Dear Cave,

Thank you for your quiet and peace,

help me to grow in appreciation of 

 quiet time.

So often I want to run from the quiet rather than 

let myself just be in it.

I"m struggling with finding a meaningful prayer time

each morning and still can't quite come up with 

"The one".   It doesn't have to be perfect

but I sure am trying to make it so.

Rather than be still, I keep coming up with the things 

I should...I ought to be doing...and those things 

seem easier...than Being Quiet 

and Resting in LOVE.

As much as I resist, I need this quiet time 

to balance the fear that builds in me

especially when I listen to "The News".

Sad to say there is rarely any real "News".

It's more a drama..turning all situations

great and small into disasters bearing down on us

relentlessly...!!!

There is so much good, in the midst of the pain, but it is rarely 

shared on the media.

I search for and find Good News on Facebook..

and I am learning to open my eyes and heart 

to the good news of each moment

which I find when I am attentive

and listening.

The best example was my Christmas with my Sister this year.

We called our days together, "Days of  Christmas Miracles",

because things came together and our needs were met

in moment to moment simple acts of kindness, 

attentiveness and generosity...

and we tried our best to give back in the same way. 

God...Spirit..Love...Comforter..Companion..

Daddy...Mom...Creator..Mystery..Holy One..

However we name you, I love knowing that your Loving Energy 

is within me and all around me.

Everything that exists is Your Loving Energy in form.

I also love knowing that You are always with me,

and I am never alone.

When fears begin to show their face,

I remind myself, and You remind me

that I am never alone. Thank YOU.

Thank you Cave, 

for giving me the opportunity to be still and listen..

to ponder ...to remember...to reflect..

to see with new eyes and to renew my heart

when fears build.

I love you, and I am grateful.

Dear Heart Cloud

I haven't shared with Mother Earth for a while

and I am feeling out of touch, and I want to change that.

What struck me as I looked at you today, dear Heart Cloud, was the fact 

that I am growing in being more honest 

about the things that matter to me. 

 Its like the sun is shining on my heart, making visible the things 

that need clarity, focus and attention.

I am grateful for that, as I can say I value something

and yet give it very little attention.

I  get stuck in how I think I  "should" do something,

rather than just taking the time I can, and doing 

my best with that.

The bottom line through it all, is that I am Loved unconditionally 

and that gives me great joy and helps me to let go of 

constantly judging myself.

Thank you for your light of love.

Thank you for helping me to find clarity and focus

 on the things I truly love and choose to do

without getting bogged down

with what I think I "should" or "ought" to be doing.

Thank you too, for reminding me,

that there is no "one way". 

I can do it "My Way"

with focus, attention and love.

Thank you dear Heart Cloud, for showing me once again

that our sharing doesn't always go in the direction I thought It was 

going to go.  I am grateful and 

blessed. 

Dear Golden Forest

photo from FB

How beautiful you are! 

I am in awe of the boldness of your color

and the countless number of your leaves.

I love the contrast of your flaming orange 

and your deep dark bark,
and the wide blanket
of color that has fallen around you. 

What touches my heart 

is knowing that your golden bounty

will soon fall away

leaving you bare, stately 

and vulnerable as winter draws near.

You too, know the reality and power of change.

I am reminded as I behold you,

to take the time to absorb and enjoy 

your magnificence

in all its majesty

in each precious moment

rather than 

dismissing you

before your time.

You help me to understand

and appreciate

the gift of  the NOW

Enjoy what is before you, 
while you have it.
Help me to slow down
and take the time 
to See and Enjoy.

Dear Clouds,

Everything in me, freezes in fear as I look at you. 

I am trying to understand why I get so afraid,

what does seeing dark clouds touch in me.?

I want to understand and in that understanding 

move beyond the panic that I have felt for so long.

It's like waiting for a disaster to happen, pain, death. I feel 

helpless and so afraid. What if... What if...What if...

Help me to understand please.

Death and pain

Death and pain

Death and pain

that's all I see in you!!!

And, for so long dear one

you have known death and pain.

But hasn't everyone done the same?

Am I that different...

or is it that I have not allowed myself to truly feel the pain??

Have the pain recognized?

And sometimes the loss ...is not necessarily 

actual death

but the deep feeling of 

loss and abandonment...

Remember little Cynthia being angry with you

because she felt you had not acknowledged her deep pain.

Feeling so alone.. so young
where is my mother?

where is my sister?

where is my daddy?

Pick me up,

hold me

I am so afraid

and 

alone.

And how many other times have you 

felt alone and lost

and you pushed it down

and kept walking

because when you tried to share

the people you chose to share with,
 were not able 

to hear your pain.

You had a hard time 

expressing your feelings

because 

sharing your feelings 

was seen as being emotional 

in a negative way,

and if you needed a hug

you were labeled 

"huggy kissy...!!"

Sooo alone you were...

I finally take the time
to walk through
the pain..
and acknowledge
all of it.

 I have all to often minimized

the pain of these losses...
Others have suffered so much more.
I say...
Pain is pain...and it hurts.
Thank you for giving me the courage
to walk through the pain of my early life, and this time
to be open and honest
about how and what I feel.

