GRATITUDE: November 25, 2007

11/25/07

God of grace, creation and renewal:

We are people who unwittingly take the many miracles of life for granted.

We thank you for you wondrous gifts of clean air, clean water,

wholesome food:

those simple things upon which our lives depend.

We thank you for your wondrous gifts of color, sound, taste, aroma, texture, that delight our senses and add a special beauty to our days.

We thank you for the gift of each other,

and pray that we may truly treat each other as gifts from you.

Teach us to enjoy the wonder of life, O God.

Receive these gifts we return to you in token of our thanksgiving.

Use them and use us in love for your world.

The great sea

Has sent me adrift,

It moves me as a weed in a great river,

Earth and the great weather

Move me,

Have carried me away

And move my inward parts with joy.

Inuit

My work is loving the world.

Here are the sunflowers, there the hummingbird –

equal seekers of sweetness

Here the quickening yeast; there the blue plums

Here the clam deep in the speckled sand.

Are my boots old? Is my coat torn?

Am I no longer young, and still not half perfect? Let me

keep my mind on what matters,

which is my work,

which is mostly standing still and learning g to be

astonished.

The phoebe the delphinium.

The sheep in the pasture and the pasture.

Which is mostly rejoicing, since all the ingredients are here,

which is gratitude, to be given a mind and a heart

and these body-clothes,

a mouth with which to give shouts of joy

to the moth and the wren, to the sleepy dug-up clam,

telling them all, over and over, how it is

that we live forever.

Mary Oliver

Researchers find the virtues of gratitude include good health.

From Cicero to Buddha, many philosophers and spiritual teachers have celebrated gratitude. The world's major religions, including Christianity, Judaism, Islam and Hindu, prize gratitude as a morally beneficial emotional state that encourages reciprocal kindness. Pastors, priests, parents and grandparents have long extolled the virtues of gratitude, but until recently, scholars have largely ignored it as a subject of scientific inquiry.

McCollough and Emmons report that the results of their study indicated that daily gratitude exercises resulted in higher reported levels of alertness, enthusiasm, determination, optimism and energy. (3 groups: list of events of day, unpleasant experiences, things to be grateful for) Additionally, the gratitude group experienced less depression and stress, was more likely to help others, exercised more regularly and made more progress toward personal goals. According to the findings, people who feel grateful are also more likely to feel loved. McCollough and Emmons also noted that gratitude encouraged a positive cycle of reciprocal kindness among people since one act of gratitude encourages another.

McCullough says these results also seem to show that gratitude works independently of faith. Though gratitude is a substantial part of most religions, he says the benefits extend to the general population, regardless of faith or lack thereof. In light of his research, McCullough suggests that anyone can increase their sense of well-being and create positive social effects just from counting their blessings.
Michael McCullough: Professor of Psychology

Reading from Tom Cowan:

O Great Spirit

Oh Our God, wisdom through the ages

We are thankful for your spirit that permeates all that is

Help us grow in your knowledge

Because we long for you with our whole being

May we call on you intimately, like a friend

Father, Mother, God,

Thank you for your presence
during the hard and mean days.
For then we have you to lean upon.
Thank you for your presence
during the bright and sunny days,
for then we can share that which we have
with those who have less.
And thank you for your presence
during the Holy Days, for then we are able
to celebrate you and our families
and our friends.
For those who have no voice,
we ask you to speak.
For those who feel unworthy,
we ask you to pour your love out
in waterfalls of tenderness.
For those who live in pain,
we ask you to bathe them

in the river of your healing.

For those who are lonely, we ask
you to keep them company.
For those who are depressed,
we ask you to shower upon them
the light of hope.

Oh, Our God, wisdom through the ages

We are thankful for your spirit that permeates all that is

Help us grow in your knowledge

Because we long for you with our whole being

May we call on you intimately, like a friend.

Dear Creator, You, the borderless
sea of substance, we ask you to give to all the
world that which we need most—Peace.

prayer - maya angelou

Gratitude: November 18, 2007

11/18/07

We are, O my God,
but tiny seeds which You have sown
in the soil of Your love,
and caused to spring forth by the hand of Your bounty.
This seed craves therefore,
in its inmost being,
for the waters of Your mercy
and the living fountain of Your grace.
Send down upon it,
from the heaven of Your loving-kindness,
that which will enable it to flourish beneath Your shadow
and within the borders of Your court.
Thou art That Who waters the hearts of all
Your plenteous stream
and the fountain of Your living waters.
Praised be to God,
the Glory of the worlds.

