Aligning with Grace

Walking is a practice. Who knew? It can be a spiritual practice as well as a sacred time for the soul. Going for a walk can be a time to replenish your spirit, soothe your mind, and allow for your creative juices to flow. I often get so many amazing insights on my walks I can hardly wait to write them down! This beautiful spring morning, as I went on my walk, I admired the lushness all around me: green lawns, flowering dogwoods and redbuds - fresh on the heels of the majestic cherries in bloom recently. The birds were chirping all around me - having a party - cardinals, robins and a pair of blue jays, joyfully flying from tree to tree.   Why do I say that walking is a practice, and perhaps a sacred one at that? Because taking a walk is an invitation to dwell in the present moment. And that, is simply, the only time there is, and the only time we have. It is an invitation to experience mindfulness. Rather than rush through our day, we might find ourselves slowing down, and stopping ...

Three times today, I receive the same message: "I live in a benevolent universe." The first time, I receive it in my morning meditation. I am so taken with it, that I repeat this affirmation out loud several times: "I live in a benevolent universe." The second time, it comes in a line from today's entry in the daybook, " Every Day Spirit: A Daybook of Wisdom Joy and Peace ." I can tell you - that when I read this sentence, it IMMEDIATELY caught my attention. Lately, my days have been filled with wonderful synchronicities and messages, and I strive to remain open to them. The third message arrived as I was nearing the conclusion of my morning walk by a wooded field. A doe and two fawns crossed my path. This seems to be happening regularly in this particular spot. But today, they lingered and sized me up. Finally, they all  pranced back into the woods. As I walked over the spot where they had initially gathered, I noticed one of the faw...

I believe in unity... And I believe in diversity... I also believe there is unity in diversity... At the heart of things, I believe we are all one... Every woman, man and child on this planet, are interrelated... I believe in Dr. Spock's theology - that the needs of the many outweigh the needs of the few... I believe that we all want the same things - love, liberty, well-being, health - and the pursuit of happiness... I believe there is more that unites us - than divides us... I believe that at our core - we are all the same... I believe that we can all get along... I believe in community... I believe we can work together... The Dalai Lama once said - that he had never met a stranger... We can all be Good Samaritans... I believe we can reach out and touch one another - and that when we do - we touch ourselves... I believe this - because I believe in God - and I believe that each one of us - is made in the image and likeness of God... I believe in unity... And I believe in diversity...

I look into the eyes of a biker - and I wonder - what it would be like to be him...On some level I know...Only from that place of oneness can I ever truly know... From that place - I know what is in his soul - just as I know how it feels to be fully Conscious on the tip of my toe... This place of Oneness calls me...And when I am there, I am not held captive by my head or my senses...I am only there... Namaste! When you are in that place in you - and I am in that place in me - there is only Oneness...We are only One! Unison Benediction Return to the most human, nothing less will nourish the torn spirit, the bewildered heart, the angry mind: And from the ultimate duress pierced with the breath of anguish, speak of love Return, return to the deep sources nothing less will teach the stiff hands a new way to serve, to carve into our lives a form of tenderness and still than ancient necessary pain to preserve Return to the most human, nothing less will teach the angry spirit, the bewildered ...