Thought for today and slippers in the snow......................

Good day to you!  Thinking of how much is going on these days with everyone, and how I miss the "Thought for the Day" calendar I've had for the past two years.  It helped, on many days, to give me a new perspective on things, a smile, or an idea to share with others.  In the meantime, until I can produce another one, I have been finding wisdom and inspiration where I can. 

Here are a couple on dreams...............

"Many of our dreams will not come true - but others are waiting for us."

"Instead of trying to reshape the world to fit our dreams, we are better off using our strength to comfort one another."

"Broken dreams, and hopes unrealized should not be seen as emblems of shame or failure.  If anything, they are tokens of courage - we were brave enough to dream and to long for so much."

Keep on dreaming!





Cupful of rainbow!



Sweet Darkness

Hello!  It's Januray 20, and the past week was fast and furious, filled with a lot of changes, emotions, and gratefully, surrender.  This morning, I lay in bed til 11:00, just reflecting on life, the light in the room, how things all come together, and how much is happening in so many peoples' lives right now.  Mostly what I love is how much is coming almost instantly to manifestion from thought and desire at this time.  It makes me watch my thoughts more often, more vigilantly.  At a lecture Monday evening, the message came to, in the morning, spend 5 minutes thinking of all the things that I love.  Nothing else.  Just feel, see, hear,the things that make me happy, and they will happen.  They are already happening, just need me to open the door to them. What a fun exercise that has been!!  Some of what I was doing in bed this morning, too.

A friend sent me for Christmas several pages of poetry by all different authors, and they are all so beautiful, inspiring, lovely!   I share this one with you from David Whyte; it seemed to affirm my staying in bed today, being in sleep and slumber, rest and repose, dark and stillness.  AMen!!! 

'

When your eyes are tried the world is tired also.

When your vision has gone

no part of the world can find you.

Time to go into the dark where the night

has eyes to recognize its own.

There you can be sure you are not beyond love.

The dark will be your womb tonight.

The night will give you a horizon

further than you can see.

You must learn one thing.

The world was made to be free in.

Give up all the other worlds

except the one to which you belong.

Sometimes it takes darkness and

the sweet confinement of your aloneness to

learn - anything or anyone that does not

                                                          bring you alive is too small for you.

Solstice, revisited....

January 14, 2011

Have you noticed that the days are a little longer, that the sun is going down a bit later each day?  It feels good, personally, to know that we are on the other side of the shortest day of the year, and that warmer days and more light are on the way!  The solstice was a really special time this year, as there was a full moon, a total lunar eclipse, and the winter solstice all taking place within one day. 

 Whew!  I managed to get up early on Tuesday, Solstice morning, and decided to go for a walk just as it was beginning to get light outside.  As the sky was a lovely pink, and showed promise of a sweet sunrise, I ran back inside and got my camera.  GOOD call!  From the minute I got back outside, I was taking pictures all the way along my walk.  It was SO beautiful!!  Every part of the sky was colored, from purples and pinks to gold and tangerine, in all directions and in all shades imaginable!!!  I just couldn't believe how much everything kept changing, and every second seemed more beautiful than the one before!!  During the week, the sunrise came up often - a number of people had seen it, and were just as awed by it as I was.  I asked my neighbor, who is a very early riser, if a lot of mornings were like that, and I've been missing them all Fall.  "Nope. That was a really special one.  They don't get much better than that!"                          

It was good news to hear, and mostly, because it let me see that once again, I was in the right place at the right time.  That of all the mornings I chose to go out early, I was out for a huge visual gift.  I think I got to feel that, for all the ways I think that I'm floating around in life right now, with no vision or focus, drifting with no definition or design, I might actually be in the absolute right and perfect place at the right time.  So I've started to relax a little, surrender a little more to being where I am, like it or not, and trust that not only will everything turn out OK, but that it's turning out OK now.  Amen!!

In addition to these shots, I have posted several more on a Kodak website; if you're interested to see them, send me your email, and Kodak will send you an "invite" to view the pictures.  Enjoy!  Love to you and all the light that you are in this world!

January 9, 2011 In a flash.....

January 9, 2011

In a moment, anything can change!

Yesterday, Garbrielle Giffords was shot in the head, five other people were shot to death, and several others were wounded, in just moments.

Last night, my sister’s bathroom caught fire - luckily, while she was in the house.