Adapted from Baha'i prayers - Bahá'u'lláh

Make a joyful noise unto the Lord, all ye lands.
Serve the Lord with gladness;
come before his presence with singing.
Know ye that the Lord he is God;
it is he that hath made us, and not we ourselves;
we are his people, and the sheep of his pasture.
Enter into his gates with thanksgiving,
and into his courts with praise;
be thankful unto him, and bless his name.
For the Lord is good; his mercy is everlasting;
and his truth endureth to all generations.

Oludumare, oh Divine One! I give thanks
to You, the one who is as near as my
heartbeat, and more anticipated than my
next breath. Let Your wisdom become one
with this vessel as I lift my voice in
thanks for Your love.

african - yoruba

There is joy
in all:
in the hair I brush each morning,
in the Cannon towel, newly washed,
that I rub my body with each morning,
in the chapel of eggs I cook
each morning,
in the outcry from the kettle
that heats my coffee
each morning,
in the spoon and the chair
that cry "hello there, Anne,"
each morning,
in the godhead of the table
that I set my silver, plate, cup upon
each morning.

All this is God,
right here in my pea-green house
each morning
and I mean,
though often forget,
to give thanks,
to faint down by the kitchen table
in a prayer of rejoicing
as the holy birds at the kitchen window
peck into their marriage of seeds.

So while I think of it,
let me paint a thank-you on my palm
for this God, this laughter of the morning,
lest it go unspoken.

The joy that isn't shared, I've heard,
dies young.

welcome morning - anne sexton

You spoke to me today, my Beloved.
You blessed me by revealing an aspect of Your countenance.
From the bush by the side of the trail, You call out to me,
stopping my movement, stilling my legs, transfixing my gaze in awe.
I see jeweled beads of rain from the night's storm, lying sprinkled on leaves
Like translucent crystal gems arranged in unique patterns
on hundreds of oval green velvet carpets.

You draw my eye to embrace each one, from the very smallest -
smaller than a grain of salt - to the largest - fully ripe like round pearls.
Each one perfect and perfectly placed.
Some defy gravity as they cling to the edge of a leaf.
Others line up like the gemstones of a necklace strung along the leaf's center line.

And then you begin to speak so that I would understand.
And you lead me to know that each droplet, regardless of size or position,
is like a human soul, irreplaceably precious in Your eyes.
Though seemingly distinct, each is lovingly fashioned
from the same essence, the water of Life.

You whisper that though apparently separate, each is connected with all others
through the unified web of leaves, stems and branches that form a whole plant.

Each is nourished by the same roots and earth, air, water, and sun
all of which You sustain and nurture in Your resplendent heart.

Oh My Beloved, Oh ever Faithful One, thank you for Your blessing that
opens my eyes to see and understand the workings of Your love.

ronald bedrick - april 2004

Hazrat Inayat Khan: “It is a patient pursuit to bring water from the depth of the ground; one has to deal with much mud in digging before one reaches the water of life.”

Imagine that you find yourself walking on a woods trail, just before dawn after the first snow of the year. The oak leaves crunching beneath your feet let snow nestle in their crinkled bowls; the pines bow slightly in their new fleece. You reach up and pinch a little snow from their branches, and the freshness of its cool taste on your tongue startles you. Not far away you can hear a not-yet-frozen waterfall flowing with the full force of recent autumn rains. Everything else remains hushed, except for one sparrow who greets the snow with her own sweetness.

Where is water not to be found in this woods world? It adorns the branches and runs through their vessels. It forms fleeting clouds with each breath you exhale, and with each inhalation you can feel in your mouth how you yourself are made almost entirely of water. It runs through the streams that lead to the source of the water you drink. You could not live without its physical sustenance, but neither could you be truly alive without its beauty. As the goblet is passed and you are blessed with water and bless the person next to you – say a prayer of thanksgiving for the water that keeps us all alive.

WATER BLESSING

We call you ocean.

We call you sea, gulf, strait, bight,
bay, lagoon, river, falls, creek,
stream, lake, pond, spring.

We call you rain.

