation as we strolled along the beach and as we hung out on the shore or went swimming.

Once back in the parking lot, the conversation went on for a long time. Finally, we all headed out, one of my son's to return home, the rest of us to go to dinner.

Dinner was at my daughter's favorite Italian restaurant where conversations continued, although some of us began to show our age and accompanying tiredness. My son picked up the tab, much to my surprise and delight.

We talked more outside the restaurant, saying good-bye several times before we were able to go our separate ways.

As I reflect on the day, I would have to say that I was relaxed and not overwhelmed by the miracle of such an occasion. Instead, I experienced it as a natural opportunity to gather for a family member's celebration of life.

I could have regrets for not asking the questions I had ready to ask to all, including my sons. Few asked me questions as well.  Nobody said anything about the significance of this gathering.

I am sure that, like myself, there was quite a bit of observing each other's interactions and presence there. I asked myself a lot of questions, including, "Why am I here?".

Beginning in April 2010, I have reunited with my daughter, reconnected with my daughter's biological father and occasioned their meeting, and been part of other connections made And here we were, a goodly representation of the whole family getting to know each other and celebrating our daughter's, sister's, mother's, niece's and friend's very important birthday.

Maybe there are some of this clan who want to get to know each other much better. I have noticed that my daughter knows me as well as she intends. This appears also to be the same for her biological father and adoptive family and I am ready now to get on with my life, completely at peace now.

For her adoptive parents to be so loving of their daughter, that they would invite us all, an act not yet approved of by their social paradigm, brings me great relief. My daughter has not only well taken care of, she has been completely loved for all these years - by the whole very close family.

As a result of this day, and their hosting this event, my daughter no longer has to have any doubts about the beautiful and brilliant woman she has become, if she has any.  There are no more secrets, no more hesitations, no more holding back from being all that life has to offer.

This was, indeed, my daughter's day in the pure love light of Divine's Blessings.

We all have unrequited yearnings through out our lives.  What is your story?

And a Very Old Soul Is She

Don't recall if I took this one or someone else - using it anyway.

Now I am seventy years old. My experience of this reality is one of relief. Finally I can acknowledge that I am an elder in the family and in society. Perhaps I will wait until eighty to become a crone, but maidenhood and motherhood have grown, bloomed, withered, and returned to seed. 

I no longer have to produce anything.

I no longer have to behave "appropriately.

I no longer have to be somewhere on time.

I no longer have to physically present myself in fashion suitable to the social setting.

I no longer have to be other than that which I am and always have been.

This, of course, is true for anyone at any age, but these occur to me now in a powerful way at seventy years old.

I will state for the annals what I have learned about myself, with the intent of now and forevermore being just that with "tidings of comfort and joy".

At heart, I am a solitary journer through this incarnation.

I exist and am One with the Divine Mystery of Life.

I am open to and embrace change, an inevitable reality.

I have a global concrete way of experiencing life, seeing the big picture first .

My social skills suffer in a group life environment, socially and as a worker.

I make decisions based on my intuition, creating meaning and purpose for them later.

I manifest my own life from the dreams I have created.

I am accepting of others ways, and unconditionally forgiving.

I am hypersensitive in many ways, psychic in others.

I am dedicated to alleviating human suffering through a community renewal approach.

Most of all I know I have not been all these qualities with great frequency,

 but intend to honor them as my life and let them exist freely more and more each day.

I expect to be spending my birthday alone. There will be no great surprise party with hundreds of people, delicious gourmet food, and millions of presents, including an account of a life gloriously lived.  But, this year, being alone is perfectly all right. In fact, it makes perfect sense, is a solid foundation for dancing into this elder phase of life. I am now really an old soul and will feel old with joy in my heart.

What have you learned about having lived your life? Are you ready to embrace who you are and dance? 

To do so is a healing exercise in trust.

Mildred Pierce, the Sopranos and I

While watching HBO showing, two in particular - Mildred Pierce and the Sopranos,  I began to realize that they were more than a light escape.

Set during the Great Depression, Mildred Pierce highlighted men's struggle to find work and women's picking up the slack to bring  in enough to meet the families' needs. The main characters are  Mildred Pierce, middle class suburban housewife., and her daughter who had an unwarranted belief that she was better than the common lot of their blue class family and had a sense of entitlement to anything her heart so desired.

