As V rails through Germany she sends texts and pictures via What’s App (An amazing tool for free!!! to use with international travelers and family abroad). She visited Bach’s hometown of Leipzig, then proceeded to Weimar, Dresden and Nuremberg.
Could anything be more picturesque? Tomorrow she is headed for Munich and will be attending a national Soccer game with her favorite players on the field.
Ich wünsche Ihnen ales Gute - I wish you well!
What moment are you living now? Is it full of fear and dread or is it aglow with love and light?
We are spirit and timeless and we always are but it’s in the moment that we have the lightening thought of peace and now that we understand this. That moment is irretrievable and now that moment is gone. There is no next guaranteed moment so all we have is THIS moment. The concept of being in the NOW was fully explained in Eckhart Tolle’s book but is still difficult to grasp. Once you pause and find yourself fully in the moment, you will keep searching for the peace and cannot help seeking the spiritual in your earth life.
Every moment of joy, every minute of truth and all your exchanges of love become the infinite reality of your soul.
My mind wants to analyze but peace only comes through to the quiet mind that is not thinking but remains in the now. The higher energy transmits in the now and that thought brings peace and serenity. I remember the first time I felt peace I did not know what it was. I mentioned the feeling to another and they assured me I was on my way…..
You can’t get away from the Eternal Present. That is where you Higher Power resides. That is why it is said – “(he) is among us.”
Seek to be guided and healed. When we heal, the world heals.
V, my New Yorker, is in Germany for the next two weeks enjoying the country, vistas, sites, language, trains and FOOD!!! She spent one month or so studying German at the University of Berlin, two summers ago. She is backpacking it now and living in youth hostels in each location. She is living a dream and at 21 this is the time to do it!
Of course our first correspondence had to do with food. She returned to a favorite ice cream parlor and had the best ice cream ever – Marzipan (almond). 
Outside the Ice cream parlor – I guess EIS means ice. Notice the passerby with cone in hand and bright yellow building in the background. Trees in cities always makes them picturesque.
She also had the best falafel of her life she said. It was prepared in this cozy kitchen and made to order.
Fast food in Berlin
I will be reporting and posting on her whereabouts and experiences, sprinkled throughout my blog, for the next two weeks.
I used to mock and feel sorry for people who babied their pets. I resented how some people seemed to care more about their animals than their human friends/family. I couldn’t believe how much someone would spend to save their domestic companions’ lives or limbs. I thought maybe all these people were obsessed or deranged.
I mock no more.
As the result of “empty nester syndrome”, we have re-fallen in love with our cats and all of a sudden have a penchant for dogs!!!! My husband diligently takes care of my daughter’s hamster, cleaning the cage bimonthly and feeding it daily. Our felines have always been treated well but now they have all of our attention and caresses. We walk our dog, Cindi, more than anyone in the neighborhood, as reported by our next door neighbor.
This weekend, my husband taped and we all (the girls were home) watched “Too Cute” shows on Animal Planet which follows one half hour of the cutest puppies, their mom, their situation and then what happens as they grow and leave to make children and families happy. And then, one half hour of the same, but with the sweetest kittens and cats.
And Cindi, how do we cherish her? Well, she’s in a class by herself. My husband recently found a stroller for her at a garage sale so he can travel with her, I suppose incognito? I think he figures if she’s bundled up enough we can take her anywhere. I just gave Cindi a bath and I always sing her the “This is the way we wash our hair” song I used to sing to the kids. Pretty soon I will be taking her paws and cycling them and singing “The Wheels on the Bus”.
Not only do I not mock anymore – WE have become those crazy animal loving people!!!!!!!!!!
And the latest fashion craze !
August brought many arrivals, the girls whom are blossoming flowers and a bouquet and a wreath.
The Growing Garden Wreath is begging for some cute small tiny shovels and rakes, maybe a few extra dried flowers, too. The natural burlap keeps this wreath earthy and the petite garden pots with garden moss gives it an organic theme. Purple larkspur is juxtaposed within.
“A designer knows he has achieved perfection not when there is nothing left to add, but when there is nothing left to take away.”– Antoine de Saint-Exupery
The fresh flowers include Telstar iris, blue thistle, green button mums, red and cream roses, orange flecked alstroemeria and green Israeli ruscus.
“Flowers… are a proud assertion that a ray of beauty out values all the utilities of the world.”
When I saw the owner at the Healthy Junk line, I introduced her to my daughter V. She remembered I did say I wanted to bring my vegan daughter to taste her food two weeks ago. She quickly took our order herself, saving us at least five minutes. The place was mobbed with foodies dining from five options.
