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Posts from the ‘Gratitude’ Category

Mar 18

A Way of Being Here

“For it is not knowing much, but realising and relishing things interiorly, that contents and satisfies the soul.”― Ignatius of Loyola, The Spiritual Exercises

“I want to observe the ordinary things of earth—the moon, the stars, the rainbows, even the yellow leaves of the old cherry trees—and receive their messages. To hear them say what every weary traveler, every earnest seeker, longs to hear. Welcome home.”― Christie Purifoy, Roots and Sky: A Journey Home in Four Seasons

To remain in this day.
To be present and alert.
To senses sharp.
To glasses not empty or half full but overflowing.
To rest and ease.
To joy and delight.
To beauty woven in the ordinary.
To fullness and more than enough-ness.
To gratitude and expression.
To peace, awe and wonder.
May these all be yours today.
The home where you already reside.

“True restfulness, though, is a form of awareness, a way of being in life. It is living ordinary life with a sense of ease, gratitude, appreciation, peace and prayer. We are restful when ordinary life is enough.”― Ronald Rolheiser, The Shattered Lantern: Rediscovering a Felt Presence of God

Feb 28

The Steps Along the Way

“…there are no wrong turns, only unexpected paths.”― Mark Nepo, The Book of Awakening

“We work so hard to get somewhere, to realize a dream, to arrive at some destination, that we often forget that though some satisfaction may be waiting at the end of our endurance and effort, there is great and irreplaceable aliveness in the steps along the way.”― Mark Nepo

The alluring promise of someday.
The comfort of remembering when.
The hot pursuit of the finish line.
The satisfaction in the completion of our “to do” list.
In the midst of our striving, figuring, pursuing, the present sits quietly awaiting to be seen and entered into.
The path beneath our feet.
Sacred ground.
Root in today.
Witness and partake.
Simple joys in the steps along the way.

“Rest is not for weaklings. Hollowing out space for rest is work. Finding time for rest is the hands and feet of the promises we long to claim. It means saying no. It means having limits with ourselves. It means having limits with others. It takes courage to rest in the midst of an outcome-driven society. It takes strength to walk away from good in the pursuit of better.”― Saundra Dalton-Smith, Sacred Rest: Recover Your Life, Renew Your Energy, Restore Your Sanity

Feb 18

If I Could, Yes You Can

“So plant your own gardens and decorate your own soul, instead of waiting for someone to bring you flowers.”― Jorge Luis Borge

“If I could live again my life,
In the next – I’ll try,
– to make more mistakes,
I won’t try to be so perfect,
I’ll be more relaxed,
I’ll be more full – than I am now,
In fact, I’ll take fewer things seriously,
I’ll be less hygienic,
I’ll take more risks,
I’ll take more trips,
I’ll watch more sunsets,
I’ll climb more mountains,
I’ll swim more rivers,
I’ll go to more places – I’ve never been,
I’ll eat more ice creams and less lima beans,
I’ll have more real problems – and less imaginary ones,
I was one of those people who live
prudent and prolific lives –
each minute of his life,
Of course that I had moments of joy – but,
if I could go back I’ll try to have only good moments,

If you don’t know – that’s what life is made of,
Don’t lose the now!

I was one of those who never goes anywhere
without a thermometer,
without a hot-water bottle,
and without an umbrella and without a parachute.

If I could live again – I will travel light,
If I could live again – I’ll try to work bare feet
at the beginning of spring till the end of autumn,
I’ll ride more carts,
I’ll watch more sunrises and play with more children.”― Jorge Luis Borges

Don’t wait or delay living.
Live fully today.
Make decisions and daily choices that serve joy, feed gratitude, foster awe.
Travel light, use all of the crayons in the box, delight in this day.

Feb 17

Path of Gratitude

“Some beautiful paths can’t be discovered without getting lost.”—Erol Ozan

“Gratitude is a life skill that can be improved with practice. Even during the toughest trials, we can learn to find things to enjoy and appreciate. I don’t mean to imply that we can manage to be grateful every moment. That would be an unrealistic demand on ourselves. Feeling grateful is not a moral injunction but rather a healthy habit that we can learn to employ with greater frequency.”― Mary Pipher, Women Rowing North

Wherever you are today, get lost for a bit.
Break the monotony.
Dip below the surface.
Deeper waters.
Slow and still.
Quiet reflection.
Be kind to yourself.
Measure how far you have come not where you are not yet.
Do not lose the day by looking back or too far forward.
Gratitude daily to shift and transform ordinary moments.
Find some beautiful paths today.
Wander. Wonder. Awe.

“Resilience is built by attention and intention. We can take responsibility for our attitudes and focus on our strengths and our joys. We can go deep and face truth squarely. We can learn the skills that allow us to adapt to anything.”― Mary Pipher, Women Rowing North

Jan 29

Ten Times

“Listen, whatever you see and love—
that’s where you are.”― Mary Oliver, Dog Songs: Poems

“Ten times a day something happens to me like this – some strengthening throb of amazement – some good sweet empathic ping and swell. This is the first, the wildest and the wisest thing I know: that the soul exists and is built entirely out of attentiveness.”― Mary Oliver

Ten, maybe even twenty.
But start with ten and see where it goes.
Ten still points, pauses, stop signs.
Look around longer with fresh eyes, open heart.
Amazement. Wonder. Delight.
Praise. Gratitude. Reverence.
Ten, maybe even twenty. Or more.
Attention. Awareness. Awaken.