After asking myself over and over how her daughter had acquired her habits, it finally occurred to me that this was a story about extreme co-dependence, which I am sure mushroomed during this period in history, given that some seemed to have enough money to drink a lot and there was always someone around to carry on in spite of this. Mildred Pierce had built herself an empire of restaurants, using her housekeeping skills and what turned out to be the bad advise of a financial specialist and friend.

The daughter, having been given absolutely everything she ever wanted, managed to strategize to acquire all of her mother's assets and more and walked away with it all lock, stock, and barrel.

This left Mildred with her husband, who she had divorced and now remarried, and the house where they began their married lives. They were ready to start from scratch.  And so it ended. I wonder if Mildred learned her life lessons?

Then there was the full six seasons of the Sopranos. In case you are not familiar, it revolves around Tony Soprano, the eventual Don of the Mafia family in New Jersey.  Throughout the seasons, Tony was in therapy with Dr. Melfi.

About half way into the first season, I was asking myself about Dr. Melfi's  knowledge of sociopathy - and psychopathy for that matter - and why she didn't just drop this guy, with whom she was wasting her time attempting to guide into a rehabilitated state of being.  At the end, in the final season, she finally gets the message.

This story line was about co-dependence, as well as the story line in Mildred Pierce. The difference lies in the the sociopathic behavior of Tony Soprano and the other men on his "team".  I decided the intrinsic value of the Sopranos was its case study of  qualities of culturally embedded sociopathy, its acceptable behavior in some circles, and a co-dependant society.

Tony's wife, not necessarily a co-dependant at heart, knew what she bought into and lived for its benefits. She was more or less one of the "team". I also found myself wondering about her ability to separate the happiness of having her family and the terror of the source of how she was being sustained.

Having the time on my hands during my convalescence to watch such stories, I, again, asked myself, the purpose of these becoming available for me at this time.

As a result, I have had the opportunity to reflect on my own life experience, especially my role in the communities to which I have belonged.  I could see my co-dependence thriving, in spite of my conscious intentions to have it be otherwise, to be interdependent with a higher purpose in life.

As a result of my reflections, I can deeply feel myself no longer falling into that pit of self-destruction.

And instead, here I am, totally grateful for no longer having to earn a living and for no longer having to do what it takes to be acceptable to a community's or another person's standards.

When have you experienced yourself as co-dependant and having to make some new decisions about how you will relate to it?

Thrive or Survive

Iii  I need open heart surgery, not for longevity, although that may be a benefit. The choice is either have the surgery trusting that all will go as intended OR not have the surgery and slowly deteriorate with an increasingly limited life. Of course I would prefer such a life altering choice to either marry Brad Pitt or not or make the call for a world at peace or not. 
I'm struggling with having to go through physical hell to get to physically hearty and healthy with energy to really enjoy living. Right now I am happy, but am promised that I can be happy AND healthy again. Cancer was easy to endure and then cure compared to the mere thought of a power saw ripping its speedy teeth into my rib cage, let alone a scalpel slicing my heart open.

The choice is to either thrive while alive or survive substandardly, whatever time I have until this life's time is complete. Although not quite so dramatically, this either/or choice is a daily option for us all.

I have until next Tuesday to decide. I say thrive now, but I want it to be a deep resolve.

Wish me courage to choose to suffer awhile before  thriving fully is my new life style.

Recall a life altering choice you were challenged by. Did it take courage to choose life? What was the outcome?

The Angry Subpersonality

Journey to Wholeness,  by Judi White

Recently,  a colleague of yore asked me if I have worked out my anger. This experience of me as an angry person goes back to the early 80's.

Given my journey of the past thirty years, I can confidently proclaim that I am one with accepting totally, radically, and unconditionally, that which are the seeds of my anger.  

Tempted to share the journey, I instead shared that I am now a psychotherapist. I do not primarily identify myself as a psychotherapist, but I intended to communicate that we are living today, not thirty years ago, and sit around the table as such.

I was guided at one point to understand and experience that others, especially those close, reflect that which we are experiencing within our own beings. By, releasing the anger within myself,  then others would begin to reflect the result.