We call you pool, puddle, snowflake,
glacier, dew, mist, cove, channel, inlet,
cascade, brook, tributary, bayou, tarn,

H20.

We travel your powerful currents
to meet our relations.
We flood our rice fields.
We bathe our children.
We cleanse the dead.
We baptise, we purify, we do ablutions,
We immerse in the mikvah.
We heal with you - Holy Water.

We remember to protect you.
We remember to protect you.
We remember to protect you.
We remember to protect you.

prayer to protect water - claudia l'amoreaux

The sun shines down,
and its image reflects a thousand
different pots filled with water.

The reflections are many,
but they are each reflecting the same sun.

Similarly, when we come to know who we truly are,
we will see ourselves in all people.

amma

Cover my earth mother four times with many flowers.
Let the heavens be covered with the banked-up clouds.
Let the earth be covered with fog;
cover the earth with rains.
Great waters, rains, cover the earth.
Lightning cover the earth.
Let thunder be heard over the earth;
let thunder be heard;
Let thunder be heard over the six regions of the earth.

american indian - sia - invocation to the u'wannami

Gratitude: November 11, 2007

11/11/07

Lord make me an instrument of your peace.

Where there is hatred, let me sow love;

Where there is injury, pardon;

Where there is doubt, faith;

Where there is despair, hope;

Where there is sadness, joy;

Where there is darkness, light.

O Divine Master, grant that I may

not so much seek to be consoled, as to console;

not so much to be understood, but to understand;

not so much to be loved, as to love.

For it is in giving that we receive,

it is in pardoning that we are pardoned,

it is in dying that we are born again to eternal life.

St Francis of Assisi

Veterans Day - I want to give thanks to veterans by praying for peace today.

I want to give thanks especially for the very strong and courageous soldiers who are able to step out of their training to kill, which maims them, at least emotionally and spiritually. Both from Mylai in Vietnam:

As a helicopter pilot in the Vietnam War, Thompson was hovering his craft low over Mylai, trying to draw enemy fire. But there wasn’t any. Surveying the hamlet he saw not a battle but a massacre. “This wasn’t war.” He later recalled. Thompson landed his chopper between the marauding GIs and cowering Vietnamese villagers confronted the GIs and ordered them to stand off. Then he and his crew rescued 4 adults and six children, including one badly wounded boy, and flew them to safety.

The other in his own words reading from War and the Soul by Ed Tick

Oh Lord, once I was smart enough to know a just war when I saw it, the kind of war you would approve of. I am not so smart anymore. Every war looks evil to me now. And even the war well begun becomes evil before it is over. So let us have no more just wars; they are the worst kind. Now, at last, give us a just peace.

Time for Shalom. Shalom for our breaking hearts. It’s time. Past time.

Lewis Smedes

To confront evil successfully, we as a nation must confront our own darkness; we must act not as a messiah, filled with undue majesty and certainty, but rather as a healer, filled with compassion, empathy and humility.

David Spangler

READING:

Assailed by afflictions, we discover Dharma
And find the way to liberation.

Thank-you, evil forces!

When sorrows invade the mind, we discover Dharma
And find lasting happiness.

Thank-you, sorrows!

Through harm caused by spirits we discover Dharma
And find fearlessness.

Thank-you, ghosts and demons!

Through people's hate we discover Dharma
And find benefits and happiness.

Thank-you, those who hate us!

Through cruel adversity, we discover Dharma
And find the unchanging way.

Thank-you, adversity!

Through being impelled to by others, we discover Dharma
And find the essential meaning.

Thank-you, all who drive us on!

We dedicate our merit to you all, to repay your kindness.

- Gyalwa Longchenpa

Whatever God does, the first outburst is always compassion.

Meister Echhardt

The Messenger

My work is loving the world.

Here are the sunflowers, there the hummingbird –

equal seekers of sweetness

Here the quickening yeast; there the blue plums

Here the clam deep in the speckled sand.

Are my boots old? Is my coat torn?

Am I no longer young, and still not half perfect? Let me

keep my mind on what matters,

which is my work,

which is mostly standing still and learning g to be

astonished.

The phoebe the delphinium.

The sheep in the pasture and the pasture.

Which is mostly rejoicing, since all the ingredients are here,

which is gratitude, to be given a mind and a heart

and these body-clothes,

a mouth with which to give shouts of joy

to the moth and the wren, to the sleepy dug-up clam,

telling them all, over and over, how it is

that we live forever. Mary Oliver

How then can we argue?

