Being Who You Are

 

"The privilege of a lifetime is being who you are."
Joseph Campbell

The oaks' silhouette against the sky's colors-- and the buds of green leaves, Nature's delight, are beginning to tickle the branches! Spring's bountiful gifts. One more time!

"The tree of immortal life, of the knowledge of immortal life.
 And the Buddha under his tree and Christ hanging on his tree
are the same image. They are the same image.
The one who has died to the flesh
and been reborn in the spirit."
Joseph Campbell

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What You Are

 

"Character is what you are in the dark."

Dwight L. Moody

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Listening To Yourself

The extraordinary sky this evening from my back lanai...

"I think a lot of making art is listening to yourself."

Kiki Smith

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Deepest Voice of God

 

"Passion... it's the deepest voice of God
that is moving us along the river of aliveness.
It's God's way of getting you to be
in the right place, at the right time,
for the right purpose, for the right people."

Alan Cohen

Glorious sunset through the trees. I cannot distinguish the new leaves from the resting birds, but I can take off my mask and let the light wash me with gratitude...

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State Of Joy

"I’m discovering the art of living life from a state of joy,

no matter where I’m standing or what I’m looking at."

Esther (Abraham) Hicks

This sunset greeted me, energized me, as I stepped out of my car. I put all the stuff I was carrying on the asphalt to free my hands to take the shot. The gifts seem to just come if I pay attention.

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Believing In Something

 

"A man lives by believing in something,
not by debating and arguing about many things."
Thomas Carlyle

After almost a year, our nursing home is still closed to visitors, but I take the residents outside to a protected area every afternoon. We are able to enjoy the fresh air. And together we look at the sky.

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Moon Is a Polka Dot

 

"After all, well, moon is a polka dot, sun is a polka dot,

and then, the earth where we live is also a polka dot."

Yayoi Kusama

I am up early. Screen door open, watching the moon set over Birmingham, Alabama. I hear the songbirds in the nearby oak branches, a train whistle eight miles away, and the hum of tires speeding on Highway 59/20.

The moon, like me, reflects the light of the sun and puts on a color show -- turning orange then red as it lowers. This moon dances, enchants, then is swallowed by clouds before kissing the horizon.

My meditation practice includes prayer and this watercolor, the art awash in mindfulness and peace.

Shine bright.

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The Moon Is There

 

"I like to think that the moon is there
 even if I am not looking at it."

Albert Einstein

This morning, mesmerized,  I watched through the bare oak trees the moon set over downtown Birmingham as I welcomed the new day. We are Waxing Gibbous at 90%. The full moon is on Friday.

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Joining Heaven and Earth

 

Birmingham, Alabama

"Joining heaven and earth is not separating
this and that, but making them indivisible."

Chogyam Trungpa

My thoughts are hanging with the bare trees. Vibrant reds and oranges and that glowing gold sun.

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Talent Meant To Use

 

“The person born with a talent they are meant to use
will find their greatest happiness in using it.”
Johann von Goethe

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The Mere Sense of Living

 

"The mere sense of living is joy enough."

Emily Dickinson

Walking from the parking lot into the Nursing Home, the sky is a banquet of colors and hope. Can there be so much beauty amid the fears and unknowns?

The morning air yesterday was not as cold, so I did not have to wait for the ice to melt on my windshield. But, ready to drive to work, I was able to take this photo of downtown Birmingham, jump in the car, and drive.

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When the Heart Breaks

 

Five Points South, Birmingham, Alabama

"When the heart breaks, it heals.
It's not magic… I'm human."

Dan Gottlieb

I have a new iPhone with beautiful cameras: The morning sky cooperates with this gift of spectacular blue with hearts bubbling in the clouds.

my first selfie

Let me hold my life, live my life, with creativity and compassion, remembering what and who I love.

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My Panacea

 

"For my panacea... Morning air!"
Henry David Thoreau 

Another catch my breath sky: Walking to work and the sky is awash with clouds of hope above the Nursing Home.

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The Free Soul Is Rare

Asheville, North Carolina

 "The free soul is rare,
but you know it when you see it -
basically, because you feel good,
very good, when you are near or with them."