Events in my life had contributed to the anger. I had to dig deep into my own life experiences to encounter that which seeded the dominance of an angry subpersonality.  I met significant experiences, remembered them as fully as I was able, brought them into the present, and embraced them with the light of unconditional acceptance  of the whole life experience that they were. 

No one ever asked why I was angry, and no one really needs to know.

I also considered that there is more to this angry subpersonality than my own past experiences. I also was a reflection of another's chronic anger, seeded from a separate complex of life experiences. To complete the healing of the anger would surely include the transformation of all concerned.  That wasn't an option, so I created new boundaries, so to cut the attachment to that angry relationship upon which my angry subpersonality was feeding.

This healing act also includes unconditionally loving and accepting the whole experience of that relationship. 

I get angry. It is a natural experience of living.

However, I now am in the habit of easily accessing the seeds of the anger, understanding their cause, and willing a loving response. I trust that my heart is a part of the Oneness that we all are. I trust that the world in which I reside is One with the Divine - that which is the unfathomable and infinite  acceptance of all that is. 

I dedicate my life to the notion that life is whole and life is perfect, just as I experience it - and as you do experience life, as well.

Reflecct on the moments of your own anger. Where are its seeds growing? 

The Fragrance of Spring

Spring is a most noble season. 

 Birds' songs are plentiful.

 Buds and blooms transform winter's barren landscape.

Newborn wild animals begin their exploration of the world around them.

Gentle rains fall on the new life beginning to grow again.

Sun beams its warmth into the air around us.

Oh, but the fragrance of the blossom

s and herbs is the most compelling of all of Spring's gifts to the earth.

Did you ever sit in the  middle of an orange grove when the blossoms are covering the trees like snow and listen to the bees joyfully gathering nectar for their hives, pollenating the trees while they do?  The fragrance is overwhelming.

The camelia, a delicate  flower, which bursts into loveliness, and browns when raindrops rest on the petals, offers a mesmerizing fragrance of its own. Even one, picked and placed in a bowl of water, can fill a whole room with a sense of wonder.

After a winter of menthol eucalyptus fragrance at bedtime to soothe a cold and cough, the fragrances of Spring,  have the power to liberate Soul in dance, green grass under foot, and birds' singing to guide  a profound dance of life.

This has been a reflection following a meditation retreat  recently called the" Fragrance of Liberation".

 I further reflect on the imminent need to protect this experience of Spring in the choices I make about my part in creating and sustaining  a healthy environment for  f a future on a healthy planet. 

Highlighting the beauty of Spring and its prominent quality of fragrances,  does not replace the horror of destruction, but, like the flower in Picasso's Guernica, breathes hope and possibility to behold.

Reflect on the wonder of Spring in your life's experience. When have you smelled the fragrance of liberation?

The Kitten Within

Drawn to the animal rescue booth at the farmer's market, I noticed a very shy kitten trying to hide under a pillow inside a cage with four or five kittens.  I thought about her all week and the next weekend, I returned with a cat carrier to get her if she was still there. She was and as I walked up to the cage, she came toward me and looked directly into my eyes. So we starred at each other for a moment, then before I knew it, we were driving home. I was cat whispering with her and what I received was Miracle. 

Miracle, as it turns out is her ineffable name. We call her Lucy for all practical purposes.

Lucy has learned that she is safe now, always has enough food, and has bonded with our other cat, Bo Tres, who is protective of her.

I have to say that my visit to the home where the rescue animals live, was a shocking revelation.

The animals were not well cared for, their needs were not met, and while they were given food and shelter, they were on their own. 

Lucy's digestive system was delicate, her neutering scar was tender, and she had ear mites.

   

There are far too many stray animals to save, and yet the philosophy counteracting euthanasia is humane.

The owner of the animal rescue was preparing to take several cats to "the farm" to live. I asked myself, "How many cats can live on a farm safely and comfortably?" That would mean a prolific place full of field rats and snakes for cats to eat!!

How to manage cats- and dogs - without homes is a dilemma.  Who is responsible for catching and neutering millions of animals?

And neutering anything raises another whole issue of humane treatment.

My little Miracle has enlivened conversation with my child within. She has raised questions for consideration for living an empathic life. This has been healing and really affects how I see her and how I treat her. And she knows it - both know it, feel it, see it. 

 Love abounds within our hearts.

But there's a lot of cats out there!!!! What's the humane possible answer?