putting things in order…

 

 

 

 

“At the center of your being

you have the answer; 
you know who you are 
and you know what you want.”

~ Lao Tzu ~

 

About thirteen years ago, I changed my first  name.  Yes, I did.  The middle one, too. Legally.  In court, in front of a judge, the whole thing. It’s a long story, and was a small part of my journey of healing some pretty big wounds.  And I sent out announcements – on really thick, soft white paper, with a simple straightforward font, in blue black ink.  This is what they said:

The beginning of wisdom is to call things by their right names.

~ Chinese proverb ~

 

It was the beginning of putting my “stuff” in order.  Of figuring out what stories I no longer wanted to haul around with me.  Of seeing what was true to me, and what was just a behavior based on someone e’se’s fear, or pain.  Or both.  Of finding my big girl shoes, putting them on and walking forward on my own path.

 

It feels like I am doing it all over again. It’s much happier this time, much lighter – and just as monumental.  I have been away from this space – this place that I love, that I miss quite a bit these days.  These days that have been so full, so expansive.  Dare I say bordering on glorious?

I think I do.

 

I am now a certified Martha Beck life coach.  I actually finished something – a big thing.  Something that lets the world see who I really am, and who, of course, I have always been.  Some of my lifelong dreams are coming true – more about that as things unfurl.  I am getting ready for a huge shift – my only child leaving the nest.  And so incredibly happy and proud to see the person she is, despite the fact that I am not allowed to write about her here.  There’s more, too.  Writing is taking a back seat, temporarily I suspect, to other forms of creativity, to dreaming and scheming and to taking time to rest and regenerate.

 

Stay tuned.  Anything could happen now – it’s all falling into place.

 

 

What are you thinking about?

A man is what he thinks about all day long.

~ Ralph Waldo Emerson ~

We are, aren’t we, often just that? What we think about, the stories we tell ourselves – these things so often make up our lives.

More and more, it seems to me that our thoughts really do manifest in our days. Who knows if that is completely true. I certainly haven’t seen any studies done on the subject, but I don’t see any harm in playing with it.

Why not let yourself dream? Why not, tonight, rather than lie awake worrying about all the tasks that were left undone, fall asleep picturing the way you would like your life to be? Maybe it is seeing yourself in your own home, puttering around in your yard. It might be traveling through Europe – that backpacking trip you’ve always meant to take. Perhaps it is as simple as spending time in your kitchen preparing an elaborate meal for lovely friends you would like to have in your life. It could be ruling the world! That part is up to you.

Make the time, find the dream, let it play out. Let’s find out if dreams come true…

As if you’ll live forever…

Dream as if you’ll live forever, live as if you’ll die today.

~ James Dean ~

Sunday Stroll…

Even the wildest dreams have to start somewhere. Allow yourself the time and space to let your mind wander and your imagination fly.

~ Oprah Winfrey ~

This week’s stroll will be different in a couple ways. Rather than walk, we are going to fly. Sort of. These photos are from a recent trip from Washington, DC to London, England and I hope you will find some time and space to really drink them in. The skies above us both change and stay the same and it fascinates me to watch them, always. As I am held captive in the plane anyway, it seems like the perfect time to allow myself to dream, you know? Hopefully, through the magic of the iPhone, you will be able to see a bit of what I saw.

The other first is this – I am quoting Einstein and Oprah in the same post. Hopefully, the sky won’t fall! I’d like to think that they would both be pleased… or, at least, amused.

Here we go…

The sky is the daily bread of the eyes.
~ Ralph Waldo Emerson ~

The air up there in the clouds is very pure and fine, bracing and delicious.  And why shouldn’t it be? – it is the same the angels breathe.
~ Mark Twain ~

The sky is that beautiful old parchment in which the sun and the moon keep their diary. ~ Alfred Kreymborg ~

The clouds, – the only birds that never sleep.
~ Victor Hugo ~

Only from the heart can you touch the sky.
~ Rumi ~

A human being is part of a whole, called by us the Universe, a part limited in time and space.

He experiences himself, his thoughts and feelings, as something separated from the rest, a kind of optical delusion of his consciousness.

The delusion is a kind of prison for us, restricting us to our personal desires and to affection for a few persons nearest us.

Our task must be to free ourselves from this prison by widening our circles of compassion to embrace all living creatures…

~ Albert Einstein ~