Having lunch in a field one day,

I troubled an ant with a question. I asked of him humbly,

“Have you ever been to Paris?”

And he replied, “No, but I wouldn’t mind going.” And then he asked me

if I had ever been to a famous ant city. And I regretted that I hadn’t,

and was quick to add, “I wouldn’t mind, too.”

This led to a conclusion: There is life that we do not know of.

How aware are we of all consciousness

in this universe?

What percent of space is this earth in the infinite realm?

What percent of time is one second

in eternity?

Less than that is our

knowledge of

God.

How then can we ever argue about

Him?

Meister Eckhart

We are one, after all, you and I: together we suffer, together exist,

And forever will recreate each other.

Pierre Teilhard de Chardin

I know a cure for sadness:

Let your hands touch something

that makes you smile.

I bet there are a hundred objects close by

that can do that.

Look at

beauty’s gift to us –

her power is so great she enlivens

the earth, the sky, our

soul.

MiraBai 16^th century Hindu Mystic

Gratitude: November 4, 2007

11/04/07

Great Spirit, Divine One, Creator
who is heaven earth rock wind insect tree fox
human of every size shape color

Holy are your infinite names chanted sung whispered
shouted in every language, tongue.

We will midwife the rebirth of Gaia
as best we can
restoring the Great Law of Peace.

Guide our hands to the soil and seed
honoring the alchemy of food.
Let us remember your abundance
and share the bread of life with any who hunger.

We are for giving
and giving and giving.
We trust in the give-away.
We give and receive.

Let us be humble before the darkness and the light
walking in harmony amidst them.
Give us courage to know them intimately
both within and without.

For you have breathed it all---
the behind, the above, the below, the beyond.
Your awesome power courses in our veins
and animates our hearts.
You are the Great Drum.

We thank you.

translation of the lord's prayer
from King James to Gaian - claudia l'amoreaux

Amen.

Jesus said: Blessed is one who existed
before coming into being.
-- Gospel of Thomas

Imagine a vast ocean with a single wooden yoke floating on the surface. Deep on the bottom of this ocean lies a single blind tortoise. Once every 100 years she swims to the surface for a gulp of air. Buddha compared the chance of achieving a precious human birth to the chance that tortoise will poke her head through that yoke when she comes up for air. For a more contemporary analogy imagine a pea is dropped from an airplane and lands on the head of a pin held by you.

First, what does precious mean? The word for precious in Sanskrit is ratna. In Tibetan sometimes ratna is translated as konchog and sometimes as rinpoche. Other times it is translated as norbu, which means jewel.

A human birth alone does not ensure that it be a “precious” one. There are 18 conditions called the “opportunities and endowments” that enumerate the circumstances required for a precious human birth. They include having sufficient leisure time, freedom, intelligence, ability to practice the dharma, being born in a time and a place where the teachings are available to you, having faith, a good heart and loving nature, and a spiritual guide to help you.

Think of it!

One of the major foundations of Buddhist thought, impermanence remind us that these blessed circumstances might not last.

Our friend George Breed remind us:

Rather than knowing that we are rich beyond measure
as children of the Light, offspringings of the Source,
taoings of the Tao, daughters and sons of God,
we often settle into being a humanoid,
struggling through the days and nights
with doubt and fear and worry.

Rather than owning the blessings of our birth right,
we follow the illusion of a separate existence,
as alienated isolated blobs of protoplasm
in a cruel and murderous world
relieved only by our desires, our hostility,
and our attempts at stupor.

When we know, truly know,
that we are children of the Living Source,
that the One who births us cares for us and loves us,
we move with great happiness through the world.

As re-presentations of the Divine,
as manifestations of the Source,
we existed before coming into being.
Our roots are deep. We are blessed.

"I do only want to advise you to keep growing quietly and seriously
throughout your whole development; you cannot disturb it more rudely
than by looking outward and expecting from outside replies to questions
that only your inmost feeling in your most hushed hour can perhaps
answer."
-- Rainer Maria Rilke

Vespers - A. A. Milne

Little Boy kneels at the foot of the bed,
Droops on the little hands little gold head.
Hush! Hush! Whisper who dares!
Christopher Robin is saying his prayers.

