Kit is Running — right now!

Good Morning, God!

Please take good care of Kit! And all the other runners!  Please help Kit’s little toe which he bruised yesterday afternoon. No rain this morning! And I have a lovelyvideo of Kit at mile four telling us to “Have a greatbreakfast!”

Sandy is with me!!! Thank You for her being here! I am not handling the stress as well as before. Did I ever handle it well?  Maybe not!

Certainly, having the hotel wifi network DOWN hasn’t helped — as I have to use my iPad and haven’t remembered how to load photos.

Well, God, we put Kit in Your Hands! And we will go off to have a great breakfast!  More later — networks willing!

Posted in Marathons, Prayer

Out in The Great Outdoors

The almost full moon over the marina in Hawaii Kai

Good Morning, God!

I LOVE Your Light, God. Sunlight through green leaves never fails to fill me with joy. Leaves are alive and yet translucent. Glowing.

Yet, there is a special delight in moonlight. Kit has agreed to take me out to dinner at The Shack in Hawaii Kai on nights just before the full moon. Last night we took our house guests — his brother, Dick, and his wife, Larie — with us.

At first, Dick was appalled at being outside in the cool breeze and concerned about the undeniably dilapidated tables. Consider it “camping,” I said, perhaps, just a bit too firmly. I did have my heart set on eating there. Or, maybe not so much the “eating” as the “being” there.

I can appreciate why the Japanese had “moon viewing porches.” We live so much of our lives indoors, God. And that can’t be Your Design for us. Maybe that is why Kit loves to be out running — rain or shine. And why I take such delight in sitting outside and being aware of the sun setting and the moon rising.

It seems that we need to be out — out in the sun for vitamin D — out with the rest of Creation. Jogging, gardening, walking. Sitting at an outdoor cafe drinking coffee. These are our modern versions of being out foraging for food and bringing back water. Very basic connections with The Greater World.

I enjoy my iPad and my iPhone. They connect me with other people and with assorted aspects of our man-made world. Still, I need to be outside — out in Your World. Please, God, help me remember that.

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Posted in appreciation, Light, web of life

Being Handmade — Becoming Ourselves

More handmade Ocean Creatures

Good Morning, God!

My Introduction to Jewelry Fabrication class is over, and I have to wait until January 24th to make more sea creatures. Only the starfish was made from a clean piece of copper. All the others were found in the scrap bin and worked with.

The top “fish” (in photo at left) was discovered just at the end of the last class. It was just a rectangle with a circular indentation almost in the center. I picked it up and thought — squid? Or maybe barracuda? Off I went to the giant metal cutter to open its mouth and give it a tail. Then the eyes! One for each side. Each eye is different so that the one in the top photo looks sort of aggressive. The other side does look slightly confused.

The other side -- looks slightly confused and slow

I can’t help but notice the spiritual analogy, God. You seem delighted to pick us up out of the “scrap heap” and fashion us into New Creatures. All of us  are “handmade,” so to speak.

That’s not what our schools — sometimes even our families — seem to want.  A certain uniformity is sought or expected. We are to be bright and shiny — polished and glossy — successful. I suppose that is part of what led to the Grunge and Goth looks.

I don’t think there is a conscious attempt to turn us out like widgets from an assembly line. After all, Creativity is one of our culture’s values — along with novelty.  But, that isn’t quite the same as being helped to discover our talents and passions. Or having someone look into us and “see” something that longs to express itself.

You do that, God! You really see us — see what we can become. And You Delight in helping “fabricate” us! Thank YOU!

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Posted in Creating, Discernment, growing toward up, Help me to see

The Beauty of Ordinary Things

The Orchid Tree outside of Kokua Coop

Good Morning, God!

The beauty of  ordinary things is sometimes overwhelming! My camera didn’t quite capture the beauty of this tree out in back of Kokua Co-op. But I “saw” it. You have put us in a Beautiful World, God. Thank YOU!

I must say, the ordinary things of this world look even brighter after my mother’s trip to the Emergency Room on Monday. I am so thankful that we were able to leave the ER. Mom was able to go home and eat dinner in her own apartment. I’m smiling, God. After eating dinner — after that LONG DAY — she looked at me and asked, “Do you want to play a game of Scrabble?”

An ordinary game of Scrabble. What a marvelous thing that is. But, I confess, God, I wasn’t up to it!  I kissed her good night and went home to bed.

I suppose, God, that events like a FALL and Time in the ER serve to highlight the beauty and delight of the “ordinary.” It is so easy to take things and people for granted! I guess, God, that’s because it takes energy to appreciate — to focus our eyes and our hearts — on the people in our lives. Wonderful people. Thank You, God!

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Posted in appreciation, beauty, Families, Perspective

Pythons and Parents and Hibernating Parts

a drawing of a Burmese Python

Good Morning, God!

