Peace is about the moment.

The moment my story (about whatever is happening) comes into the picture, drama is born.

My story will always exist.

Conundrum… how do I eliminate drama when my story will always exist?

CONSCIOUSLY BE AWARE of my story. Then decide: do I want to be in the story or be in the moment?

Each time I decide to be in the moment, that decision gets easier to make the next time. Peace is a beautiful moment.

I see you.
I see the real you.
I know you.
I know the real you.
I love you.
I love the real you.

You cannot fool me. I know you and I know who you are.
You can act any way you wish,
but I will not change my mind about you.
I know who you really are. I created you.

I see you, and I will always see you.
You cannot disappear, you cannot hide,
and you cannot change or lose your identity.
You cannot be something you are not.
You can act as if you are something you are not, but you cannot be
something you are not.
Ever.

I will always see what you are being.

I do not care what you are doing, because what you are doing is not
who you are.
I will always see you at the level of being.

I see you. I see who you are.
Nothing you do or say can blind me to that.

When each of you as human beings get that this is how I love you
and how I have requested that you love each other,
It will heal everything.
Forever.

Please start now.

God (or however you like to call the beingness of me)

*This is a found poem, and the author is unknown. It is something that has come out at my Sweetheart’s house every Christmas for many years. I share it with you because it resonates so deeply in my soul. I see you. I love you.

I find the deeper implications of this as I watch others refuse the words of appreciation I speak to them, the gifts I care-fully select for them, and even their own Endowments from Source.

As I observe others, I realize I am looking into the mirror of the Universe. As they refuse to receive, my heart contracts in pain. I want to give, but they won’t let me. The mirror shows that I am refusing my gifts, too.

Today, I claim my gifts. I gratefully receive ALL the Goodness the Universe has been waiting to pour over me.

In all the Goodness, what would you like to claim for yourself today? (Claiming yours doesn’t diminish what anyone else gets; I promise!)

Truly, madly, deeply, head-over-heels, ga-ga, in love.

I have all the tell-tale signs: sudden bursts of laughter for no apparent reason, smiling inside & out, warmth for total strangers, compassion for others, ebullient bliss, etc.

Giddy, wonderous, delicious love.

It feels Mahvelous, Dahling!

It’s that kind of love that people get offended by, but only when they aren’t in it.

Yes, it’s delicious and delightful, and I want to give the whole, wide world a great, big hug, just so I can pass some of the yumminess along. I really do wish I could put this feeling in a bottle and pass it around!

The funny thing is, it didn’t happen suddenly. Usually this goofy kind of thing pops up at first meeting, and then fizzles out. Not this. From the very beginning, I had no hope this would work out. It was rocky from the start, and went downhill from there, if you can imagine. Seriously, it was more hate at first sight than anything.

This relationship has been years in the making. I truly thought this love of mine hated me. Downright cruel at times, the one I now love so passionately seemed to be my greatest enemy, always setting me up with some new obstacle or painful situation. Really? How could I hold love for one who would do such a thing?

In the last few years, I have gained a whole new perspective and awareness. All those horrible things were never intended as horrible things. They were intended to help me become the best person I could be. Oh, I understand that there are other ways to get from Point A to Point B, but I also accept that this was the best that could be done at the time.

Knowing that the intention of it all was pure love, my feelings changed from hate to acceptance to appreciation, and as I have moved deeper into the appreciation, my feelings have turned to this wonderful, blissful, ecstatic, giddy LOVE!

I am truly, madly, deeply, passionately, vibrantly in love with LIFE!

There, I said it!!! I am IN LOVE WITH LIFE!!!

And, it feels wonderful!

You know what else?

I love you.

You are part of LIFE, and you are WONDERFUL!

Blessings, Love, Light, & Laughter from someone who has enough to pass it around!

I love you!

My Joy with Love began when I understood these things:
Love did not begin with me.
I did not invent Love.
I did not begin Love.
I cannot end Love.
I cannot make Love go away.
Love is infinite.
Love has no beginning or end.
It did not suddenly “show up”, because Love has always been present.
I cannot give it all away, because there is not end to Love.

My experience is that the more Love I give away, the more Love I feel around me.
Love and roses are like that. The more I give them away, the more they bloom & grow!

But did you know that the eagle, the very icon of freedom and independence, positively will not fly until it is pushed from the nest?

Fledgling eagles will stay in the nest, begging for food, as long as the adult eagles allow them to. Eagles only fly when pushed.

People are like that, too. It can be scary and challenging to take that first unassisted leap. Thank someone today for the unceremonious shove they provided that caused you to find your wings. It was surely uncomfortable at the time, but look where you are now!