God bless Mummy. I know that's right.
Wasn't it fun in the bath tonight?
The cold's so cold, and the hot's so hot.
Oh! God bless Daddy - I quite forgot.

If I open my fingers a little bit more,
I can see Nanny's dressing gown on the door.
It's a beautiful blue, but it hasn't a hood.
Oh! God bless Nanny and make her good.

Mine has a hood and if I lie in bed,
And put the hood right over my head,
And I shut my eyes, and I curl up small,
And nobody knows that I'm there at all.

Oh! Thank you God, for a lovely day.
And what was the other I had to say?
I said "Bless Daddy," so what can it be?
Oh! Now I remember. God bless Me.

Little boy kneels at the foot of the bed,
Droops on the little hands little gold head,
Hush! Hush! Whisper who dares!
Christopher Robin is saying his prayers.

Disturb us, Lord, when
We are too well pleased with ourselves,
When our dreams have come true
Because we have dreamed too little,
When we arrived safely
Because we sailed too close to the shore.

Disturb us, Lord, when
With the abundance of things we possess
We have lost our thirst
For the waters of life;
Having fallen in love with life,
We have ceased to dream of eternity
And in our efforts to build a new earth,
We have allowed our vision
Of the new Heaven to dim.

Disturb us, Lord, to dare more boldly,
To venture on wider seas
Where storms will show your mastery;
Where losing sight of land,
We shall find the stars.

We ask You to push back
The horizons of our hopes;
And to push into the future
In strength, courage, hope, and love.

attributed to- Sir Francis Drake -1577

I know a cure for sadness:

Let your hands touch something

that makes you smile.

I bet there are a hundred objects close by

that can do that.

Look at

beauty’s gift to us –

her power is so great she enlivens

the earth, the sky, our

soul.

MiraBai 16^th century Hindu Mystic

We are the ocean -- vast, deep, powerful and rich. Nourishing and
nurturing. Dive down into the dark stillness of being. Sense the rising
and falling of surface thoughts and emotions, sometimes gentle,
sometimes violent. Always shifting. Always in motion. Draw back and
watch the waves of your life at play. Know you are the unfathomable
depths -- surface agitations can't disturb you. Know that you are bigger
than the little things that aggravate you.
"The bird of paradise alights only on the hand that does not grasp."
-- John Berry

10-28-07 HUMILITY

I'm not trying to counsel any of youto do anything really specialexcept to dare to think,and to dare to go with the truth,and to dare to really love completely.
R. Buckminster Fuller - 1895­1983
We each have our own pathways to develop both personally andspiritually. They are based on our character and past experiences. Noone else can identify our paths for us. Tune in to your inner guidancesystem and follow its direction.
M. Scott peck
What every man needs, regardless of his job or the kind of work he isdoing, is a vision of what his place is and may be. He needs anobjective and a purpose. He needs a feeling and a belief that he hassome worthwhile thing to do. What this is no one can tell him. It mustbe his own creation.-- Joseph M. Dodge
Story of Martha and Mary- Sister Dawn Annette



Many of us try to escape the demands of prayer [or meditation] by setting up a false dichotomy between Martha and Mary making either/or what Jesus intended to be both/and. The Marthas say work is primarily their spiritual mode; the Marys say prayer is. Some pretend to be more Martha than Mary to justify their compulsive action and addiction to work/[busyness]. Others pretend to be more Mary to justify their spiritual inertia or laziness. Neither one of the extremes is valid, or isolated from the other.
Tessa Bielecki


All God asks is humility of heart … No one talks about the necessity and power of humility more than St Teresa of Avila, but when it comes to [intimate prayer], she clearly states that this is not a time to get bogged down in a sense of personal sin [or unworthiness]. If we focus on our unworthiness, we will not be able to accept the gift of intimacy. Of course we are unworthy and undeserving! But that is beside the point. What matters now is the incredible overture of love the Holy One is making. Refusing to respond is not truly humble, we do not refuse God’s gift but gratefully accept it the way we accept a human gift with: “Thank-you!” And “Yes!” then we enjoy and delight in the gift.
Tessa Bielecki



How many of us wallow in this kind of false humility? Do we deny the love through Martha’s busyness? Or a spiritual inertia we call Marian? Can you remember a time when you did?