This morning, while standing outside a building and talking with a woman before heading into a meditation, a huge crash, collision, took place on the street just feet away from where we stood. The sound, on an otherwise still and quiet morning, was alarming! Electrifying! Shocking! It took her just a second to jump into assistance mode, running out into the street to see how the drivers of the two cars were. There was a part of me that held back, uncertain of the danger level still possible - one of the cars was smoking, and the other had run up on the sidewalk and knocked over a street light! Actually, scraped it off its base on the curb, and pushed it several feet further down the sidewalk with the front of her car. So the very long and large light pole was leaning on her car, very precariously, I thought, and held with it all the power lines attached to it in a very tentative place. It was scary, to say the least. But once I surveyed the situation and took a breath, I ran over to the woman walking away from her car, found her a bench and some water, and got a puppy out of the second car. Ugh. Everyone looked so stunned, and not really able to make sense of the whole thing. It was so unnerving to me, I cannot imagine how the drivers felt!!! Both drivers were physically “OK” and were able to walk and talk, and there were no other cars on the road, so no one else was involved or hurt.

Eventually, the police showed up, followed by the necessary rescue truck and fire truck, then ultimately, the tow trucks and street clean-up crew. Both cars were totaled. By then, reports had been taken, forms filled out, and phone calls made. A couple of neighborhood boys were practicing their skateboard stunts in the parking lot, a few onlookers were hanging around, and family members of each of the drivers had arrived to be support and transportation home. We all just kind of walked around in a stupor until it was time for all of us to go our separate ways.

It was a strange and somehow beautiful time. It definitely felt like a “God moment” for all of us. None of our lives will ever be the same. It has given me yet another chance to see how empty the worries of tomorrow can be. How being right here, right now, is really all that there is, and it is an important time, and it can change to something REALLY different in the blink of an eye. I hope that I can remember this later today, tomorrow, every moment. For now, it is good to be where I am.

Blessings of hope and healing for all those who suffer today, any day. Amen.

January 7, 2011 Epiphany

January 7, 2011

Yesterday was the last day of the twelve days of Christmas, day of Epiphany. And I swear, I had one!!! I am now working with a Life Coach, and she is GOOD!!!! When I first worked with her, she gave me ideas in the first ten minutes of our conversation that I have been looking for for years. Her come from is pure support, and how she goes about it from session to session varies widely. Somehow, she just seems to have the right and perfect information, resources, words, and questions that spur me on to enthusiasm, introspection, insight, and yesterday, forgiveness of myself. I swear, sometimes when she’s talking, it’s like my higher self! Very cool.

What came to me in our conversation was how much I resist doing what I really love! Dancing and writing were the two big ones that came up. If I spent half as much energy on just DOING what I love as I do making up reasons why NOT to, I’d be off the charts with success and joy! One step toward my success is to lighten up, have fewer restrictions on how it should look, and avoid criticizing myself for not doing it perfectly. As Camille (coach), said, just act without attachment. Very Buddhist, she says, but when she said it, it struck a chord with me. Making it all about LOVE. Love wouldn’t say I didn’t do enough, or didn’t do it right; rather, Love will tell me I have done my best. I like the sound of that, and boy! It takes away a lot of the pressure.

So here I am writing again, and I hope that you will consider doing something that you love, just for the sake of doing it. We all have so much creation within that longs to be set free, to spur us on to lighter and freer lives, and to enjoy visions and gifts from God that heal and let us feel pure love all the time. Amen!!!

Another suggestion that has helped me a lot came from Kathryn Perry, a teacher of The One Command. She asked us, the listeners on the weekly conference call, to think of one thing that we would like to be/have/do that is not currently in our lives. Then, commit to FIVE minutes a day doing something toward that goal. Writing, singing, reading, exercising, organizing, resting, etc. You get the idea. It is an easy amount of time, and as you do it every day, new patterns are formed, and it is easier to do more of what you want in small (or large!) increments. What you love will start to show up more in your life. Again, this sounded really good to me, so I started my list right then. I committed to one thing each day, have done it for 3 days now, and am excited and surprised at the results! It’s easy to fit in what I love, and find myself looking at other things to do. Yesterday, I committed to dance for 5 minutes; when I went to the gym to do the treadmill, there was a salsa class that had just started, and I jumped in and had a blast!! Smiling the whole time at how it all works out. Today, I committed to writing for 5 minutes, and here I am, much longer than that later, feeling happy and inspired to do just one more 5 minute choice! I think I’ll go read for 5 minutes. Later!!

If you are interested in finding out more about The One Command, the website is theonecommand.com - or commandingwealth.comThe Wednesday morning calls from the past can be heard on theonecommand.blogspot.com, and the number to call on Wednesday morning, 9a Pacific time, can be found on the website. Enjoy!!! Xo Maria

January 3, 2011

January 3, 2011

I have just read a letter from a friend, a letter that let me know of her challenges and struggles in life, her continual work on making (her) life better, and her sincere and powerful wishes for me to continue to find support and love on my path of good intentions as well. The letter has brought me to tears. Since I have been on this journey that I’m on, I have received some of the most powerful, sincere, loving, and beautiful words of encouragement and support that I have ever read. Anywhere. And as you may guess, they always seem to come at the perfect time. When I read such wildly hopeful and encouraging letters, my spirit soars, and I know that I am OK, that I am where I need to be, that I am not alone, and that we are all always supported in some way. I hope that in my courage and support, healing and facing fears, others are encouraged and able to find their strong points, find their gifts, find a way through a really rough situation, and realize all the love that is being wished and given them throughout it all.

