On Vacation

To all interested parties, I am taking a vacation from my blog, during which time I will think about what I want to do with it. I began sharing my thoughts in November 2009 and it has been fun. Now I need to decide if I really want to continue. There is some possibility that the blog was simply a tool to get me to where I needed to be to move on with my life.

As I always like to share what I have with others I am leaving you with my very favorite spirit photo of "My Man". Enjoy your summer!

Fun in the Sun?

The first week of summer has been an interesting mixture of energies. I had lunch with a friend on Monday, who is a retiring elementary school teacher. Her life is going to be experiencing a big change, especially when fall comes and there are no more children in her daily life. She does enjoy her grandchildren, but it is not the same as being responsible for teaching a room full of eager young minds. She says she is ready for retirement, but I wonder if she will feel that way on the first day of school. I am happy that my grandson was in her last class.

The rest of the week was divided between me stuff, like a haircut, and taking care of Colin, who is finally taking swimming lessons. He is going to be a great little swimmer, which doesn't surprise me. He was born to be athletic among other things. As I have mentioned before his small size just doesn't matter at all. Colin is a strong kid- inside and out!

My project for the last few days has been scraping the paint off my deck. My ultimate goal is to replace the rotten boards, remove the paint from the good ones and apply water repellent stain to the whole thing. Fun you ask? I don't think so, but someone has to do it. Colin was helping scrape for a couple of days. He actually thought it was fun. It reminded me of Tom Sawyer and the whitewashed fence!

For the rest of the weekend I am on my own. My little helper left on a camping trip last night and I hope he has a great time. He promised to help me when he returns. I did get a little assistance from Mother Nature when it decided to rain, getting some of the boards wet, which makes removing the paint easier.

What Does a Terrorist Look Like?

My friend, Grace, just returned from a trip to Texas to visit her grandchildren with a hair rising story. She had extended her original plans to stay a week, causing her to book a one way flight back home to New Mexico. She told me she was picked out and searched by security officials simply because she was only traveling one way. Although she had nothing to hide, the experience really shook her up.

She was so upset she forgot to retrieve her cell phone. Fortunately her daughter chose to call about that time to make sure she had checked in. The call was answered by an official who was nice enough to locate her mother and return the phone to her. Grace did say the security people were very nice while performing their duty.

I relayed the story to my daughter who is traveling by air this weekend to another state. She had a story of her own that I was not aware of. Several years ago, which would make her twenty something, she had checked in for a flight and was killing time before boarding by quietly reading a book in the waiting area. Out of the blue, there was a tap on her shoulder and a security officer asked, “Are you traveling alone?” When she said yes, she was instructed, “Follow me.”

She was not only searched, but every single thing that was in her luggage was taken out and examined. She gave the officials cause for laughter because she had trouble repacking. Again my daughter said the security people were nice to her. The best part was they let her board the plane before the other passengers.

I realize that airport security needs to be tightened for everyone’s safety, but both of these stories were a little ridicules in my opinion. There have been instances of airlines allowing passengers who are actually on security watch lists to board. I don’t understand why an elderly lady (sorry Grace just trying to make a point!) and a young unassuming girl would be searched for any reason other than unruly conduct.

Perhaps all passengers are assumed to be dangerous until proven otherwise. I wonder, what does a terrorist look like anyway?

Never Alone

How many times do we feel we are all alone? When we don't see another human in our immediate vicinity it is easy to come to that conclusion. Sometimes it is nice just to have someone to listen to us and use as a sounding board. The fact is we are never alone. Whether or not we accept it we have an eternal connection with our Creator and thus with everything created.

A few years ago during a "psychic reading" my guide, Richard, laughed at me (at least I was told he did) because I complained that I was all alone. At the time I thought it was a bit rude. Now I understand why he reacted the way he did.

I have read the poem "Footprints in the Sand" many times over the years, but until I heard the words sung I don't think I got the full message. I found this beautiful version on the Facebook page "This Too shall Pass" this morning and I want to share it with you. Enjoy!

