The Gratitude Edge

On the edge of waking I smell the ocean as the wind wraps my body in a salty air mixed with smells of seaweed, crab, and fish.  My daughter yells, “Dad, I found a really cool shell, come see”, and as I turn expecting to feel sand under my feet I realize I’m lost in a dream.  It’s the nonlinear experience of our journey that allows unexpected life touches, an eternity of connections to those places we’ve been, things we done, and people we love.  My daughters find 25 years ago has decorated multiple book shelves, and today I am mindful to be grateful for moments never lost.  Be grateful today for moments never lost.

Soul Circles

Philip Aaberg High Plains

Every once in a while I get an urge to visit the Half Price Book store a short walk from our townhouse.  Last night the browsing was magical as Kabat-Zinn’s updated Full Catastrophe Living (2013) whispered, “Over here”, but my real find was Philip Aaberg’s High Plains solo piano CD.  Using my Kindle Fire, I lay in bed and listened to several tracks, and the night’s magic took me to another time.  // Blue sky reflected in your eyes caught in tears rolling down your face /  a flower held against your cheek, soft petals lick tears of blue // And I am mesmerized by the vision and sound that encircles my soul drawing me deep within the moment.  Let go a little today.       

Escaping Vietnam

The last couple semesters before graduating from college and going into the Army I was a member of the LSU theater backstage crew.  I now realize it was my escape from thinking about my next stage in life.  I had friends from basic training that were dying in Vietnam, as I watched the war protest on campus, and yet I truly wanted to serve my country like my dad in WWII and Korea.  All of us live in a tapestry of feelings, relationships, ideas, and dreams stitched together with threads from our past, present and future.  The backstage work helped ground me in who I was and in the present, where I worked hard, played hard, laughed and smiled a lot.  Focus on today and laugh and smile a lot.   

Who Am I

Morning mist rises off the lake as the sun peeks through the trees. I’ve gotten up early to move a large pile of maple branches we cut several weeks ago before the heat of the day.  Distracted by a hummingbird caressing a pink crape myrtle I follow her path till she’s jets straight up and I lose her in the leaves of a white oak.  Early mornings have always been my best time to touch the internal light and energy or my inner “I”, and share in my spirits quiet peace.  It is in these moments of quiet peace that I let go of the whirlwind and inch closer to understanding “Who am I”.  Find a moment today to lose the whirlwind in your spirits quiet peace. 

Random Moments of Joy

Ever have one of those days where you experience random moments of joy?  I bet like me, most days you do, but you just aren’t present enough to notice.  Yesterday I visited Oscar, a fellow MD Anderson employee, cancer survivor from Louisiana, who always has great stories to tell about playing with his five grandkids.  Oscar is a gentle giant, and as he talked I could feel the cascade of emotions that joy can bring.  I was smiling, laughing, but also felt the happy tears deep within my eyes.  Riding home through puddles left by the afternoon showers I passed freshly painted azalea bushes and thought, “How much better could today get”!  Be open to random moments of joy this weekend. 

Sleep Well?

I sleep really well.  The 24/7 of the Army and leading 7-14 man teams that protected and transported nuclear weapons all over the world taught me how to sleep standing, sitting in noisy Huey or Chinook copters, and under war fatigue conditions.  In graduate school I was the story teller for my young family and would fall asleep with my kids, get up at 1am to study, and by 5am be at the hospital working as an emergency room tech. Over the years I’ve learned that my daily meditation practices step me away from work, cancer, and myself are a perfect complement to my sleep patterns and together give my brain time to reorganize, synthesize, and energize my life.  Do your sleep and daily prayer / meditation practices energizing your life – why not? 

Wholeness Dance

In just a little over a week I’ve followed her from full to waning crescent and felt her swings as she danced around Mars, Saturn, and Venus.  When honest I’m just like the moon swinging from energized to tired, confused to amused, anxiousness to scared, sad to happy, and feeling all alone to being fully loved.  It’s the embrace of all these pieces of me that brings me back, like the moon, to being full or whole.  It is in my wholeness, not just the pieces of me I understand, but also those pieces I work so hard to shed, that my journey claims its passion and purpose.  Reclaim your wholeness today and re-energize your life spirit.