Teeth and Tootsies, Extravagant?

"BLESSINGS"

Mixed Media Collage - 11" x 13"

This a.m. I had an appointment with an excellent dentist who repaired a couple of chipped teeth and generally, once more,  put my mouth in tip top smiling condition.  After an hour in the dentist chair and the goofy feeling of numb lips and cheek, I drove off for another appointment where I plopped onto another chair - a massage type - and placed my feet into a warm bubbly bath to begin an hour of pampered pedicure.  

Now before you just assume that I am a totally spoiled brat, I need to tell you that I do NOT take the aforementioned appointments for granted.  I consider both of them - the dentist and the pedicurist -to be luxuries, all the while, giving thanks for the multitude of material and spiritual blessings in my life.  Nor do I believe that I'm probably much different than many of you readers in that my life is one of extravagance.  Now before you started debating your own simple state of being, think about it - what would many citizens of the world think of your lifestyle that includes your computer, your IPad, your Blackberry, your car, your bike, your expensive handbag, your shoes, your full refrigerator, your gym membership, your last plane trip, your next plane trip, the last time you were on a beach or shushing down a mountainside on your strong legs and new skis?  You get the picture - extravagance!

So let me just say I'm not advocating a life of cell living and bread and water, yet I've been particularly counting my blessings in light of the recent world events of devastation and destruction caused by mother nature and by mankind and I know many of you have been doing that also......if you haven't taken time to count your blessings nor contributed lately to your favorite charity, please take a minute today and do so.......we have so many blessings for which to be thankful - don't we?

Don't miss the splendor on your journey

Reading from Eve Eschner Hogan's work, "Way of the Winding Path - A Map for the Labyrinth of Life," I came upon these words - and I paraphrase a little - 

"Backpacking on the (island) of Kauai along a magnificent coast, I weaved my path toward the sacred destination eleven miles in the future.  After three days at the destination, I took a boat back along the shore and viewed my journey from a difference perspective.  I had missed all of the splendor of the journey because I spent the entire walk looking toward my destination, thinking about how much further until I was there, and counting the miles."

These words were such powerfully personal words to me today as I am striving to live every moment in the presence and not as it will be when I do this or that.  Entering one's late autumn (ha) one's early winter (?) years, looking back can be an incredible experience and exercise in seeing and realizing what blessed events I might have missed in my own life.  

I'm not going to lose sleep over those missed events but I do want to remember some of the most precious ones in my life and to simply treasure the events of this day as they unfold for me.  The blue sky - there is a teeny bit showing - the breeze making the spring day feel colder than it is, the squirrels drinking at the bird bath - assuring the birds that it's a squirrel possession rather than a bird hangout, with the birds ignoring the squirrels!  The peace and quiet of our home, often interrupted by the raucous barking of our two beloved dogs, and the good fortune of housekeepers who temporarily will upset the quiet as well later today.  The blessing of friends dropping by for tea and a chat, and my weekly brain-clearing spiritual formation group studying excerpts from Annie Dillard's, "Pilgrim at Tinker Creek."  The sight of my beloved busily transforming thoughts into sermons, blogposts, or letters at his computer or taking a snooze in his favorite chair......

These unheralded moments surrounding me are indeed mundane and too numerous to count but they bring me peace and God's love on a daily basis.  Would that I count these days as the splendor of my life no matter how small are inconsequential they might seem as I list them.

And you, do too many days pass when you don't count the splendor of routine, of your shelter, your transportation, your friends, your family.........please count them today for me and for you. 

Prayer for Release

As I journaled this a.m. I prayed for release.  "Release from what?!" you might ask - "You're on Maui for heavens sake!"  Well, we've been here alone, spouse and I, for about 9 days - most of the time we agree on the activities for the day, the evening, when to sleep and to eat.....but a new dynamic arrived last evening - and that was my sister, brother-in-law and two teens.  My spouse's sister and brother-in-law will arrive this evening so things will become a little more complicated.