This part of my journey was not easy...
and I am most grateful to now know
that all of these "lost lives"
are far from lost..
and walk with me daily.

Dark clouds will come...
and as they do
I will remember...
how Love has walked with me..
how family members reached out to me.
Family of Birth and Adoption
Family of Mercy
Family of Friends.
how death in not an ending but a beginning
and that
It is a journey into
New Life

Thank you Love, and Clouds
for challenging me to
finally
take the time
to acknowledge and  walk through
 my pain.

Dear Sea Feather

Photo:Face BookPicture IconLand

I was captivated by you,

the minute I saw you.

I can't put my finger on what it is

that draws me to you.

You are named Sea Feather,

while displaying a multitude of feathers.

The one....and the many.

There is a delicate softness about you

as you swirl in a circular fashion.

From your inner core seems to come 

a golden glow of light.

I also have to remind myself,

that you come from the sea

and that totally amazes me.

Would you even be visible, with out a dark background?

I come to you tonight as I struggle to see and name

my own beauty.

For so long, too long,

we humans have learned to focus on 

the LESS of ourselves

rather than the More of Us

Give me the grace, courage and strength

to be willing to see and name my own 

Beauty

without fear of judgement, guilt or 

a negative sense of pride.

You remind me, and I thank you..

that just as your beauty is made visible

with the aid of the sea;

my own beauty is made manifest  

 in the presence of others.

Without any kind of interaction with each other

Our beauty lays dormant.

Wow...what a powerful reminder.

You are helping me to see and understand

that I was initially focusing on your external beauty...

and as attractive as that is, there is much more to you than that!!

Beauty goes much deeper and wider than we often think.

I am ashamed to say that I never thought of you as having 

an inner beauty....I focused only on your outer beauty.

 I realize now, with all the conversations 

I have had with other creatures and plants

these last few years,

that like you, each of them has openly shared with me

their inner beauty of wisdom and love.

Beauty truly goes much deeper and wider than we think.

Without each other, we would not know our beauty!!!

I know the beauty of joy and laughter... because of  gifts and talents shared.

I know the beauty of kindness and generosity.... when I give to another.

I know the beauty of peace... in the quiet presence of LOVE loved ones and pets.

I know the beauty of truth and honesty... in sharing with another.

Dear Sea Feather,

This sharing has taken me way beyond

where I expected to go

and I have much to reflect on

regarding my understanding of Beauty..

My own...and all those I interact with each day!! 

Dear Golden Flower

photo: beautifulfreepictures.com

What caught my attention was your wide open self!!

Your offering of everything you are..

How vulnerable, and yet how beautiful and strong.

As I look closer, I also love seeing the tiny replica of yourself

I'm not sure if it is a bud or blossom.

I honor and admire the risk you take in offering your complete self,

each and every part of you with no exceptions.

The gift of vulnerability.

You are reminding me and challenging me to risk offering the same.

Not easy and not without some fear.

The Gift of vulnerability and openness

is one of beauty,  strength,

and

 as you just reminded me

an opportunity to 

receive

beyond measure!!!

Just as your openness and vulnerability

 invites 

and challenges me

May my own openness and vulnerability

  be enough to invite others

to do the same.

Together, we come to know 

our 

Beauty and Strength

and

open ourselves

to  receive abundantly

as well.

When we are closed,

that closure

 although safe for a while

 blocks

and eliminates

opportunities to receive

the very things 

we may be searching for.

Dear Flower, I have a great big grin on my face,

because this conversation went even deeper

than I thought it would.  Thank you, so much.

Dear Rainbow,

I needed to see your vibrant colors coming through the clouds.

So many things stirring in my heart.

News of loved ones,

friends and family sick and dying.

Our sisters and brothers in so much pain

all over the globe,

Mother Earth being treated as a money making product,

rather than the Sacred Being that She is.

Enough!!

 Thanks to you dear Rainbow

I can give thanks.

Give thanks that even through the pain and fear

can come the gentle bright light of hope and love.

LOVE...Creator...Spirit...

Knows and sees the bigger picture that I can not see,

and I am learning more and more

to trust LOVE in my own lack of understanding. 

And Rainbow reminds me once again,

that her presence is a message of Hope and Love amid

the dark and clouds.

Look...Seek...See...

and I/we will find 

New Life

Hope

Love 

and 

Peace

amid the dark and clouds.

Thank you, Rainbow

for your gifts to me,

today.

Dear Flower,

What caught my attention initially

 was your color and the fullness of your blossom. 

I am amazed at the number of 

individual petals that create your fullness,

and the unique full circle 

you create together. 

Without each one..you would not be you

in your fullness.

As  I look closer at your center

I see a whole new circle

of stems

and 

what appear to be seeds.

Looking deeper,

gives me a more complete

understanding of you

in all your richness.

And does not looking deeper

also give me a deeper understanding

of myself and others.

Too often, I/we see only the surface

and make decisions and judgments 

from there.

The strong stem next to you

reminds me too

that 

without them, you would not be!!