For several days an amazing fact about snakes has been bouncing around in my mind. I learned that Snakes can go without food from six months to two years and still continue to grow.

Extreme energy efficiency is what makes this possible. They are able “to reduce the size and function of vital organs, including the heart, stomach liver and kidneys, while fasting.”

Ah, that is remarkable, God! But, after they eat, they have to ramp up all those organs to speed — quickly! That seems even more amazing. We humans have to transition from starving to regular eating rather slowly.

Still, I couldn’t imagine WHY it was stuck in my mind. Then I remembered the time our youngest daughter made her first trip home after college. I had stopped on the way home at a market and she got bored and was going to rest on a park bench across the street. Somehow it came out that I didn’t want her to cross the street. BLUSH!

But as I told her, my Mother Bear Part had been hibernating. It had just awakened. Was she ONE? Or TWENTY-ONE? Mother Bears are NOT good with numbers! [Click here for the story.]

So, now I see the connection between snakes conserving energy by reducing their vital organs and me saving energy by reducing my Mommy Bear Part. As the story shows, REACTIVATING can be tricky. Sigh. This is made more complicated because our “children” are also independent adults. When I go to visit them, that seems very clear.

Ah, but when they return to the family home — there are thousands of very old parent-child patterns hovering out-of-sight — and sometimes the wrong one pops up. Yikes! THAT causes problems! So, please, God, this Advent Season, help us to see Our Offspring as Your Children . . . and remember that we are Your Children, too. All of us, God, are Children.

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Posted in Families, family visits, growing toward up, respect

A “Room” in the Corridor

My Mom's "room" in one of Queen's Hospital's corridors

Good Morning, God!

I’m a bit late this morning — due to the TIME at Queen’s Emergency Room yesterday. Monday’s are busy in the ERs, God. And Queens is OVER capacity — thus the “room” in the corridor. It was a nice wide corridor, though. And it was an “inner” corridor. So, no big deal.

The Big Deal was my Mom’s fall that morning and bump on her head! YIKES! I must say, God, at first I though she could just go and get checked by her doctor at the local clinic. But a call to them, while on my way back from lunch, made it clear — it HAD to be the ER!

Meanwhile, since I had been at a meeting with my phone turned off, Kit had gotten Mom’s call and hurried over. They were playing scrabble when I arrived. That was VERY reassuring, God!

But her “wound” was still oozing and looked scary. So off my Mom and I went to the ER.

I must say, God, everyone at Queen’s was super kind and loving. They took her right in. They didn’t even put our purses through the security scanner. Still, they were on OVERLOAD! Right away they put patches on her so they could do an EKG. Come to think of it, they never did do an EKG and I don’t remember anyone taking the patches off. I’d better check.

They also inserted an IV port that they never used — but that they did take out. And when the doctor said she was waiting for the Cat Scan results I had to be Quite Firm that Mom had NOT had a Cat Scan. So, it was back to get the Cat Scan. I must say, NO ONE should go through ER without an Advocate and Observer! 

The doctor, who’s husband had just been admitted to the hospital, advised an overnight stay. But, by THAT POINT my Mother had become Quite Firm. And when the Cat Scan showed a “good brain” we set off for home.

Home is a much less stressful place to be. Thank You, God, for helpful, caring people. And, maybe you could help us DO MEDICINE a little better?

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Posted in appreciation, complexity, daughters, LOVE, people as gifts

Early Morning Light and Hope

Early Morning Light on the Marina

Good Morning, God!

A new day is still an hour away. I am sitting in the stillness and silence and pondering Your Gift of A NEW DAY!

New is a lovely word. Yesterday, I was looking at the pre-holiday clutter in our home and thought — I need a new house! Then I laughed. I need to clean out the one I have.

So, God, here I have a new day. The same 24 hours You give to each one of us. And, I am free to choose what I do with it and in it. I can choose what I put into my Mouth and into my Mind.

And, choice by choice, I change. I can almost feel You urging me to sit up straight and use my freedom to “grow.” You remind me that I can even “choose” to BELIEVE that I CAN GROW AND CHANGE.

Oddly enough, that might be the most important choice I can make, God!

Now, I’m thinking of Carol Dweck’s book Mindset. She’s a professor at Stanford and her research points to two major ways of viewing ourselves and others. We can have a FIXED mindset — or a GROWTH mindset. Actually, we don’t seem to realize that we even HAVE a mindset. But we do. Fixed mindsets see a person’s IQ (and other qualities) as set — fixed. People with a growth mindset work on USING what they have.

Her website is full of ways to develop an awareness of these two mindsets. Or should I say, full of ways to move into a Growth Mindset.  I find that VERY HOPEFUL, GOD!