Charles Bukowski

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A Magnet In Your Heart

"There is a magnet in your heart
that will attract true friends.
That magnet is unselfishness,
thinking of others first.
When you learn to live for others, they will live for you."
Paramahansa Yogananda

Home, after several straight days of work. I am exhausted, looking at three days off (I hope). The sunset welcomes me home. The world is beautiful.

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America Is Good

 

"America is great because America is good,
and if America ever ceases to be good,
America will cease to be great."
Alexis De Tocqueville

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The Mystery Of Our Own Being

 

"Every advance in knowledge
brings us face to face
with the mystery of our own being."

Max Planck

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Our Soul In Things

 

"We are all visionaries, and what we see is our soul in things."

Henri-Frédéric Amiel

My soul is the sun,

higher than Haleakalā

shining bright, quiet light

beyond the sky of my ancestors,

resilient comfort

of rising setting fierceness.

I am alive.

Colors mix my tears

like waterfalls in the ridges 

waves of grief, meeting the shoreline's anuʻu:

Hope.

Acceptance.

Transformation.

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Our Best Selves

Birmingham, Alabama

"Courage, true courage, derives from that sense of who we are,
what are our best selves,
what are our most important commitments,
and the belief that we can dig deep
and do hard things for the enduring benefit of others."

Barack Obama

Being brave requires faith and the certainty that in giving 100%, all those things you need will help you get to where you need to go. If not, others will help. People always help.

Does it take confidence to be brave? Perhaps. I prefer believing bravery needs authenticity, honesty. And this personal truth--Can I face myself if I don't take the action I know that I must?

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Colorful Silence

Five Points South, Birmingham, Alabama

"What keeps my heart awake is colorful silence."

Claude Monet

Where You Stand

Birmingham, Alabama

"Every sunset is also a sunrise. 

It all depends on where you stand."

Karl Schmidt

Miraculous Ways

"Trust who and what you are, 

and the universe will support you
in miraculous ways."

Alan Cohen

Ordinary Moments

Five Points South, Birmingham, Alabama

"There are no ordinary moments."

Dan Millman

Sweetly soaking the colors of the sunset.

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Where You've Come From

Five Points South, Birmingham, Alabama

"There is an old saying
that seasoned voyagers share
as they prepare to head out to sea:
 'You don’t know where you are
unless you know where you’ve come from.'"
~ Lehua Kamalu

Create Again and Again

Five Points South, Birmingham, Alabama

"Curving back within myself I create again and again."

 (Sanskrit: prakṛtim svām avastabhya
visrjami punaḥ punaḥ)

the Bhagavad Gita

Saturday Morning and I am again listening to the birds outside my balcony this morning. Their oak tree song fills me with hope and peace. I have just finished sharing Aloha with text messages to my friends and on Twitter, reminding myself that today, no matter what the challenges that come, I will try to keep this beauty I feel alive with connection and kindness. 

Sunlight and the Oak Tree Bird Songs

I am heading to work shortly and our Alabama Nursing Home is still Covid19-free. We are working hard to keep it this way.

"Use your inner strength to meet whatever is coming today.
Strength is the foundation of passion
and you are designed to thrive,
no matter how life unfolds."

Deepak Chopra

Inspirational Source: Daily Breath with Deepak Chopra

A Poem Is A Meteor

"A poem is a meteor."

Wallace Stevens

Oh, separation

sirens cutting the matterless night.

This Loneliness 

caring stillness
the hardness, the loss
sorrow, continuing.

Broken dreams

deeper than death
falling
cracking
dissolving

tenderness to pain.

what matters, dear one? 
Intimacy,
the unmasked smile,
the moreness of this moment,
our honest connection. 
shared goodness,
no masked smile.

From Pain To Change

Five Points South, Birmingham, Alabama

"Passion is the bridge 
that takes you from pain to change."
Frida Kahlo

I was able to stroll outside and soak in the beautiful day. The spring greens are intoxicating and the sounds of nature are everywhere. As I walked, I smelled magnolia blossoms and heard the songs of birds. Time cradled me and I seemed to be one with the sky, trees, and sun, at peace with life.