Here is the link for Footprints in the Sand- Leona Lewis

Thinking New Thoughts

I have been trying for months to really understand the way the law of attraction works. I read and read and there is still something missing. Why am I not getting what I continually ask for? The universe knows very well what I want. There is supposed to be abundance after all. Am I doing something wrong?

Part of the equation is being grateful for what I have and- I am. I look around at others my age in similar circumstances and I can clearly see that I have much to be grateful for. Even experiences that I once thought were negative now cause me to be grateful. If I had not had them I would not be where I am today. They are like stepping stones to future experiences and growth.

I know it is necessary to have vibrational harmony with what you are asking for. Thinking I am just a little confused about how to accomplish this I dug further into the information that I have available. Ask and it is given- right!

One of the first things I found was a quote from Abraham “I am happy with what is and eager for what will be.” I began using it as a mantra and positive things began to happen. Then I found a quote from Tennessee Williams, “Success is blocked by concentrating on it and planning for it. Success is shy- it won’t come out when you’re watching.”

From Dr. Juliet Tien (Dr. J’s Holistic Healing Center) I found these simple steps to achieve vibrational harmony. They are: smile no matter what, think positive thoughts and stick to them, release negative thoughts and emotions, practice instant forgiveness, allow yourself to receive, tithe constantly and pray continuously.

Abraham/Hicks always hits the spot for me, probably because of its simplicity. “What you shine your light on will get bigger.” So, if you focus on what you don’t have (a lack of) that is exactly what you will get more of. If you focus on the positive things you do have (abundance) you will get more. “Your power is in your choice of thought. It is your ability to focus your mind on things that cause you to feel good. Nothing is more important!”

Be happy right now! Don’t wait for your desires to manifest. Reach for thoughts that make you feel good because the better you feel the more aligned you are with “source”. The more aligned you are with source the more your desires will manifest.

Test Pilot

Last Sunday I began thinking about how I could be a little cooler this summer. I do not have air conditioning and sometimes it gets pretty hot in my house. Another consideration was money, which is always a piece of the puzzle when I want to do something. I'm not complaining because it usually makes me more creative. New challenges actually make me happy.

I checked out free standing hammocks on line. There were several that I liked, but I don't like paying extra for shipping. I decided to put my search on the back burner for awhile. At least I had put the thought out there for the universe to know I was thinking about it.

Monday morning after my usual hour walk at our family center I stopped by the grocery store. As I approached the entrance I noticed large boxes containing all kinds of interesting patio equipment. I followed my intuition and in the middle of the boxes I saw a free standing hammock, just like the one I had thought of ordering. It was even the same color and slightly cheaper. Coincidence? I don't think so.

As I was standing at the check-stand to pay for my groceries the hammock kept calling my name. I couldn't resist. Next challenge- can I assemble it myself or do I need help? My thought was, "Oh come on you aren't stupid just follow the directions step by step!" The pep talk worked and although it took a little longer than it would have taken most men it fits perfectly under my trees. Of course, anyone following my blog knows my test pilot was my grandson, Colin!

Stalling for Time

Okay, I admit it I'm stalling for time because I can't think of anything to write about. Someone very intelligent once said a picture is worth a thousand words so I'm cheating. Over the years I have taken some wonderful pictures of the area where I live. I love to share them. Today I picked a couple of my favorite sunset scenes and I hope you enjoy them.

Would You Rather Be a Duck?

Ducks are talented little creatures. They can fly, swim and walk on two feet. They are very social animals and suffer if they don’t have companionship. When they are raised by a human they often begin to think they are one. Ducks are close relations of geese and swans. Some interesting facts are: they have three eyelids, their webbed feet have no nerves or blood vessels so they never have cold feet, some ducks can fly 332 miles per day and they line their nests with feathers plucked from their chest. Ouch!

Our local park is the home of many species that spend their summers with us. We sometimes have geese dropping by and I once took a picture of a pelican that was evidently left behind when his group flew off. Last June we had our very own “octomom", as seen in the top photo. My grandson and I watched the little ones grow all summer. The lower picture is of four ducks who guarded the mom and babies.