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Posted in choices, growing toward up, Growth Opportunities, hope

Marathons, Ancient Heiaus and Christmas

looking into the spot where an ancient Hawaiian Heiau lies

Good Morning, God!

All is quiet. My sweetie pie is out for an eight mile run. The night still has a few more minutes before the sun rises. This is the start of Marathon Week. The Honolulu Marathon being next Sunday.

Kit will be running and his brother, Dick and his wife, Larie will be arriving to watch. Our daughter, Sandy, will be coming to watch Kit, too. I find my inner anxiety level rising.

Marathons are my idea of a modern day “sacrifice.” And, for Kit, running to raise money to fight the disease that took our daughter, Patty, that seems very true.

Perhaps, God, that’s why I wanted to talk about the ancient Hawaiian Heiau (temple) that’s in our neighborhood. I just got the “fact sheet” on it a few days ago. They think it might have been a luakini heiau — one where human sacrifices were offered.

That is an unpleasant thought, God. But, surely, the history of humankind is filled with societies offering You sacrifices — even human ones. It seems that — a some deep level — we all know that we are “estranged” from You.

Pondering that, this morning, made me realize how amazing Christmas really is. You, YOURSELF, reach out to us. Come to become one of us. YOU become the One-Time-Forever sacrifice at Easter. This turns our world of reaching out to YOU, right side up!

The sun is up now, God. The sky is filled with pink and peach clouds. And I am oh-so-thankful.

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Posted in Christmas, LOVE, Sacrifice

BLESS! BLESS!

Last nights sunset -- our out back window

Good Morning, God!

Last night I heard my husband, Kit, calling me, “COME! COME! COME!” I thought there was some sort of disaster — but then heard him say SUNSET! So, it was back up the stairs for my iPhone.

Wow! my camera really can’t capture the GLORY of Your Sky, God! Truly, just seeing it was a blessing.

Then this morning, as I was going to read the paper in bed ,I picked up the MacNutt’s magazine and read an article by Russ Parker on “Rediscovering the Ministry of Blessing.” Parker was in Rome to give a key-note talk and promote his new book Forgiveness is Healing.

He was upset that his book had been unofficially published in Italian and was selling well — but with no royalties to him. Then a woman came up to him asking him to sign a copy of the Italian version. He said, “I did my best to swallow my pride, signed her book and then laid hands on her heard and prayed (in English without a translator) ‘Lord! Give this woman the biggest blessing she can live with!'”

The woman rested in the Spirit and was healed. That began three days of his praying the same prayer over each person who came forward. Wow, God! Parker makes the point that Blessings are PRONOUNCED, not prayed for. There are wonderful books on the importance of the Father’s Blessing, God. But Parker reminds us that all of us who believe are called to bless.

Parker goes on to say that all too often people “battle in prayer” to change someone. You simply command us to BLESS BLESS and do not curse. Ah, God. I think Parker is right when he point out that all too often the person we are “praying for” feels judged and somehow experiences that unheard prayer as more of a “curse.” Sigh.

Oh Lord! Bless us with the BIGGEST BLESSING our lives can hold! And help us freely pronounce that same blessing!

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Posted in Blessing, healing, Holy Spirit, Sunsets

Blooming — Where ever we are

blooming between the Wall and the Deck

Good Morning, God!

I was thinking of using photos of Sunrises or Rainbows for this morning’s blog. But it feels as if You have selected this small flower — blooming in a small crack between the concrete wall and the concrete deck at a friend’s house.

BLOOM! 

It feels like a command! GROW! EXPAND! LEARN! GIVE! A series of commands along the line of the parable about three people given money to “invest.” Two doubled their money and one, BEING AFRAID, dug a hole and buried it.

Sigh. Fear creeps in and blocks the light we need to grow. Being full of Fear is like being FULL OF EXCUSES. We tell ourselves that we were never given the right circumstances in which to flourish.

But, then, God, You show me this beautiful flower which has managed to bloom through a very small crack between a concrete wall and a concrete deck. Do I hear You saying, Well? 

Sigh. I know I have to change. I know I have to be more open and real. More willing to fail and learn. Or maybe, it’s fail – – fail – – fail – – fail – –  fail — and then learn. Certainly, while playing Angry Birds, a computer game, I had totally to disregard the Level FAILED message and focus on TRYING AGAIN.

That does take HOPE, God! . . . Hope AND Humility and stick-to-itiveness.

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Posted in blooming, Failing, fears, growing toward up, Growth Opportunities

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Brené Brown

chatting and sometimes, listening

Rachel Naomi Remen

chatting and sometimes, listening

A Moment with God

chatting and sometimes, listening

Sacred Dance Guild Journal

Since 1958 articles by members & guests offer news about activities, history, Sacred Dance practices, profiles of Sacred Dancers, choreography, images & illustrations.

Victoria Paulsen

How to Step In -- Substitute Teaching