Life's Loving Memories

  DONE WITH THE SHEDDING--OPEN TO RENEWING "And when we realize that our true Self is one of pure potentiality, we align with  the power that manifests everything in the universe." The Seven Spiritual Laws of Success,     Deepak Chopra 2025 is coming to it's end, 2026 is on the horizon, and it's time to look forward to a new year with positive eyes that are focusing through  a new lens. The innate desire for observing a world that looks at humanity with just that,  a new way to honor all living beings with love, justice, and equal treatment. Searching with a hunger for the diverse way that all people share heir talents with the world. It's time that we lay down our weapons, and find ways of enhancing our planet that assures its existence for a multitude of years to come. Just last Sunday at our Center, we held a burning bowl ceremony. We wrote down some of the things we realized were no longer serving us that we wished to release. We wrote them down on flas...

 I AM A LIGHT " I am  Light, I am a Light, I am a light in this world, and I shine, I shine, I shine..." Karen Drucker What is one thing that most people who believe in a faith tradition of any kind believe in? I think it is light. I am the light of the world, says Christianity. Kwanza uses candles to represent important qualities in life, such as work and responsibility, unity, self-determination, purpose, creativity and faith. In the Jewish tradition, eight candles represent the miracle of the one day's worth of oil that lasted eight days until the rededication of the new Temple. Buddhism and Hinduism light candles for enlightenment and tradition.  In New thought, light represents that which dispels the darkness, or enlightenment. What does light mean to all of us in our daily lives? I think it means the kindness we can share with others; the openness of our eyes and heart to see and feel what needs our loving attention; opening the blinds to let the light in. The world...

DIFFERENT IS NOT BAD, IT'S JUST DIFFERENT "We have to be flexible and tolerant as well as positive and affirmative. And even if someone throws a brick at us we need not catch it. It is far better just to step aside." Ernest Holms,    -- Living the Science of Mind           I've picked up a saying through the years I've been on this Earth, "It isn't bad, it isn't good, it just is." I have discovered that holiday's are the times when this saying comes to life for me. At holiday gatherings, topics often turn to politics or religion, and in all reality, no matter what comments are added to the conversation, neither your thoughts or another's thoughts are very likely to change. My key phrase, when someone is saying something I totally disagree with is, "I never thought of it that way before", and then I shift the topic to something else. I come from a long line of people who like to be right, who insist something should be done their...

ENJOYING LIFE "The last of human freedoms--to chose one's attitude in any given set of circumstances, to chose one's own way."             --Victor Frankl What does enjoying life mean to you? For me, it means really connecting to what is happening in the world around me, and that always starts with what is happening in the nature that surrounds my community. If I wake up feeling gloomy, I like to put on some comfortable shoes, and explore the community around me. I walk a mile or two and absorb the beauty of the nature that surrounds me. Blooming flowers, Canadian geese flying overhead, neighbors walking their dogs, a crack in the sidewalk with a tiny flower poking its way through the cement, the clean crisp air that blows gently around me -- all are simple things that awaken my senses. Each morning I have a cup of coffee, and if it is a clear day, I sit outside and journal. This routine prepares me to truly enjoy what life has to offer for the day. Wh...

UNWRAPPING DECEMBER "In the end, just three things matter: How well we have lived. How well we have loved. How well we have learned to let go." Jack Kornfield Hello December!!! Only three weeks and a few days until Christmas day. My holiday decorations are all set to come out, and once again walls and halls with be festively festooned. Holidays past always come to mind, and it isn't the presents or money spent that come to mind, but the friends, family and love that fill my memory. I remember the first Christmas on my own, in a one-bedroom apartment with soda crates for tables, and cinderblocks with wooden planks over them for bookcases. Not much money to go around, but great fun, great times, and love and joy in the air. How is your holiday season unfolding? Are your friends and family nearby? Are you new to town, but reaching out to neighbors to share some holiday cheer? I think back to years when I have been included in holiday plans, and how special it was to be inclu...