There are a number of famous ducks. Disney must have loved them because his flock included Donald, Daisy, Hewey, Dewey, Lewey, Scrooge Mc Duck and Daffy Duck.
Then of course, there is the AFLAC duck, disco duck, the “You Bet Your Life” duck, who revealed the secret word for Groucho Marx and won contestants $100. Count Duckula began his career on British TV in 1988 before coming to the US. Long before that was Hans Christian Anderson’s Ugly Duckling in 1843 who grew up to be a swan.

Just for fun I found this poem for your enjoyment.

Ducks
Ducks are lucky don’t you think?
When they want to take a drink
All they do is duck their bill,
Doesn’t matter if they spill.
When they want to take a swim
All they do is dive right in;
And they never seem to sink.
Ducks are lucky don’t you think?
~Mary Ann Hoberman

For Richer or Poorer

Excerpt from my CD “A Hole in the Middle”

Many stories have been written about the poorest of the poor and the richest of the rich. It is interesting that the poor of the world are often happier than the rich. Perhaps it is because they know that true happiness comes from within not from without.

When a person has little he/she treasures what they have. The rich continually acquire more than they could ever use. I believe it would be better to be poor first and then rich. If it were the other way around it would create an abundance of residents in mental facilities and graveyards. The majority of he rich could not handle the role reversal.

The poor tend to value what they have. They use up the last drop of anything before looking for a replacement. They mix and match and substitute missing ingredients. They are magicians who create things from nothing. They see and appreciate the beauty of the world because it is a free gift from God. Most live simple lives.

The rich tend to be part of a throw away society. If it isn’t the right color, size, style or age they toss it and buy something new. Their closets are filled to the brim with things they have forgotten they have. Their schedules are so full they have no time to appreciate anything. They live complicated lives that lead to heart attacks, strokes and ulcers.

Then there are the poor who try to imitate the rich and end up even poorer. I have never heard of a rich person wanting to imitate a poor person, although it would not be a bad idea. They might learn that money and possessions do not make you who you are. When you leave earth you will take nothing with you except what you have learned during your stay here.

According to statistics, I fit in the poor category; however, I don’t feel that the tag describes me at all. I remember my mother asking me when I was a teen what I would do if I was rich. I believe my answer was, “Probably give it all away.” Today my answer would be take care of myself first, and then use it to help others. Experience has taught me to be grateful for whatever I have.

Abraham suggests to attract abundance think “I am satisfied with what is and eager for what will be.” Sounds good to me!

What in the Bleep is a World Cup?

I have been hearing about this thing called the World Cup from my Facebook friends for some time, but I really had no clue. I knew it was being hosted by South Africa, a country until now I hadn’t given much thought to. Not even sure exactly where it is on the map. Note to myself: you really need to get out more!

Last night I accidentally caught the last half hour of the musical festivities on ABC. I was impressed with the energy of the entertainers; both professional and what I assume were ordinary dancers and singers. The colors were vibrant and amazing and I thought the use of children was very special. Everyone looked like they were having a wonderful time.

I also accidentally tuned in to the soccer match between England and the United States this afternoon. Now I do know something about soccer because my grandson has played on a youth team for the last four years and he loves the game. As a dutiful grandmother I love to watch him play and he is good!

I started watching this match toward the end of the first half, but because I saw no recognizable insignia on the uniforms I wasn’t sure which team was which. By the beginning of the second half I realized I had been cheering for the wrong team. It really didn’t matter because the score was tied 1-1.

As a viewer who obviously is not particularly a sports fan, I enjoyed the match very much. Comparing it to the youth games I usually watch, I was amazed at how big the playing field is, how many times the head is used to keep the ball in play and the tricky foot movements. I hate to say this, but I really thought England played a better game then the United States because most of the action was in their end of the field.Tim Howard did a fantastic job of fending off England's attempted goals.

So now I know what a World Cup is- sort of, well I know a little more than I did yesterday at this time anyway.

The Beauty of a Tree

I love trees. There are so many varieties producing everything from shade to food, building materials and shelter. Like people, some are short and stout and some are tall and slender. Also like people they all possess an individual beauty and their leaves and branches are all nourished by the same roots.