Don't get me wrong, these visitors/family are the easiest to entertain or to just BE with of any people I know.  The release for me is that I let go of my compulsion to control - relax, release.  Relax, release, enjoy these precious moments with many of those that I hold dearest in my life.  There does have to be some planning, like food but mostly I need to remember that I am not personally responsible for their having a good time.  They would not have me fret over any detail, whether or not we snorkel, or dine out, or drive to a far beach.  The teens will enjoy, they will have fun in ways I could never imagine.  We all will have fun and the laughter and the joy of our love will convince me once more that release, release, release of control is freeing:))  I must remember above all to SAVOR the joy of this family I love and treasure!

Blogger Prayer

As I clicked on and read through some of my favorite blogsites* yesterday, I was as usual amazed at the inspiring content touching my mind and soul.  Today was no exception for that richness to fill me and  to spill out  on to my journal pages.   I offer this prayer in thanksgiving to those writers  who often inspire me -

To reach internal corners of my mind and soul 

Places seemingly unimportant

Hidden, unknown, unrecognized, unchallenged

Known to you alone 

While prayerfully pondering both realistic and unrealistic expectations for myself, 

Help me to search out and expose my totally unrealistic fear of inability

Trusting in you, 

as I strive to overcome logic with possibility

*my favorite blogsites are listed in the right hand column of my home page

Early Thanksgiving Homily

Image via Wikipedia

Today MindSieve features a guest writer*; a very special young woman, age 14 who wrote and delivered this homily in her church on Sunday. Enjoy!

"Waking up at 6:30 for school is not always pleasant nor is it easy but then the hard part really begins. I stand in front of my dresser wondering what I want to wear, what I should wear, and slowly the minutes tick by making me even more rushed then I was before. I could have picked out anything easily and that task would be finished…but what matches, and what’s the temperature outside? With the constant pull of fashion magazines, and what’s in and out, the pressure for people to buy things, whether necessary or frivolous, is unending. I am pretty sure when we all look in the mirror, we are not thinking whether or not God would like the way we did our hair that morning, and he probably doesn’t care if that shirt matches those pants. Matthew says in the Gospel this morning, “Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothing?” Birds are fed, plants get their needed sunlight, and bugs still buzz whether or not our outfits match. And more importantly, God will still love us and protect us.

Sometimes, we get so wrapped up in the lives we live, as we are driven by our constant worries. As a freshman in high school, a day of school is never finished without the regular reminders of homework, tests, quizzes, project deadlines, and other due dates. The amount of work may not compare to a college student’s, but staying up until eleven just to finish the necessary work for the next day is exhausting. Not only is it exhausting, but also it is distracting. One cannot fully appreciate the life they are given when they are constantly complaining about the workload. Every day I hear my peers say, “I hate my life, or, this is a boring town”. However, when we compare our lives to those around us, or those abroad, can no one realize or see how good our lives truly are? It is more important to look beyond the clothing… beyond our list of things to get done… beyond our individual struggles… and find out what truly matters. When thousands of people are starving and running around barely clothed, are our day to day worries all that bad? When people are worried if they are going to live another day due to the Genocide in Darfur, should we really hate our lives? It is important that on this Sunday, and as we approach Thanksgiving to remember what is really important, and what we should, in actuality, spend our money and time on. This does not mean that there are times when we do not have real worries, real sorrow; and it does not mean that we shouldn’t want nice things for ourselves, or be frustrated with our lives every once in a while. We are human and we are all God’s children. If we were all perfect, there would be no need for a god to guide us.

All through my elementary school life I remember making paper turkeys by tracing my hand and then writing what I was thankful for. Of course this included the more conventional things such as: “I’m thankful for my friends… or family… or my dogs… and every now and then you would hear a kid say, “I’m thankful for my GameCube.”

However, as I’ve grown up I have realized that there are many more things that we, as young children, were shielded and protected from. And as I grow, I find that I have a better grasp on what I am truly thankful for, what family truly is, and what friends truly are. Everyone has their own definition of family, but mine would be - A group of people who love you no matter what you may do. And my definition for friends is - people who will stand by your side no matter what. Now…. nobody on those little paper turkeys ever puts church as something they are thankful for. Maybe they take it for granted, or maybe we, as young children, have just spent the whole church service asking our mom or dad when will this be over?! As an acolyte I have been able to experience church fully, and by doing this I have experienced an entire new meaning of family, friends, and church. When we are down, we need somebody; when we are sick, sad or depressed, we need somebody. And because of this church environment, we have somebody.