In the midst of uncertainty, the light through the trees was a miraculous moment of love and connection, beyond description. I felt comfort, I felt hope.

Here is a photo that I took of the sun through the trees. Sending good wishes your way. 

I made a new friend...

There are discoveries, everywhere...

Our Real Blessings

Asheville, North Carolina

"Our real blessings often appear to us
in the shape of pains, losses, and disappointments;
but let us have patience,
and we soon shall see them
 in their proper figures."

Joseph Addison

The world spins, we will survive. I will keep hope alive. Now is a good time for me to invest in myself.

At the Other Side

"Your way begins at the other side. 

Become the sky."

~ Jalaluddin Rumi

That Golden Moment when the sun crests, everything is awash with a sheen of light and grace.

❥ Ka oli o Kumu John Keola Lake

E Ala E

E ala e, ka lā i ka hikina,

Awaken/Arise, the sun in the east,

I ka moana, ka moana hohonu,

From the ocean, the deep ocean,

Pi‘i ka lewa, ka lewa nu‘u,

Climbing to heaven, the highest heaven,

I ka hikina, aia ka lā, e ala e!

In the east, there is the sun, arise!

By Thinking

Birmingham, Alabama

"How does one grow up? I asked a friend. She answered, By thinking!" 

May Sarton, Journal of a Solitude

Your Own Truth

Birmingham, Alabama

"The spiritual journey is individual, highly personal.
It can't be organized or regulated.
It isn't true that everybody should follow one path.
Listen to your own truth."
Ram Dass

Change One Thing And Everything Will Change

Daily Sunrise: Change One Thing

"If you can change one thing--
everything will change."

George A. Romero 

American filmmaker George A. Romero (1940-2017) specialized in the zombie apocalypse with his iconic film, Night of the Living Dead (1968). 

Who better to be inspired by Today's Quote and Today's Sunrise about change? If you saw the flick, you know the zombies just wanted to live and the humans did not want to die. 

Whether zombie or human, one change, even a small change, would have affected everything, in the film and in life.

What Would You Change?

As this video shows, there are some things you can't change--like your height or your eye color. But we know that true power is within and there are bad habits we can change.

4 Ways to Change A Small Habit

1. Choose your small habit to change.
2. Come up with a plan: How, when, where to make this change?
3. Stay focused on your goal.
4. Celebrate after you've made the change!

My Change? Eat Less Sugar

I have a sweet tooth and have been trying to eat less sugar. I finally committed to the change.
First, I thought about it and realized I'm sugar vulnerable at 3 or 4 in the afternoon. 

Second, knowing this, whether at work or at home, I removed all sugar temptations. 

Third, the plan was not easy at first, but I tried to focus on the goal. Don't give up. Research shows it takes anywhere from 18-254 days to change a habit, but the average is 66 days.

Finally, after about a month, I zapped the daily sugar habit. Hallelujah! Now I choose when to enjoy a brownie. And somehow, when I do eat a brownie, it tastes even better than before!

Today's Lesson -- Change One Thing And You Change EverythingI can make a change with awareness, time, and commitment. When one thing changes,  everything changes. And the next change will be easier.

Death Will Tremble

Asheville, North Carolina

"We are here to laugh at the odds
and live our lives so well that Death will tremble to take us." 

Charles Bukowski

Inspiration and freezing joy: I had an idea to take a selfie with the bright light, cresting with me... 

Me and My Sunrise

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Within A Dream

"All that we see or seem is but a dream within a dream."

Edgar Allan Poe

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Accept Things

"Our vision becomes very narrow when we need things to be a certain way and cannot accept things the way they actually are."
Sharon Salzberg

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Hoped For

Birmingham, Alabama Sunset

"Do not spoil what you have 

by desiring what you have not; 

remember that what you now 

have was once among the things 

you only hoped for."

Epicurus

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An Abstract Noun

“Love is an abstract noun, something nebulous.
 And yet love turns out to be
the only part of us that is solid,
as the world turns upside down
and the screen goes black.” 

~ Martin Amis