New Mexico does not have an abundance of green grass, but we do have an interesting assortment of trees. The above photos show off a few. The top is a fall photo of the Aspen on Mt. Taylor; the middle photo is of my favorite Willow tree in our local park and the bottom photo is of a determined tree growing from a boulder on the Sand Bluffs in Cibola County,overlooking a lava bed.

When I thought of writing a post on trees I couldn’t help remembering the poem “Trees” that I first heard centuries ago. The beautiful poem was written by Joyce Kilmer 1886-1918. How fitting that her words were written so many years ago. I think it is a positive message to all of us writers who sometimes wonder if anyone is really listening to what we have to say. You just never know how many times your words are going to be repeated or how many people they might help. So my message is just keep doing what you are doing!

Trees
I think that I shall never see
A poem lovely as a tree.

A tree whose hungry mouth is prest
Against the sweet earth’s flowing breast;

A tree that looks at God all day,
And lifts her leafy arms to pray;

A tree that may in summer wear
A nest of robins in her hair;

Upon whose bosom snow has lain;
Who intimately lives with rain.

Poems are made by fools like me,
But only God can make a tree.

Feelings and Emotions

(This anonymous piece was posted by Priya Deelchand, the administrator of the facebook group “Happiness is Your Birthright”)

Once upon a time all feelings and emotions went to a coastal island for a vacation. According to their nature, each was having a good time. Suddenly, a warning of an impending storm was announced and everyone was advised to evacuate the island.

The announcement caused sudden panic. All rushed to their boats. Even damaged boats were quickly repaired and commissioned for duty.

Yet, Love did not wish to flee quickly. There was so much to do. But as the clouds darkened, Love realized it was time to leave. Alas, there were no boats to spare. Love looked around with hope.

Just then Prosperity passed by in a luxurious boat. Love shouted, “Prosperity could you please take me in your boat?’

“No”, replied Prosperity, “my boat is full of precious possessions, gold and silver. There is no place for you.”

A little later Vanity came by in a beautiful boat. Again Love shouted, “Could you help me Vanity? I am stranded and need a lift. Please take me with you.”

Vanity responded haughtily, “No, I cannot take you with me. My boat will get soiled with your muddy feet.”

Sorrow passed by after some time. Again, Love asked for help. But it was to no avail. “No, I cannot take you with me. I am so sad. I want to be by myself.”

When happiness passed by a few minutes later, Love again called for help. But Happiness was so happy that it did not look around, hardly concerned about anyone.

Love was growing restless and dejected. Just then somebody called out, “Come Love I will take you with me.” Love did not know who was being so magnanimous, but jumped on to the boat, greatly relieved that she would reach a safe place.

On getting off the boat Love met Knowledge. Puzzled, Love inquired, “Knowledge, do you know who so generously gave me a lift when no one else wished to help?”

Knowledge smiled, “Oh that was Time.”

And why would Time pick me up and take me to safety, Love wondered.

Knowledge smiled with deep wisdom and replied “Because only Time knows your true greatness and what you are capable of. Only Love can bring peace and great happiness to the world.”

Love is...

This morning the word love was uppermost in my thoughts. I decided it would make an interesting blog post. It took me a good part of my life to understand that love and sex are not the same thing. Perhaps I am a slow learner or maybe it had to do with the life experiences I chose. Anyway, today I know that true love has little to do with any organ below the heart.

Curious, I began poking around on the net to see what I could locate to back up my current belief. The first thing I found was this quote from 1 Corinthians 13:4-7: “Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud, it is not rude, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil, but rejoices with the truth. It always protects always trusts, always hopes, always preserves.”

Often when I think of the word love I remember the 1970 award winning movie Love Story and its now famous quote, “Love means never having to say you’re sorry.” This also brings back the memory of a Priest who focused an entire sermon on the words, because he was angry. Truthfully, I have never figured out what the writer Erich Segal intended them to mean. Why wouldn’t you say you are sorry if you really are?

Love for others is expressed in many ways. Random acts of kindness, sending a card or making a phone call just to say hello, a gentle hug or understanding smile when someone is having a tough day cost little, but they let others know that they are loved.

