“What we have once enjoyed and deeply loved we can never lose, for all that we love deeply becomes a part of us.” Helen Keller My dear Matt, Does this quotation bring a smile? Authored by one who clearly understood the consequence of fully accepting both love and loss, her words sketch the journey of my truth. I add it here so you know that I genuinely get it. And, here we are again . . . another September 12th. This year signals a different type of ending. A new milesto

“This one moment – Now – is the one thing you can never escape from, the one constant factor in your life. No matter what happens, no matter how much your life changes, one thing is certain: it’s always Now” Stillness Speaks: Eckhart Tolle Welcome to your Now. I appreciate that you’re sharing it with me. Einstein wrote: “All you need lies within you.” Inside each of us rests a deep well of spirit-given, gracious, unconditional love. I believe it came with the territory

We the People are hovering between our memories of and fights for deliberate, respectful compromises made using a forward-thinking understanding and openness to the realities of others, and the more contemporary decisions made without such concerns, but within the corrupting influences of power-hungry self-interest. The stark, dark consequences embedded within these differences greet us daily, leaving me reeling, aching with disappointment and endlessly seeking signs of hope.

Too many tears . . . too few moments of calm, of equilibrium. My world’s been upside down for so many months. Reality and memories remind me of a time when what I accepted as predictable truth and comfort, weren’t. And grief entered. Then, I climbed up from dark places, taught myself to accept ugly reality, decided to live and bring grace into my world. But this year the climb is harder. Why? What’s different? It’s past time to step outside myself for a talk . . . Look at

A copy of Rumi’s, “The Guest House”, surfaced on my desk . . . a welcome arrival. I began re-reading it, quickly noting that the poem’s first lines are a perfect metaphor for how my life continues to unfold in this beautiful, too-often chaotic, uncertain world: “This being human is a guest house. Every morning a new arrival.” The home that helped form my own guest house is pictured above. It’s where I grew up, was nurtured and taught how to be a hum

Barn's burnt down. Now I can see the Moon. Masahide I fell in love with this Masahide quote almost immediately. I was in therapy, struggling to find some light, understand how to actually believe in it, and then carry it within me. My son, Matthew, had died suddenly; his stepfather had left our marriage. I was surviving in the dark. I copied the picture and short quote and gave it to my therapist during our next meeting. I realized this place - where light rises to repla

On my journey, I’ve discovered I’m the one who has to take responsibility for creating the world view I choose to live. . . and I’m happy to accept that. Still, I’m guessing it’s also become even more evident that fully living the life we hope for is impossible to manage alone. We need each other. We need those Golden Rule moments – figuratively, spiritually, even literally – to help lift us up and over as we travel through life. I looked up and thought to myself, “Hey, yo