“Sometimes I dream
that everything in the world is here, in my room,
in a great closet, named and orderly,

and I am here too, in front of it,
hardly able to see for the flash and the brightness—
and sometimes I am that madcap person clapping my hands and singing;
and sometimes I am that quiet person down on my knees.”
― Mary Oliver

Jan 9

Be the Sun

Last winter’s snow and sun for now.

“Appreciation is the highest form of prayer, for it acknowledges the presence of good wherever you shine the light of your thankful thoughts.” – Alan Cohen

The last time we have had substantial sun was December 29th.
Potential sun predicted next Monday.
We are also behind 15 inches in snow too.
We miss what we don’t have and don’t appreciate it when we have it.
Stuck in complaint.
Absence may make the heart grow fonder.
May presence make our gratitude deepen.
Awareness rapt and aligned.
And may our sunshine come from within so when clouds hover, our light illuminates.
I can’t control the sun or the snow but I can control my outlook.
See the beauty no matter the weather.
Be the bright side.
Smile. Laughter. Joy.
Be the sun.

“Every day brings new choices.” – Martha Beck

Dec 31

Fresh Words

“Ring out the old, ring in the new,
Ring, happy bells, across the snow:
The year is going, let him go;
Ring out the false, ring in the true.”
― Alfred Tennyson, In Memoriam

“For last year’s words belong to last year’s language. And next year’s words await another voice.” – T.S. Eliot

New Year’s Eve – the stuff of resolutions and proclamations.
Resolutions fizzle quickly without framework, scaffolding, intentionality, energy, and effort to hold them up when we get bored with the required repetition, practice, consistency of daily steps to really change and have it stick.
Principles and values are what I am more interested in pursuing and sustaining.
Growth, learning, awe, wonder, connection, joy, delight, gratitude, shifts, trying new things.
So, with intention coupled with action for the new year, my words are enthusiasm, engagement, connection, confidence, transformation, more joy, gratitude, equanimity, kindness, inquiry, action.
What are your words for the next year?
Reflect on 2023 then move forward with fresh words, hope, daily steps.
Create your language of 2024, spoken by actions, one day at a time.

“Character is the ability to carry out a good resolution long after the excitement of the moment has passed.” – Cavett Robert

Nov 28

Do the Dishes

“The soul should always stand ajar, ready to welcome the ecstatic experience.” – Emily Dickinson

“A sign hangs on the wall in a New Monastic Christian community house: “Everyone wants a revolution. No one wants to do the dishes.” I was, and remain, a Christian who longs for revolution, for things to be made new and whole in beautiful and big ways. But what I am slowly seeing is that you can’t get to the revolution without learning to do the dishes. The kind of spiritual life and disciplines needed to sustain the Christian life are quiet, repetitive, and ordinary. I often want to skip the boring, daily stuff to get to the thrill of an edgy faith. But it’s in the dailiness of the Christian faith—the making the bed, the doing the dishes, the praying for our enemies, the reading the Bible, the quiet, the small—that God’s transformation takes root and grows.”― Tish Harrison Warren, Liturgy of the Ordinary: Sacred Practices in Everyday Life

Do the dishes.
The seemingly ordinary.
A phone call, text, visit.
Holding a door.
Letting someone in your lane.
A smile.
Listening.
Laughter.
A warm embrace.
Attention to what already is not what is missing.
Slowing to take in the shapes, colors, beauty around.
Do the dishes of daily love, joy and kindness.
The makings of a real revolution.
Change we long for achieved one small act after another.
Transformation from rigor, repetition, waiting woven with wonder, delight and awe.

“Love is light—only fully realized when it is reflected. It was never meant to be kept.”― Stephanie Catudal, Everything All at Once: A Memoir

Nov 23

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Gratitude and Peace Each Day

“Peace is the music of every soul. Our glory lies in understanding, listening and honoring that music.”― Amit Ray, Walking the Path of Compassion

“Not what we say about our blessings, but how we use them, is the true measure of our thanksgiving.”― W.T. Purkiser

Acts of kindness.
A warm embrace.
Conversation to connection.
Beauty in abundance.
Joy overflowing.
Peace. Grace. Love.
May these all be yours.
Happy Thanksgiving and may gratitude spill over into each day.

“Ordinary love, anonymous and unnoticed as it is, is the substance of peace on earth, the currency of God’s grace in our daily life.”— Tish Harrison Warren, Liturgy of the Ordinary: Sacred Practices in Everyday Life

Nov 20

Take Delight

“Nothing in the world is permanent, and we’re foolish when we ask anything to last, but surely we’re still more foolish not to take delight in it while we have it.”― W. Somerset Maugham

“Exquisite beauty
is often hidden
in life’s fragile,
fleeting moments.”
― John Mark Green, Taste the Wild Wonder: Poems

To be where I stand.
Fully awake and aware.
Not losing today looking back or too far ahead.
Steeped in now with gratitude, awe and thanks.
Color. Light. Beauty.
Balm and binding.
Take delight in this day.
Fleeting and full.

“We would worry less if we praised more. Thanksgiving is the enemy of discontent and dissatisfaction.”― Harry A. Ironside

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