Blessings, love, peace and JOY!

And we continue to discover more each day.

I believe it’s true that we are what we eat, even beyond the physical. Mentally, physically, emotionally, spiritually… I am what I eat, every single day. The food I put in my mouth nourishes (or not!) my body. What I see, hear, and feel, what I speak, write, and think… that is all that my mind, emotions, and spirit have to build from.

For me, it is a minute-by-minute practice of choices based on this belief:
Physically, Mentally, Emotionally, Spiritually
We are what we eat
Let us feed each other good things.
Most importantly, this counts for what I choose to feed myself. (How I treat myself is the basic guide for how others treat me. That’s worthy of a post all by itself, so I’ll now return you to your regularly scheduled feature.)

Extrapolate how frequently the body needs food for blood sugar stability, nutritional balance, etc. and apply that to the mind, emotions, & spirit. This is not a once-a-week or once-a-day deal. As a matter of fact, people who are serious about taking care of their bodies make sure that their bodies have fuel at least every 2 hours. Hmmmm.

What I eat matters. How often I eat matters. How I eat matters, too.

If I have a nutritionally complete meal and rush through it, I set myself up for indigestion, hiatal hernia, and so on. Again, all of this applies on all levels. When someone thanks me for something I’ve done, or tells me what they love about me, I take the time to soak it in. It wasn’t easy at first, but I’ve been practicing for a while, and I’m getting better at it. It’s good food for the mind, emotions, and spirit.

This didn’t just happen overnight. Little choices, little changes, have added up over time. Yes, I’ve eaten my share of McDonald’s in this lifetime, and I’ve absorbed my share of abuse. Slowly but surely, I’ve made changes. The french fries were hard to give up. It took a few years, but the last time I had Mickey D’s fries, they didn’t even taste good. Giving up emotional abuse took time too, but I learned when to walk away.

I think life happens like that a lot. What we see, hear, feel, speak, write, think, etc. is what we are mentally, emotionally, and spiritually absorbing. If we’re used to low-nutrient food (on any level), we will settle for it. However, if we get used to wholesome, nutritious, delicious… then nothing else will satisfy.

Little choices turn into big changes. I wish you a day of love for your body, mind, emotions, and spirit!

I hired my first counselor twenty years ago. One concept she introduced me to is that nothing, and therefore no one, is all good or bad. I argued this with her. I was certain that I knew people who were pure evil! By the same token, I was certain some people in my life were incapable of doing any wrong. Of course, it’s harder to stand on a pedestal than in a pit, so as soon as one of those “perfect” ones would prove they weren’t, I would take away their pedestal and disown them.

I was hardheaded and judgmental, and completely oblivious to that fact. I wasn’t trying to be mean. I honestly thought I was being realistic. In a very painful way, I was quite fair about it; I used that same judgment on myself. Since I knew my flaws, I knew I belonged in the pit. You can imagine how I treated myself, and allowed others to treat me.

It’s been nearly ten years since a client said, “There are twenty ways to do anything; five of them are right. Pick one of the five and do it.” More than one way could be right? I had a headache for two weeks until I could wrap my brain and heart around the idea.

Several years ago, I told a favorite college prof that I understand pain is a part of life, but I needed the pain to have a purpose; if it could help one other person, then it would all be worth it.

A few years ago, a dear soul spent over a year telling me that I can’t possibly do it wrong, and then drifted out of my life when I finally understood.

The past few weeks, I have been inundated with messages that what we call failure is part of the process of learning, and is meant to be embraced.

Last night, I was perusing The Art of Happiness. In the book, the Dalai Lama shares his belief that suffering is a part of life, and acceptance of suffering is a key to happiness. That particular belief was not sitting well with me. Experience has taught me that when I am particularly resistant to something, there is value in exploring the topic.

I had not even gotten out of bed this morning when it fell into place.

Without all the awful things that happened during my childhood, I wouldn’t have had a reason to develop the sensitivities that I use to help others and ease my navigation through life. Without the myriad distressing and dangerous life experiences, I wouldn’t be able to relate to so much of what others are going through. Without the failures in relationships, business, and other areas of life, I would not have such clear understanding of what works and what doesn’t.

Nothing happened “wrong;” it simply happened.

It’s a basic shift in perspective. In releasing the need to “make wrong,” the resentment, frustration, and anger, I find myself able to clearly see the purpose in everything that has happened in my life.

When I release the thought that something is “wrong,” I also release the need to change it. I can simply observe it, learn what I need from it, and move on. I find beauty in knowing that I now use new tools to deal with those old patterns.

“Out beyond ideas of wrongdoing and rightdoing, there is a field. I will meet you there.” ~ Rumi