I found some great quotes on love that I want to share, beginning with this one from Og Mandino, “Do all things with love.”

“Love is how you stay alive, even after you are gone.” from Tuesday’s With Morrie~ Mitch Albom

“It is sad not to love, but much sadder not to be able to love.” ~Miguel de Unamuno

“For it was not into my ear you whispered, but into my heart. It was not my lips you kissed, but my soul.” ~Judy Garland

“Love is always bestowed as a gift- freely, willingly and without expectation. We don’t love to be loved we love to love. ~Leo Buscaglio

“God is love”…and when you love you are like Him. ~St. John

I just couldn’t leave out the kids, because as Art Linkletter discovered years ago, they say the darnedest things. Perhaps we should listen to them!

“If you want to learn to love better, you should start with a friend you hate.” ~Nikka (6)

This story is about a 4 yr old whose neighbor was an elderly gentleman who had just lost his wife. Upon seeing the man cry, the little boy went into the man’s yard, climbed onto his lap and just sat there. When his mother asked what he had said to the man the boy replied, “Nothing, I just helped him cry.” Wow! To be that loving!

God Sees and Hears All

I had an interesting experience over last weekend involving a female friend. This person possesses a great deal of negative energy, which I do my best to tune out. I mentally draw a circle of protection around myself when we are together. She is very prejudice, mostly against Native Americans. She wants more than anything to sell her house and move out of New Mexico. I am beginning to wonder if God/Source is keeping her here to teach her a lesson. I can almost sense a universal smile.

We were headed for Gallup, NM (about 60 miles away) to shop in the mall and have a nice lunch. The biggest store we have in Grants is Wal-Mart and our restaurants are pretty much Mexican or Oriental. It is nice to have a better choice now and then.

She soon began complaining about her predicament. I countered with the fact that there wasn’t much she could do about it until she found a buyer for her house. I told her to stop focusing on what she thought was a problem and focus on the moment, adding it was really all she had. I suggested she be grateful for what she has been given. That didn’t go over too well, but at least I tried.

After leaving J.C. Penney’s, where we took advantage of a great sale, the first words out of my friend’s mouth were, “The only people we saw in the store were Indian.” I didn’t respond, but thought, “So do you want them to find a new planet to live on?” After all, Gallup, NM is occupied mostly by Native Americans. We were in their town!

We went on to finish our shopping, had a wonderful lunch at Applebee’s and headed home in near 100 degree heat. Luckily we were comfortable in her bright red Mustang with air conditioning. She loves expensive cars and driving fast. Her tastes are a little above what I need to make me happy, but that is her way.

Later that evening I received a frantic call from my friend telling me that after a trip to the grocery store her radiator was spewing anti freeze all over her garage. She made the comment that God had protected her on the trip back home. I, on the other hand, immediately and silently expressed my gratitude to Source that it had not happened on the interstate in all that heat.

While my friend unsuccessfully spent the rest of the weekend trying to get her car fixed, I enjoyed a very relaxing Sunday puttering around my house and yard and even connected with a couple of new friends via the net. This morning I drove my friend to work because her car is still not fixed.

I am not taking credit for anything, but I can’t help wondering just how much her negative and my positive energy played a part in the outcome of this story. A quote by Abraham/Hicks seems to fit just right- “Appreciation of others and yourself are the closest vibrational matches to source…”

Then there was Light

“He who would live in peace and at ease must not speak all he knows or all he sees. ~Benjamin Franklin

What a "bright" man Mr. Franklin was. I wish I had seen that quote a long time ago; it might have saved me a lot of pain. Lately I have been making a conscious effort to keep my mouth shut when I see or hear something that is not right- according to me. If you could overhear my soul mind talking to my ego mind you would be catching a lot of “leave it alone that has nothing to do with you!”

It is especially difficult for mothers of grown children to just make suggestions and leave the decision to take them or not up to the "child". Sometimes I look at my children ages 49, 44, and 30 and think, "did I do that?" I know I did the best that I could to teach them good values and if they didn't follow my example- oh well! I am no longer taking responsibility for the way they now live their lives.