We enjoyed and shared the best vegan salad ever (see earlier post), a portobello burger with special sauce, spicy ‘chicken’ wings’ with ranch, sweet potato rings, carrot cake (see earlier post) and peach cobbler.
Later, after thoroughly filling up, we all traipsed around the Anaheim Promenade and the Packhouse across the street.
A live band was playing and singing sweet tunes, a screen displayed them on the second floor and people were munching from over a dozen eateries, enjoying Saturday at the re-furbished Packing House.
“So long as you have food in your mouth, you have solved all questions for the time being.” – Franz Kafka
It’s Friday! Last day for the girls in their Berkeley abode. They are on their way home! Then one whole day with V and off to Germany and environs she goes! One whole week with E and back to school for her.
It’s that time of year again when kids are coming and going in every family. Back to school soon and the last few hurrahs of summer for most. Teachers are revving up, books are being sold, classes are hopefully getting cleaned and the stores are stocked with stationery items.
As I hug and hold and snuggle with my little chickadees again, I will cherish the precious, few moments and bless the tops of their sweet little heads.
The 5 Steps to Forgiveness
How do I know if I have forgiven?
If you see or visualize or hear the person’s name or event:
|
“Joy is not in things. |
Gentle, peaceful joy is all I want. When I get into a tight spot in my head, I ask, “How can I see this differently?”
If I feel guilty, I am listening to the wrong adviser. Maybe it is my ego? Instead, I listen to my higher, inner voice, that place where LOVE resides.
Putting a smile on my face, I greet the day.
I have the ability to change how I feel about the “hurt” or “offense” I believe is true – by dropping the denial and obstacles. Instead, I choose to release grievances, resentments, judgments and discontent by letting go of my ego and all its illusions.
I cannot feel conflict if I want to express my creativity so I must find serenity to generate ideas. The steps to a tranquil mind include meditation, positive thought, gentle motion and the consciousness of being in the now. The experience of Now is timeless.
Self induced fear holds me back. I invite Love to be my focus. I demonstrate Love and what it looks like. I accept that everyone, including myself, is doing their best according to their awareness. And when I have a miracle impulse to extend and express my love, I do not let my fear or ego distort the outcome in order to stop me.
I am called to be a light bearer and avoid the drama. By putting negative news, thoughts and views in my conscious, I am perpetuating it. I change the dialog within myself and I change what I think by remaining right here, right now, in this space. Is it happening here, to me, right now? Then, why would I place that in my mind’s eye? Why would I continue the destruction by sustaining its evil validity in my Brain? Why memorialize, internalize and preserve it? I give my unloving thoughts to Divine Source and surrender it, one thought at a time. And, there is but one thought, one choice.
If it seems complicated, it’s my ego showing off and distracting me.
Love is simple. Joy is mine.
When I am unhappy, I need to remember to say, “This thought I do not want, I choose Peace (or Joy or Love or Compassion or Forgiveness) instead.”
I would be remiss if I didn’t post what everyone is stunned by. Pathos and comedy are entwined tight for the brilliant mind. Sorrow and deep despair is steeped in darkness and shrouded by a cunning farce.
Ironically, Robin Williams chose his fate and seized the day or Carpe Diem, as he espoused in Dead Poet’s Society, by ending his own life too soon and tragically. Everyone has a favorite movie or sketch he will be personally remembered by.
For those souls who choose to leave this world by their own hand, my heart goes out to their families. Recently, an Oregon woman left her two tiny children, husband and parents by killing herself. My friend passed on a story of her friend’s brother, suffering from terminal cancer, doing the same. I knew a young man who hung himself not too long ago. His mom, a neighbor, died soon after from cancer, perhaps brought on by inconsolable grief.
L’Wren Scott, Phillip Seymour Hoffman, Alexander Mcqueen, Hemingway, Freddie Prinze, Kurt Cobain and Marilyn Monroe are just a few well known names of persons who had all the worldly goods and fame and yet were troubled and burdened enough to end their lives. It is proof positive that what matters is what goes on in between your head on the inside not what we see on the outside. And Who knows what goes on inside another’s head?
What awaits us on the other side is by no means known either. But I implore whoever and whenever this awful, fatal thought crosses your mind, to stomp it out and replace it with a better, more generous view of your circumstances. Not too many escape the stranglehold of depression or a bout with the blues at some time or another, but with kindness, openness and awareness we can help ourselves or another.
Again, my heart goes out to all his fans and especially his children, family and close friends.
If you get a chance, watch What Dreams May Come – 1998- an indie film about the afterlife with Robin Williams and hauntingly, a warning about suicide and its repercussions.