Thank you for all of the love you are, for all the good you wish for me and others, for all the hurdles you are overcoming in your life, and for being a part of my life and this magical process of Life. It would not be the same without you and what you bring. I wish you peace and patience, trust and truth, joy and understanding, comfort and, of course, LOVE!!!!!!

Jan 1, 2011 Forgiveness.............

January 1, 2011

My friend fixed black-eyed peas and rice today, so I had the traditional southern New Year’s day meal, intended for good luck, health, and prosperity all year long. So far, so good. I’m healthy (got some GOOD sleep at her house), lucky, and wealthy beyond measure to have such friends as I have. Through my friends I have learned the most about forgiveness. They never cease to amaze me; I have been forgiven by friends over the past few years, welcomed back into the fold, no questions asked, with open arms, hearts, and homes. It is staggering to me sometimes, and always makes me cry with gratitude and awe.

This particular friend I have known since 1980 (we confirmed it last night, going over chronological events with a mutual friend), and last saw around 16 years ago, when I visited her and her now husband when they were living in Oakland (same town, different house). They showed me a great time; took me to see the seals that had taken over some docks on the bay, and drove me up to the Redwood Forest, which was, at least, overwhelming. Wow. That is a sight and feeling to behold!!! My memories of that visit are all positive, and most of my issues and conversations about money over the years have kept me from coming back sooner. That and some hurt feelings I had from a number of years back. So I hadn’t really been in touch. And as is the case a lot of times, the longer you stay out of touch with someone, the easier it is to continue being out of touch.

This week, when I ended up in “the Bay area” with my nephew, I’d planned to, upon arrival here, connect with my friends who live 3 hours north of SFO and head up there for a few days, then come back down and see a couple of people from my past (seems I have a lot of those!) in the area before heading back to NM. Well, after all the driving (2 days, 20+ hours), unpacking in the rain, eating poorly for a few days, and feeling super fatigued, the thought of being on the road again for several more hours in the cold and gloom just didn’t sound appealing at all. I cancelled my plans to head north, got a hotel room for a night and day, regrouped, cried, slept, caught up on some overdue phone calls, walked, watched some funny shows, and decided what to do next. Not knowing how this trip would look, since I decided to go at the eleventh hour, I hadn’t called anyone in advance to say I was coming. So Thursday morning, feeling more grounded and ready to face the world again, I took a chance and called Ana, who lives in Oakland. What is so wild about this whole thing is that, after not having talked with her in a number of years, I’d called her just a week before, a couple of days before Christmas, to reconnect and tell her I’d missed her. During my meditation retreat the weekend before, she came into my mind and heart, and I realized what a treasure she was and how nuts it was for me to let that go because of some ego problem I’d had years before. So I called her. And it was like we had only spoken weeks before; picked right back up, and it was so nice to hear her vital and loving self again. She told me, again, that she was still in Oakland, and the offer still stood that if I was ever out that way, call and come stay with them. How funny life is. Timing is everything. Little did either of us know that in a week, I would call her to take her up on the offer!!!

Luckily, she was home and available for company; picked me up that afternoon, took me to their house, and set me up in the spare room. Her dog and cat were welcoming, her gentle and calm husband was, too, her home was warm with Christmas decorations and smells, and the bed I got to sleep in was super comfortable!! We just talked and ate, walked the dog and ran some errands, and I felt like I was with family. It was a wonderful day and a half. We recounted days past, tried to put events into chronological order, and remembered different stories involving ourselves and mutual friends. A lot had happened over the years we were out of touch, and I felt both sad and guilty that I had missed important milestones in her life by doing so. Some things we can never get back, and sometimes apologies just fall short. Choices that we make always feel necessary and logical, however infused they are with ego and emotion at the time. The good news is that new choices can always be made. I am really grateful that my friend Ana has chosen to forgive me, to love me as I am now, and to let go as “water under the bridge” the choices I’d made years ago that kept us apart. I leave her presence feeling lighter and more hopeful, loved and able to forgive myself and others more readily. Amen. A great start to a new year. The benefits of the black-eyed peas are instant!

pics from NM - CA roadtrip 12/27-12/29

"Sundog" - a piece of a rainbow, to the right of the sun

My nephew Jordan and I stopped at a cactus garden along the roadside.

Joshua tree - specific to this area of CA

Such varied and awesome scenery in California!

Lovely sunset before the rains started.............