Ah Power that swirls us together
Grant us Bliss
Grant us the great release
And to all Beings
Vanishing, wounded
In trouble on the earth
We pass on this love
May their numbers increase.
Gary Snyder


In safety and in Bliss
May all creatures be of a blissful heart
Whatever breathing beings there may be
Frail or firm … long or big … short or small
Seen or unseen, dwelling far or near
Existing or yet seeking to exist
May all creatures be of a blissful heart
Sutta Nipata

10-21-07 humility

Develop the mind of equilibrium.You will always be getting praise and blame,but do not let either affect the poise of the mind:follow the calmness, the absence of pride.
Sutta Nipata


No one is so wrong as the man who knows all the answers. Chuang Tzu preaches an essential humility: not the humility of virtuousness and conscious self-abasement, which in the end is never entirely free from unctuousness, but the basic, one might say “ontological” or “cosmic” humility of the man who fully realizes his own nothingness and becomes totally forgetful of himself, “like a dry tree stump … ”. One may call this humility “cosmic’, not only because it is rooted in the true nature of things, but also because it is full of life and awareness, responding with boundless vitality and joy to all living beings. It manifests itself everywhere.

Chuang Tzu’s Taoism is nostalgic for the primordial climate of paradise in which there was no differentiation, in which man was utterly simple, unaware of himself, living at peace with himself, with Tao, and with all other creatures. But for Chuang this paradise is not something that has been irrevocably lost by sin and cannot be gained except by redemption. It is still ours, but we do not know it, since the effect of life is society is to complicate and confuse our existence, making us forget who we really are by causing us to become obsessed with what we are not. It is this self-awareness which we try to increase and perfect by all sorts of methods and practices, that is really a forgetfulness of our true roots in the unknown Tao and our solidarity in the uncarved block in which there are as yet no distinctions.
Thomas Merton


Your worst enemy cannot harm you as muchas your own unguarded thoughts."
- The Buddha



In what is seen, there should be just the seen;In what is heard, there should be just the heard;
In what is sensed, there should be just the sensed;In what is thought, there should be just the thought.
Sutta Nipata II,14




One day Ananda, who had been thinking deeply about things for a while, turned to the Buddha and exclaimed:"Lord, I've been thinking- spiritual friendship is at least half of the spiritual life!"The Buddha replied: "Say not so, Ananda, say not so. Spiritual friendship is the whole of the spiritual life!"
Samyutta Nikaya, Verse 2
~



The spiritual life is built entirely on humility If there is no growth in humility – Teresa of Avila does not mince words here – “Everything is going to be ruined.” She uses comforting imagery when discussing this foundational virtue: “Humility is an ointment for our wounds. If we are humble – an indispensable requirement for [intimate] prayer- the surgeon, who is our Lord, will come to heal us.”
Teresa distinguishes between true and false humility. The more we know ourselves, the more we feel distress over our wretchedness. … If we experience excessive distress, anger, agitation, disturbance, and frustration, this is a definite sign of false humility, wounded pride, and egotism. Wee must grieve over our offenses, but what matters more is the unfathomable mercy of God. When we are humble we take God so seriously that we take everything else – especially ourselves – light heartedly.

Teresa’s major teaching on humility is clear: To be humble is to walk in truth – the truth of who we are and who God is. Since humility is truth, it does not mean thinking little of ourselves, but thinking of ourselves very little. This virtue is not for wimps, but for warriors! Humility carries with it a breath of greatness, a jubilant freedom, and holy audacity.
Tessa Bielecki


The idea or practice of surrender does not function in Teresa’s thought to repeat the passivity or the dainty submissiveness of women[“s traditional roles]. Instead it is an empowering recognition of what it means to commit to inner fidelity - to a truth that takes away … subordination and restores … equality. Seldom in life do we give ourselves so totally and fully to the one necessary thing – to find the true self and to know God. Beverly Lanzetta




~
These teachings are like a raft, to be abandoned once you have crossed the flood.Since you should abandon even good states of mind generated by these teachings,How much more so should you abandon bad states of mind!
~
Conquer the angry man by love.Conquer the ill-natured man by goodness.Conquer the miser with generosity.Conquer the liar with truth.
The Dhammapada


Drink your tea slowly and reverently,as if it is the axis on which the world earth revolves - slowly, evenly, without rushing toward the future;Live the actual moment.Only this moment is life.
- Thich Nhat Hahn