When I look around and see others wasting what they have, abusing their bodies, being intentionally mean spirited or showing little gratitude for anything it is hard to keep quiet. I believe one of my big goals for this lifetime is to learn when to butt out and let others make their own mistakes. I have to constantly remind myself that I do not know all the details in that person’s life.

I spent most of my adult life trying to retrain other people to fit my idea of what they should be doing and how they should be doing it. What an enormous waste of time and energy that was. Life is a whole lot easier just taking care of me. No way do I consider myself perfect, but I am a much more balanced person than I was when I started my "conscious" journey to enlightenment eleven years ago.

Enlightenment

So then I thought...
Two months after the sudden disappearance of “iffin” from my life my opinion is he and his best bud KS are two of a kind. Although they both claim to be great communicators, they are a joke. I suspect they led previous lives as a comedy routine in a cheap Las Vegas show. As long as others say exactly what is expected everything is hunky dory. If the person actually has a workable brain and dares to put it in gear, whoosh John and Kate vanish faster than a speeding bullet.

I am trying to figure out what the lesson was. Think, but don’t speak is rather negative and just not my style of living. The only positive one I can come up with is- I am not responsible for what anyone else chooses to do. Sounds good to me!

Am I angry? Absolutely not, I wish both of them peace, good health and happiness. It is a shame that they did not stick around long enough to appreciate what they are missing. In retrospect I certainly hope this is the last time I will have to deal with this particular lesson.

Lessons
Life is full of everyday lessons
Based on experiences each has had
Endings always signal beginnings
Adding new experiences to our past
Slowly waking and accepting
Lessons needed to stay on our path.
Barbara Gunn 2001

quotes on the subject from Buddha

"An insincere and evil friend is more to be feared then a wild beast; a wild beast may wound your body, but an evil friend will wound your mind."

"Holding on to anger is like grasping a hot coal; you are the one who gets burned."

Home is where the Heart is

Over Memorial Day my daughter, my grandson and I took a trip to Colorado Springs to visit my son. It was a fun filled three days as you can see from the above photo taken of Colin. We had stopped on the way to enjoy a picnic lunch in Raton, NM. It was pretty windy so lunch was a bit brief, but it gave Colin a chance to use up some energy before getting back in the car. He is a great little traveler!

After leaving New Mexico we began spotting glimpses of the magnificent Rocky Mountains, which were our companions for the rest of the trip. Of course as we approached Colorado Springs we had a close up view of Pikes Peak.

Saturday was our big tourist day. We started out at Peterson Air Force base to take in the Air and Missile Museum. There are twelve retired planes and various missiles outside allowing a close up view plus a building with historical paraphernalia. Our guide asked Colin if he wanted to go inside one of the planes and of course, he said yes. It was a Lockheed EC-121T “Warning Star”, the biggest plane on the lot! Not only did he go inside he sat in the navigator chair and the cockpit and worked the controls. This particular plane was used for radar missions and could hold a crew of 22.

After lunch we moved on to the Cave of the Winds. This is a huge limestone cave discovered in the late 1800s by two young brothers, George and John Picket; who were out for a day’s exploration with their church group. The cave is full of stalactites and stalagmites. Colin, a little less than 4ft. tall, loved passing on the instructions to duck to his over 6ft. uncle. We all came out the exit in one piece.

Next we drove through the Garden of the Gods, which are huge limestone formations. I was a little disappointed, probably due to the fact that we have beautiful sandstone bluffs close to where we live in New Mexico.

Sunday Uncle Jeff had purchased tickets to the minor league Sky Sox game right down in front. Colin was thrilled and came away with a team jersey, a baseball cap, an orange finger and a program signed by the team mascot- Sox the Fox. Oh and by the way, the Sky Sox won 3 runs to 2.

The rest of the entertainment came from my son’s house. His basement is a home theater, complete with lounge chairs and all the goodies. So when we weren’t otherwise occupied we watched movies. His other passion is the barbecue grill and we found out he is a very good cook!

Although the trip was fun and we saw many new things, I was very happy to return home. I think Dorothy was right, “There is no place like home!”