Being in love with hope...

"I am in love with hope."

Mitch Albom

The autumn color has now faded, where it splashed there is stark nothingness. Trees all standing with all that hid their structure stand naked against the gray skies. The crunch of the the fallen leaves, faded palate can be heard as I shuffle about through the yard, on walks and as I head out into the world.

Seasons come and go. Time moves on.

Life continues after pain,

after love,

after loss.

There are times in our own life

when it becomes necessary

to strip down,

let our pasts all fade into the earth's cycle of use,

and

be.

It is uncomfortable.

We don't like it--well I don't like it--that is for sure.

but

it teaches us something

something about life

about love

about

that tiny

grain of something that helps us move forward

even in the midst of our nothingness.

Hope

a fascinating word

rolls off my tongue

i sit playing with

what it means...

and

I realize

just like Mitch Albom

I too am in love with it

Hope that is....

I'm one of those people

who tends to see the world with

an overflowing glass on most days,

I always look for the cherry on top and

even if the world doesn't know

what is going on

deep down in the recesses of my heart and mind

even when i don't speak the words

that thing

that

tiny seed

starts to uncurl

even on my darkest days

and

IT

springs forth

in the midst of stark nakedness,

in the midst of colorless sky

and

it

entwines,

enfolds,

enmeshes

with the core of my being

and

it happens

hopelessness turns to hope

sadness turns to joy

tears become smiles...

I love the word

love everything about it

it floats,

it heals,

it give us energy to move forward

knowing

that as the dark drabness of Winter fades,

tiny specks of green will spring forth,

dotting the starkness,

time evolves forward,

buds become tiny green leaves

unfolding as the

sunshine and rain

mix to provide nutrients....

and

it happens...

Hope

springs forth new life...

a new spark for

what is to come.

I love the word hope.

love the energy it provides...

I guess in this season

where I watch the news,

and

humans are suffering

loosing homes

being hungry

looking for something.....

looking for a spark to get them through tomorrow.....

the world needs a bit of it.

it is our survival energizer...

it springs forth

and

i am in love with it.....

Hope that is.

happy Saturday

and

blessings

go on...

have a bit of hope.....

i do.

the cycle of hope.........

The universe is energy that responds to expectations.

JAMES REDFIELD, The Celestine Prophecy

It's that time of year again,

greens fade,

brilliant beauty colors the horizon,

swirling oranges, yellows, flaming reds,

the leaves on the trees flutter,

they color,

they display themselves with flare,

invite us

to

join in the autumn dance

where

coolness

grabs

us,

makes us feel alive,

the wind has a nip,

and

the sweet smell of green grass fades

into

the dry hay like smell of fall.

The wind blows,

the colorful

leaves wave and dance

and

offer glory to the world

in a flash of beauty that is indescribable

in any kind of human words.

I find they energize me,

open my eyes to wonder and awe

and

hope....that.....spring will come again.

i walk along,

under my feet,

I begin to

hear the crisp sound of

the

dry grind underneath my feet,

crunch,

crunch,

crunch,

mashed up,

ground up,

brittle pieces fall

and

scatter and shred.

we humans go through the phases of life

in the same manner,

we grow up,

green up,

color,

up,

fall down,

get ground up,

reform,

rebuild,

grow some more

and

in

the process
find a bit of
that
thing
we call
hope...

hope...
it is a cycle
that turns and moves
and
comes back on itself..
time and time again...
may we
all
find a bit of it tonight...

What do you see?

A pessimist sees only the dark clouds and mopes;

A philosopher sees both sides and shrugs;

An optimist doesn't see the clouds at all, [he/she] is walking on them.

Leonard Louis Levinson

There is a set of lenses we choose to wear each day.  They color our world, influence our attitude, hinder our success and can impede our relationships.  In the same tension, the lenses can allow us to see the tiniest miracle that is right in front of us, open our heart to a stranger in need, experience the beauty of Creation, and find a peaceful path.

Each morning we get up,

We look in the mirror and we make our selection.

On some good days, when all the right karma is in the air,

and my spirit is grounded

and

everything is all lined up,

I am fortunate enough to be able to see the world in the spectrum of

awe---God awe--and yet,

put a kink in my day,

have someone speak to me just the wrong way,

have someone treat another with disrespect,

and

something shifts in me and I put on my dark colored lenses

and fester abit.

