“And don’t think the garden loses its ecstasy in winter.
It’s quiet, but the roots are down there riotous.”
-Rumi
The peace and quiet that is winter, allows the deeper recesses of ourselves to be wholly alive, riotous even!
Exploring the inner spaces is never ending…
December 21.
Breathing in, the earth surrenders to the shortest day of sun’s light, and the longest dark of night. The wave of light and darkness crests and the sun is welcomed back. Its journey is lengthened each day.
Honoring the earth’s process brings beauty and attention. Deep comfort is found in the unfolding of the unending seasons. The lovely flow carries us, and each day we absorb more of the increasing light.
These gifts of winter solstice are here to be freely embraced.
What precious gifts nature gives.
“None of us are getting out of here alive, so please stop treating yourself like an after thought. Eat the delicious food. Walk in the sunshine. Jump in the ocean. Say the truth that you’re carrying in your heart like hidden treasure. Be silly. Be kind. Be weird. There’s no time for anything else.”
-Keanu Reeves
Baring the hidden treasure of your truth, celebrating and not hiding from life, walking in the sunshine (and in fresh snow), yes, I heartily agree with Keanu Reeves, that life is to be lived with vibrant awareness and passion!
This morning I am attune to the radiating trees in their snow clothes, the sun embracing every fiber of them and me! The peace of silent footsteps in newly fallen snow – so many gifts this day has already given.
“Where are you
little girl with broken wings but full of hope?
Where are you
wise woman covered in wounds?
Where are you? Where are you? Where are you?
Today is the day I will not sit still and give in anymore,
today I rise.
I am bruised but I will get up and walk again,
today I rise.
I don’t care if you ignore my beauty,
today I rise.
Through the alchemy of my darkest night, I heal and thrive,
today I rise.
I move through the world with confidence and grace.
I open my eyes and am ready to face
my wholeness as a woman and my limitless capacities.
I will walk my path
with audacity,
today I rise.
I reconnect with the many aspects of myself.
I am in awe of the reality I can create.
I am a queen,
I am a healer, a wise woman, a wild woman.
I will rise and be.
I am a rebel I will wake up and fight.
I am a mother and I am a child.
I will no longer disguise my sadness and pain,
I will no longer suffer and complain.
I am black and I am white.
There’s no reason to hurt.
Where are you? Where are you?
I call upon Kali to kiss me to life.
I transform my power and anger,
no more heartache or strife.
The world is missing what I am ready to give,
my wisdom, my sweetness, my love
and my hunger for peace.
I weep with the trees and the rivers
and the earth in distress.
I rise and shine and am ready to go on my quest.
Today I rise without doubt or hesitation,
today I rise without excuses, without procrastination.
Today I call upon my sisters to join
a movement of resoluteness and concern.
Today is my call into action,
to fulfill my mission without further distraction.
Today is the day,
today I will start,
to offer the world the wisdom of my heart”
This beautiful short poem of a film (by Films for Action; filmsforaction.org) and the accompanying words were perfect music for the celebration of my birth day…..
http://www.filmsforaction.org/watch/today-i-rise/
And then of course, Maya Angelou’s “And Still I Rise” is immediately
brought to mind…
“My soul is not contained within the limits of my body, my body is contained within the limitlessness of my soul. I’ve often said that I wish people could realize all their dreams and wealth and fame so that they can see that it’s not where you’re gonna find your sense of completion. I can tell you from experience the effect you have on others is the most valuable currency there is, because everything you gain in life will rot, and fall apart, and all that will be left of you is what was in your heart.”
-Jim Carey
“Love is the only reality, and it is not a mere sentiment. It is the ultimate truth that lies at the heart of creation.”
-Rabindranath Tagore
These words are sweet music to my heart and ears this radiant morning.
Love will always prevail.
“In the vastness of space and the immensity of time, it is my joy to share a planet and an epoch with you.”
-Carl Sagan
“Sooner or later we all discover that the important moments in life are not the advertised ones, not the birthdays, the graduations, the weddings, not the great goals achieved. The real milestones are less prepossessing. They come to the door of memory.”
-Susan Brownell Anthony
“Life isn’t a matter of milestones, but of moments.”-Rose Kennedy
“The distance lends enchantment to the view, and robes the mountain in its azure hue.”
-Thomas Campbell
“I am no longer trying to “express myself”, to impose my own personality on nature, but without prejudice, without falsification, to become identified with nature, to see or know how things are, their very essence, so that what I record is not an interpretation – my idea of what nature should be – but a revelation, a piercing of the smoke screen.
-Edward Weston
