My online journal where I share my interests in photography, nature, journaling, fountain pens, bicycling, coffee life, spirituality and the mystery of it all.
Grandfather says this: in life there is sadness as well as joy, losing as well as winning, falling as well as standing. I do not say this to make you despair, but to teach you that life is a journey sometimes walked in light and sometimes walked in shadow.
Joseph Marshall III in KEEP GOING
I am a traveler on a sacred journey through this one shining day.
Richard Wagamese, Embers
This is the last leg of my bicycle ride to one of my favorite coffee shops. And for many of us at the end of this path awaits one of our baristas, always greeting us with a smile, a drink of our choice, and one or two of the irregular/regulars to commiserate with. And it almost never fails that we find one of the squirrels-of-the-oval, at almost every other tree, encouraging us along on this last leg of the mornings journey. And Happy Father’s Day to all the fathers!!!
“Really all we have to offer the world is the gift of our individuality. We can never be just like any other person. Our journey through life is an extremely personal contribution to the work of being human.”
Jane Reichhold
In my experience when anyone tries to force their opinions and their rules as the norm for everyone, they are no longer being a gift. We see this evidenced in our attempts to use war as a way to create unity rather than embracing individuality. There is enough historical evidence to prove war is not a gift and has never brought unity! So maybe our task in life is to encourage and nurture those around us who need to offer their personal contribution of being human. Who knows, maybe their contribution will enrich everyone’s lives. I find it sad that so many world leaders arrogantly deny others the opportunity to be the individual gift they are, this work of being human. And, it is a gift!
“When the power of love overcomes the love of power, the world will know peace.”
Jimi Hendrix
Rather than ride the bicycle ride this morning to Mugs, I decided to take the bus to campus. I stopped at Sweet Sensations coffee shop and got a mocha then spent time in the Paul and Elsie Legacy Lounge by the fireplace to journal in the quiet. I usually have the area to myself until about 8:15 am before the groggy students begin to stumble in. It had been a while since I was in the lounge area and I was pleased to see they had changed all the furniture. We had a warm sunny day and may see rain Thursday night into Friday. Time to push the publish button and read for a while. I hope you had a good day!
I have learned that the point of life’s walk is not where or how far I move my feet but how I am moved in my heart. If I walk far but am angry toward others as I journey, I walk nowhere. If I conquer mountains but hold grudges against others as I climb, I conquer nothing. If I see much but regard others as enemies, I see no one.
Anasazi Foundation, The Seven Paths: Changing One’s Way of Walking in the World
Yesterday we had blue skies, sunshine and mid 70 temperatures. Today we have overcast skies and mid 50 temperatures. And tomorrow back to the mid 70s. Whatever the day is like I hope you get a chance to get out and walk. May you have an Awesome week.
There comes a time in the spiritual journey when you start making choices from a very different place . . .And if a choice lines up so that it supports truth, health, happiness, wisdom, and love, it’s the right choice.
Angeles Arrien
If you notice she does not include monetary wealth or anything that has a physical presence in her list. Everything she lists has an intangible value. And, in my world her list does not have a monetary value to them. I believe this is one of the reasons this quote resonates with me and one of the major reasons our world is in a state of decline. Which begs the question within me; What would our world be like if more people lived their spiritual journey?
Time as objective reality has never made much sense to me. It’s what happens that matters. How can minutes and years, devices of our own creation, mean the same thing to gnats and to cedars? Two hundred years is young for the trees whose tops this morning are hung with mist. It’s an eyeblink of time for the river and nothing at all for the rocks…If there is meaning in the past and in the imagined future, it is captured in the moment. When you have all the time in the world, you can spend it, not on going somewhere, but on being where you are. So I stretch out, close my eyes, and listen to the rain.
Robin Wall Kimmerer
As a young man I would lay in the grass and daydream. Seems I usually ventured into the future, accomplishing feats such as being the hero in the big game or the hero saving the fair maiden. Now that I am older I’m able to look back and see how those daydreams kept me from living in the moment. I was not experiencing the world I was a part of. The lessons they have given me is an awareness that helps me live in the now more often and the desire to live there. The gift of photography, recovery from alcoholism, and a spiritual practice have also been key in that transformation. Now when I stretch out, close my eyes, and listen to the rain I am learning to be present and enjoy the rain. I have the time to be present.
The spirit of the wilderness is solitude. We go alone to meet the divinity within us. The wisdom of the wilderness comes from God interacting through creation to touch our very soul. We emerge from our journey with a new identity grounded in God. Transformed, we discover we have been given back to ourselves.
Debra Donnelly-Barton
I have mentioned before on this blog how I go to places where I can touch and be touched by nature; physically, emotionally and spiritually. There is always a shift in my thinking, words and actions when I am able to spend time in the local natural areas, the early mornings of a local park, riding my bicycle on a nature trail, or the solitude of wilderness. When I do, I find a renewed connection to the Creator of this beautiful world we all are a part of and a greater awareness that I’m a part of nature. Her use of the word transformed in the quote is spot on for me. I just ain’t the same when I return home.
Honestly accept the journey into physical diminishment as the new learning curve in your life and embrace it with curiosity and beginner’s mind. Keep facing forward with a gently yielded heart; that is always the direction from which the new integration emerges.
Cynthia Bourgeault
These are the morning clouds on my way to the coffee shop this past Thursday while bicycling across campus. I do like riding my bicycle because of scenes and moments like this. But I also hope it decreases some physical diminishment in this aging process we all are on. I also find it’s a great way to start my day and be actively a part of nature. I hope you have a wonderful Saturday!!