Most days,

I see the world as a glass over flowing,

each day is an ice-cream Sunday with a cherry on top,

but

if I am honest, and I always try to be,

there are many an evening,

where the clouds roll in,

the lenses fog up,

the heart is heavy,

and

the ability to see the light,

enjoy the contrast,

see the glass anything but empty

still happens,

I suppose it is just like the rhythm of the seasons,

we must have the bleak cold winter to enjoy the flowers in the spring and to appreciate the summer sunshine and to be able to  bask in the glory of the fall palate.

I'd much rather be walking on the clouds,

rolling in the sunshine,

than

hiding under the dark cloud,

I'm sure all of us feel that way or that is my assumptions anyway.

On this Friday,

I look to the sky,

without my glasses on,

there is beauty even in the dichotomy of life,

for we all have the good, the bad, the ugly

I make the choice

and it happens,

the light pulls me in,

warms my heart,

lifts me

and before I know it,

before I even realize what has happened,

I no longer see the sun,

no longer wonder about the clouds,

because Suddenly HOPE has lifted me

and

I am walking on the clouds....

May this day lead you into a weekend wonder

where

for a moment or a day or a lifetime

you feel the clouds under your feet,

experience the wonder of light air,

your heart warmed by sunshine

and

you become one with the Universe....

may it be so

on

the Friday Morning...

Hark do i hear the sound of the Hallelujah chorus beginning to play...

It is the weekend......

Hallelujah!

It is the Dawn of Possibility!!!!

No matter what may have happened yesterday,

 a new day of fresh possibility has dawned.

You are not the same person today as you were yesterday!

Daisaku Ikeda

The darkness of the night slowly

begins to lift

From underneath the canopy of dread

one must decide

whether to stay in the midst

of

all that was....

wallow in pity

let fear pull its' tethers tighter and tighter

causing

a withering effect on

the body and the psyche.

The choice

Give up

live defeated

stay just where you stand...

But the sun is rising,

its' horizon is moving ever so slowly toward

the standing place.

The choice is up to us...

stay where we are 
or

unbind the chains that old us back 
and

step forward

into the

light of possibility

where

the rays of hope

will

pull us forward into what can be..

It is the dawn of possibility....

will you stay

or
 will you move toward it...

the choice is yours...

as for me...

I'm throwing off these bindings

moving full faced

into the light

of the new dawn

 I can't wait to see what possibility brings.

Happy Wednesday!!!

Hugs

Hope is a floating.....

 Beginnings are scary.

 Endings are usually sad, but it's what's in the middle that counts.

So, when you find yourself at the beginning, just give hope a chance to float up.

 And it will.

said by the character Birdie in the movie, Hope Floats

HOPE

–noun 1. the feeling that what is wanted can be had or that events will turn out for the best: to give up hope. 2. a particular instance of this feeling: the hope

I think Birdie was right with what she said in that movie....

all beginnings are a bit scary!

I find that even the good beginnings are scary...

stepping out into the unknown

and trusting that our desires and our dreams will all turn out

scares the hell out of most of us if we are truthful.

I think of the beginnings I've had...

I remember when I finally called and asked MegaMe(My Husband, alias Big Daddy)

out on our first date.

I had flirted with him in that convenient store line for months

and finally with a line of people,

I said it,

"hey I've checked all the Joe Doe's in the book, there are

a million, which one are you?  I'd really like your phone number."

I remember being afraid and nervous....but he gave it to me.

I can recall that phone call....all scared to dial, practicing  in my head over and over what I'd say..

trembling fingers dialing...Hello....hello....and it began.

and I

can recall

how extremely elated I was when he said, Yes I'd like to go out for dinner!

HOPE FLOATED and so did I.

I can recall each new job I've started,

each new direction my vocation has taken me,

each interview was a test,

a chess board dance of sorts,

and

every time,

I feared that nothing would work out...

dreaded the outcome,

had that pit in the bottom of my stomach....

but

as the dance continued....

hope moved from the floor and

took me with it.

Sometimes I didn't get the job or my dream was short lived..

but ah...the in between when

human connections happened

and

something mystical and magical

weaved us humans together

through shared stories woven and  threaded together by  a bit of laughter,

Hope...It revives our spirit,

refreshes our soul,

moves us from

darkness to light,

fear to courage,

hate to love,

Hope floats us...

all the stuff that happens in the middle...

it's all good.

it's all the cherry on top even on days when we forget about the whipped topping.