10-14-07 HUMILITY

Divine Mother of all BeingsGreat Goddess of Compassion and MercyMay my heart be home to youlike your island in the sea.May I feel your presence guiding me in fear and rage.May the strength and balance of your grace-filled body be mine when I need them,And may I walk in your Bodhisattva Way with trust and gladness,Beyond time, beyond the end, beyond the beginning.
prayer to quan yin - claudia l'amoreaux


I am bowing my headIn the eye of the Mother who gave me birth,In the eye of the Maiden who loves me,In the eye of the Crone who guides me in wisdom,
In friendship and affection.
Through thy gift of nature, O Goddess,Bestow upon us fullness in our need.
Love towards the Lady,The affection of the Lady,The laughter of the Lady,The wisdom of the Lady,The passion of the Lady,The blessing of the Lady,And the magic of the Lady
To do in the world of Abred,As the Ageless Ones do in Gwynfyd;
Each shade and light,Each day and night,Each moment in kindness,Grant us Thy Sight.
carmina gadelica - ancient celtic oral tradition


This new Bible shall be writtenOn the hearts of all mankind,Not by pen or book,But by acts of Love.For to Love as She doesIs to truly know who He is.The unchanged truth is eternal lifeFor all, without exception.For no longer do we wander lost in the Word,But live the word in eternal life.
justina m. pernetter


Yet determination and persistence without surrender and humility are like wild horses, undisciplined and unfocused. True desire involves the pursuit of longing though the practice of giving ones self over to God.
Teresa of Avila


The most intense form of courageous humility is surrender of will, for it operates on a determined faith that there is something greater than the individual self.

Not submissiveness, but an expression of self-knowlwdge and self-worth, the soul surrenders itself “with true confidence.” Julian of Norwich says “whether it be seeking or contemplating … [it] taught me to understand that the soul’s constant search pleases God greatly. For it cannot do more than see, suffer, and trust.”

The idea or practice of surrender does not function in Teresa’s thought to repeat the passivity or the dainty submissiveness of women[“s traditional roles]. Instead it is an empowering recognition of what it means to commit to inner fidelity - to a truth that takes away women’s subordination and restores their equality. Seldom in life do we give ourselves so totally and fully to the one necessary thing – to find the true self and to know God. Beverly Lanzetta


The early years of the great painter Paul Cezanne were difficult and his career was, from the very start, troubled with frequent rejection and failure. His family considered him peculiar and were unsupportive of his art.
After much family turmoil in his younger years, his father gave him a small allowance and he left for Paris where he worked alone and ignored.
Another painter Camille Pissarro became his mentor both lending him moral support, and influencing his palette. Cezanne, in a relatively short time period, switched from dark tones to bright colors.
Cezanne produced beautiful works as an unknown painter for many, many years. His commitment to, and passion for, his art was strong and unwavering and he did not strive for fame or even lesser recognition.
One day, a French art dealer happened to see the masterpieces of Cezanne. He was so impressed that he collected several of the paintings and arranged an exhibition in his gallery. Visitors to the dealer's gallery were stunned as they saw for the first time the works of the unknown master.
The story goes that Cezanne arrived at the gallery and was also stunned. He had never before seen his work featured and admired this way. He walked around looking at his paintings, leaning on his son for support. Slowly he turned his head and looked at his son in surprise and awe. Cezanne then said, "They have put them in frames!"



To know the masculine and yet to cleave to the
feminine is to be the womb of the world.
Being the womb of the world, never departing
from the eternal power of the Tao,
you become as an infant once again: immortal.

To know the bright and yet hold to the dull
is to be the example for the world.
Being the example for the world, not deviating
from the everlasting power of the Tao,
you return to the infinite once again:
limitless

To know honor and yet keep to humility
is to be the valley for the world.
Being the valley for the world,
rich with the primal power of Tao,
you return once again to simplicity,
like uncarved wood.

Allow Tao to carve you into a vessel for Tao.
Then you can serve the world without
mutilating it.

The Tao te Ching, Lao Tzu




All life is your own,
All fruits of the earth are fruits of the womb,
Your union, your dance.
Lady and Lord,
We thank –you for blessings and abundance
Join with us, Feast with us, Enjoy with us!
Blessed Be.
Starhawk