You teach me, visually

the reality of 

interdependence

for yourself

and all of your family members.

For so long, we in the human family have focused on 

 independence

and that has closed our eyes,  

to the reality

that like yourself

we humans are also interdependent!!

Our physical bodies

with all their systems and organs

keep us going daily without any 

specific directions from us!!

We are fed and clothed, because of the giving of life

by so many of our sisters and brothers in the plant and animal families, 

Any projects that we might undertake

are enabled by the giving and sharing of others.

And

before we close, thank you for the reminder that

what caught my eye was your unique beauty

and that like you,

each of us...has that same attraction..

Our Own unique beauty 

to share with the rest of our family.

Thank you flower, for this fascinating reflection with you.

Dear Earth Cave,

photo: from Face BookI 

I have no other name for you...I am fascinated by the coming together of a seeming earth cave,  jeweled green water and a large circular opening to a clear blue sky!!  

Seeing from the inside out...rather than the outside in..is what just came to me.

How would I live my life, seeing from the inside out rather than the outside in?

Wow...I truly was not expecting anything like that...Thank you.

The question stands..

How would I live my life 

Seeing from the inside out??

How do I see from the inside out??

I would begin to trust what is inside...

And what is inside??

The Wisdom and Love of our Creator

The Living Breath of All That Is!!

Wow...Wow...Wow...

Will I trust?

Will I ask??

Will I act?

How often did Jesus say...

"Go within!!"!

Before raising the "what ifs" of fear...

Think about, finding exactly what I/you need as you need it!!!

Wisdom

Clarity

Support

Love

Understanding

Peace

Joy

Humor

Guidance

How??

Seek and you shall find...

Ask, and you will receive!!!

Wow..Wow..Wow...

Go Within...

Seek....

Ask...

Act...

Dear Earth Cave, water and sky...

Thank you for the gift you have shared today

I am awed and grateful once again.

We have used a different format than when we have shared before.

Usually I'll reflect and share my thoughts and then ask for your response.

Today, You were giving responses as I reflected; a more real

inner conversation.

Thank you so much. 

I hear you saying, don't worry about the how of the conversation...

just ASK!!

It doesn't have to be pages long

We can be brief and clear!!

Dear Golden Flower

I thank you for your openness and the new life

continuing to sprout within you.

I thank you for the words you hold

they truly speak to my heart.

You are a wake up call to me..

Stop hiding

and start sharing what you know

in your heart to be true and valuable.

I thank you for the challenge you give me ...

will I at last... risk being as open?

Will I at last, risk sharing with others

how the gift of a loving

heart to heart

 conversation,

with Mother Earth 

or any member of our 

Earth Family

is a rich

opportunity to 

tap into

the wisdom and love

they have for us?

Sadly, you've heard this fear expressed 

many times.

This time...I am ready and willing to 

take the risk.

I need your wisdom dear golden light.

What would you say to me at

this time.

Dear Assunta,

First, we are so glad you have reached the point of acceptance and willingness to risk sharing. It has been a long journey for you. The gift is...you've made your choice and now...so many gifts from Mother Earth and all Beings of the Natural World can become more readily known and available to those willing to take the time to have that "heart to heart" conversation."

As you reminded yourself just recently,  when you begin your sharing...remind yourself and others to stay in the heart and out of your head. As you share with each being take some time to focus on what caught your attention and uplifted you about them.  Trust...and they will share their wisdom with you, each according to their personal story and your own stories.

Now...set that date and let us know how the first gathering goes. We are holding you in our hearts.

Dear Sand, Stone or Wood...

I am fascinated just looking at you...

You are truly Art in motion.

There is a fluidity to you as well as a solidity.

I wonder how you were crafted, how did you come to be

as you are now?

A one time effort or a continuing process of change and development?

Sounds like a life process!!!

I love thinking of my own life as 

Art in motion as well!!

Your colors are soft and rich...

golden sun and shadows.

The more I look at you

I see a part of you that speaks to me of wood?

The mystery deepens!!

Just what am I seeing?

Like so much in life

what you seem to be saying to me 

is

that it takes time to get to know one another...

We can appear to be so much that we are not

and so much more that goes unrecognized.

You hold volumes of mystery

and you have captured my heart.

Yes.. we too..contain volumes of mystery...

pieces unexplored and unrecognized

for so many reasons.

May we all have the courage 

to explore the Sacred Mystery within all Beings

including our own. 

You have stirred so much in me dear

Sand, Stone, or Wood!

What would you say to me... I would appreciate

your wisdom.

Thank you Assunta..we would like to step back a minute and 

note how you chose to begin our conversation.

At first you could only focus on "What if there is no response, I haven't done 

this in a while"..

and then you caught yourself, and said "remember when you did this 

for the first time"

You remembered the joy and the awe

and as it did just now with us

the words flowed.

Our gift to you today is to keep remembering the beauty...joy and awe

in all beings. 

look deeper into the Mystery of all Beings

for their true selves.

Take the time and you will be blessed.

We will all come to know that 

We truly are "Art in motion"

Thank you dear  Sand, Stone or Wood...you have brought me to tears of joy!!