Endings...

never liked them,

always dreaded them,

hate leaving and saying goodbye..

don't like when holidays are over,

vacations end,

people die or move or disconnect...

yes Birdie had it right...

endings tend to be sad--even then our hope pushes us along

and

we continue to believe in the

happily ever after....and expect that old line to be true

the middle holds the

happiness

and

Hope...

It pulls us,

pushes us,

moves us,

lifts us

to that plane

above the one below.

Hope....

I hope for this..

I hope for that...

what we need to do is just trust IT...

trust the universal IT

so for today,

as I smell the sweetness of freshly cut grass and

hear the birds sing their goodnight song,

today I choose

to

fall face first into the unknown...

and

Hope.. that .hope catches me... 

Birdie says it floats...I hope she's right?

If you don't hear from me tomorrow...you'll know she had it all wrong.

A Prayer for the Day....

Eli Stone: But I don't believe in God.
Dr. Frank Chen: Sure you do. You believe in right and wrong! You believe in justice and fairness! You believe in love! All those things are God!

(quote from the TV show, Eli Stone, episode 1, the Pilot)

I'm a bit hesitant to sometimes to share the more spiritual side of me at times. 

 I know that sounds weird coming from someone who preaches and prays aloud in the church. 

This morning I led worship at a local church with a good friend of mine.

Part of my role was to write a prayer which would be part of the liturgy during worship.

I got up this morning and after playing on the computer, decided I had to birth something since worship was just two hours away.  My friend was preaching on a text in John related to the Samaritian Woman who encounters Jesus at the well.

I read the text and then sat down to push forth something......what I'm giving you is what came.

I was reluctant to share it in church..I was afraid folks would think it was too....something..

too weird, too flowery, too "out there"--remember i do attend the Presbyterian church and we pride ourselves on intellectualism--some call us the "frozen chosen".

Since nothing else came, i had to pray this prayer...

i was nervous,

I felt my stomach shaking inside like I might just throw up.

Why I wondered...I ususally don't mind being a bit "out there".

So i walked over to the pulpit...

could feel my legs shaking a bit--(usually I don't wrestle with the nerves-especially during the prayer)

and i started praying.

When i started, I could feel the Breath of the Universal Spirit take hold of the words,

move about in them,

could feel my voice getting stronger and so I leaned into her.

When shaking folks out....

people spoke of the meaning of the prayer for them....

I was a bit surprised to even hear folks commenting on the prayer...but once they did,

I was glad I didn't have anything else to pray.

I was asked for copies of it...so I told folks I'd post it in my blog (sort of selfish but at least i knew I might get a few hits)

Here it is:

Thirst Quenching God,

We wonder around aimlessly,

Busy, living our chaotic lives,

Separated and disconnected,

Trying to fill the thirst inside us with all kinds of stuff,

 and

All the while you move amongst us,

holding out substance to fill us,

energize us, set us on fire and quench our spiritual thirst.

It is your life-giving, spirit-reviving water  that renews our being

 and

 it is your love that sustains us

even when we don’t acknowledge that this is how we get through the day.

 For this—we say thank you.

Flowing God,
our world is so full of chaos, and destruction,

 Earthquakes,

 Floods, Daily Ruin, Death, Despair,

Overwhelming Grief and Sorrow

Financial Upheaval,

Hunger and thirst and pain—

Power starved individuals everywhere,

Oh God it is most often too much for us to take in,

Most often we choose not to,

We don’t know how to help

 and 

 it is easier and less painful to just close our eyes,

 turn our head and move about our daily business.

We feel helpless and sometimes oh God we even feel a bit hopeless…

 But this morning, we do what we can

 and

 cry to you on behalf of the chaos in the world,

Flow over this Universe,

Gush over us,

Give us that which quenches the worlds thirst.

Inspire us to make a difference and Heal our World we cry.

As a rock dropped in a pool of calm water,

 the rings move out, rippling forever,

Inspire these people to be the ripples of your love that move 

 from here to there,

may they  bear of the Gospel to all they encounter.

Flow over their spirits, revive and convict because.

Grant them Courage, Inspiration and Hope

We pray especially for those who are ill,

For those who grieve,

For those caught in transitions,

For those bound by addictions,

For the homeless, the spiritually thirsty and the hopeless,

We offer these prayers to the Universe because we need

Hope,

in faith we pray these things.

Amen.

That was my prayer and i share it with you...

read it though,

pray it aloud,

send forth an echo to the Universe

for some Love and Hope to wash over us,

Heal Us,

Make us Whole...

If you will...

so will I....even though I'm afraid sometimes.