In this time of thanksgiving, it is important to remember what thanksgiving really means, which is: the act of giving thanks; grateful acknowledgment of benefits, or favors, esp. to God. This Thanksgiving, truly appreciate the lives you are given, the family and friends that surround you, the community of church that you are in, and God, who gave his life for you.

This year if I were back in elementary school and had the opportunity to make a little thanksgiving turkey, I would be sure to include my church, and our God who made all of this possible. Amen

*Writer is the eldest granddaughter of Sunrise Sister

Words from Thomas.....

A WEEK AGO - Maui, Sunday night, February 15, 2009, - After a tremendously full day with daughter, son-in-law and grandchildren at church, at sea side in warm sun and sandy beach, snorkeling, resting in breezes, rejoicing in laughter, fun, good food and stories, I opened Thomas Merton - A Book of Prayers and read a litany for the Dark on page 67.....it was truly a wonderful litany and perhaps if you have the book, you'll read it this evening at dark, wherever your day has taken you and wherever you are - but in the meantime, with all due respect to Thomas Merton and his wonderful editor, Kathleen Deignan, I've rewritten the litany in my words....

Teach me to go often in my mind to this peaceful, joy-filled scene - beyond words - beyond names. Teach me to pray on this side of the day, here where the stars glisten now. I feel led by you. I feel my heart moved by you. I feel my soul made clean by your presence. I feel my will to trust made strong by you. I pray the world will be saved and changed by you. I pray for your healing hand on all those who suffer, who are in prison, in danger, in sorrow. I pray for your grace for all crazy people. I pray your healing hand to work always in my life. I pray you will make me through your grace, as you made your son, a healer, a comforter. I pray your joy and light will reach and raise the dead from their bondage of the grave. I pray you will help those dying to cross their chasms and streams in your hands. I pray you will be with me always and with those I love whether we are living or dying. I believe that you hear this prayer and am thankful.
Amen.

IF A TREE FALLS IN THE.....HOUSE

You might remember my post of a few days ago regarding a huge windstorm in our little town. This a.m. our local paper ran the article of our friends' towering blue spruce taking a dive on to their roof and "almost" into their living room - there was no bodily harm done; our friends coped with the aftermath in thanksgiving.........

Dealing from a blessed place of abundance, this young couple announced before our congregation this a.m. how grateful they were to have only suffered the loss of a beautiful tree - nicknamed "Hardy" - were spared the loss of the lesser spruce -nicknamed "Laurel"and how appreciative they were of friends and neighbors who offered them food, shelter, and prayers.

Thanksgivings all around for safety, for abundance, for family, for neighbors and even kind strangers......and of course as a memento of the windstorm of January '08, they placed the tree stump in the backyard as a table and chairs for their toddler.




Indeed, in Thanksgiving!

When the 70-80 mph winds cut through Walla Walla in the early, early hours of last Friday eliminating power service all over town (bringing all internet activity to a halt - oh, no! not that!) I was surprised, although I don't know why, that one of the first things that came to my mind was to -

Count my blessings that -
1. no trees blocked our street or fell on our house or cars
2. a gas fireplace allowed us to huddle close by for some heat during the daytime hours
3. a gas stove top was here for simple meals prepared in the dark, mostly
4. we have water delivered via water lines versus a pump with an electric motor
5. we have no babies in the house requiring diaper changes, sterilized bottles, etc. - I'm grateful for this one all of the time:)
6. we had plenty of dog food
7. we had stuff that could be made into meals, sort of
8. we had a candle and flashlight supply
9. we were able to find a little KMart lantern
10. we had plenty of reading we wanted to do and two little bitty booklights
11. our roof didn't lose shingles - there are shingles all over town
12. our power came on late Saturday afternoon
13. it wasn't raining or snowing and that the wind did eventually die down Saturday late morning
15. there are workers still toiling all over town to get the power on (Friday-Monday still out in many places.)
16. this storm can be looked upon as something to be remembered with little heartbreak.....there were no deaths or injuries reported in our town or nearby ones due to the storm

This "little" storm made me ever so mindful of the tragedies that occur every day in this country and in the world that are not just inconveniences but true tragedies. God, help me to remember those tragedies every single day and be grateful for the blessings that surround my life - blessings that can be taken away in a heartbeat - blessings never to be taken for granted.
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